SOW MOONG CROP IN FIRST FORTNIGHT OF JULY: PAU

LUDHIANA, JULY 9:



The farm experts of the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) have advised the farmers of the Punjab state to sow moongcrop, the hardiest of all pulse crops, in the first fortnight of July. The cultivation of moong offers a valuable option for crop diversification, they highlighted, while divulging that this crop (moong) occupied 6.6 thousand hectares of area and its total production was 5.6 thousand tonnes during 2011-12. It is average yield was 849 kg per hectare (340 kg per acre), they said.



The experts elaborated that the moong requires a hot climate and can tolerate drought also. A well-drained loamy to sandy-loam soil is suitable for growing moong while saline-alkaline and water-logged soils are unsuitable for this crop, they said. "PAU 911, ML 818 and ML 613" are the improved varieties of moong, recommended by the PAU for cultivation, informed the experts. The cultivation of moong variety "ML 613" can be done under rainfed conditions in Gurdaspur, Hoshiarpur and Ropar districts. The cultivation of moong variety "PAU 911" has been recommended for entire Punjab except south-western districts of state like Bathinda, Faridkot, Muktsar and Ferozepur, they told.



Furthermore, the experts advised the farmers, "For land preparation, give two or three plouhgings to the land, followed by planking to crush the clods and eradicate the weeds. Use 8 kg seed per acre. Inoculate the moong seed with recommended Rhizobium culture at the time of sowing. Wet the seed recommended for one acre with minimum amount of water. Mix thoroughly one packet of Rhizobium with in on a clean pucca floor and let it dry in shade. Sow the seed immediately. The inoculation of seed with Rhizobium culture increases the yield by 12-16 per cent. The Rhizobiuminoculation and fungicide can be applied simultaneously. The Rhizobium culture can be obtained from the Department of Microbiology, PAU. Seed should be treated with Captan or Thiram @3g/kg of seed against soil-borne diseases."



The experts said that the sowing of moong should be done at a row spacing of 30 cm. The plant to plant distance should be about 10 cm, they told, while suggesting sowing the crop 4 to 6 cm deep with seed drill/pora/kera. For getting higher yield, adopt bi-directional method of sowing i.e. sow the crop in both directions at 30 cm row spacing using half the seed rate in each direction, they advised. Moong can also be grown without seed bed preparation with zero till drill after conventional or zero till sown wheat without any adverse effect on yield. The experts impressed upon the farmers to follow proper methods for weed control, fertilizer application, and harvesting and threshing.


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