Abstract

The Coimbatore farmer sows his main ragi crop under irrigation in May or June and the summer crop at the end of December. The main crop needs to be harvested before the last week of September or October if tobacco or wheat as the case may be, follows it. The prudent farmer has therefore to time the sowing so as to secure a maximum yield without at the same time protracting into the proper sowing time for the following crop. The scope for the summer crop is wider; anytime from December to March, the crop may be sown, there being no time limitations except the availability of water. For these reasons, it was undertaken to investigate the reactions of different seasonal sowings on the crop. Besides this consideration, there was another problem to be studied. Ragi is a crop reputed to grow fairly well, flower and set seed at practically all times of the year. The differential response of the plant to the vicissitudes of weather was a problem awaiting scrutiny. An experiment was accordingly designed to ascertain (1) the most suitable time for sowing for the main and summer crops, (2) the plant characters which respond to ciimatic factors in the same manner as grain yield, and (3) the duration of a crop in relation to the time of sowing.

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