JUTE AGRONOMY PRACTICE

Crop Production Practices:

1.  Time Of Sowing:

·       Sowing Time Of Jute May Differ From Area To Area On The Basis Of The Receipt Of Pre-Monsoon Showers, Availability Of Residual Moisture And Variety. Generally, Sowing In Middle Of March Is Optimum For All Capsularis Varieties And The Olitorius Varieties Like JRO524, JRO878 And JRO7835 While JRO632 Should Be Sown Only After Middle Of April. Olitorius Sowing May Be Staggered Up To May. In Bihar And Uttar Pradesh, Sowing Is Done Up To Mid June Or Some Time Up To End June As Per The Onset Of Monsoon.

·       The Recommended Sowing For Mesta Crop Is May-June For Main Season Crop. However, In Some Areas Particularly In Some Areas Of Andhra Pradesh, Rabi Mesta Is Also Raised. Sowing Time For Rabi Mesta Is February-March And Usually Sown With The Subsoil Moisture. Sowing Should Be Done When There Is Sufficient Moisture In The Soil. A Minimum Of 21 Per Cent Soil Moisture Content Is Required For Germination.

2.  Methods Of Sowing:

·       Sowing Of Jute Can Be Done Either By Broadcast Method Or By Line Sowing Method. For Line Sowing, The Land Is Prepared Well And Sowing Is Done With Row To Row Spacing Of: Capsularis – 30 Cm, Olitorius– 25 Cm And Plant To Plant Spacing Is Maintained At 5 To 7 Cm And This Is Done By Mechanical Means I.E. Seed Drill. The Depth Of Sowing Is Maintained At 2.5 To 3 Cm.

·       Mesta Is Usually Sown By Broadcasting Method. But As Criteria Of Improved Production Technology, It Is Advocated To Sow The Crop In Line. Line Sowing Can Be Undertaken With The Help Of Seed Drill. Line Sowing Has Got Certain Advantages Over Broadcasting Method Such As I) Plant Growth Is Uniform Since Uniform Spacing Is Maintained, Ii) Intercultural Operation Like Weeding, Hoeing, Etc. Become Easier And Cheaper. Iii) Application Of Pesticides And Top Dressing Of Fertilizer Is Easier, Iv) Yield Is Higher By About 15-20%, V) Requirement Of Seed Is Less Etc.

3.  Land Preparation:

·       Jute Seeds Being Small Require Very Fine Tilth. The Land Can Be Prepared By Ploughing And Cross-Harrowing 3-5 Times Followed By Planking. In Acidic Soils (Ph <6.0), Incorporation Of 1-1.5t/Ha Of Lime, 30-40days Before Sowing Is Necessary For Better Crop Performance. Soil Moisture Between 21-45% Is Considered Ideal For Proper Germination.

·       Mesta Being A Rainfed Crop, Land Preparation Is Usually Done With The Receipt Of Pre-Monsoon Showers. However, In Andhra Pradesh, For Raising Rabi Mesta, The Land Preparation Is Done Early In February For Sowing The Crop With The Help Of Subsoil Moisture.

4.  Seeding Technologies:

·       Depending Upon The Species Of Jute And Method Of Sowing, The Seed Rate Of The Two Species Recommended Is Under:

Species

Broadcast

Line Sowing

C. Capsularis

10kg/Ha

7kg/Ha

C.Olitorius

7kg/Ha

5kg/Ha

5.  Fertilizer Management:

·       In General, The Nutrient Requirement Of Capsularis Is More Than That Of Olitorius. In Soils With Low Organic Carbon Content, FYM Application @ 5-10t/Ha, A Month Prior To Crop Sowing Is Recommended. The Leaf Fall From The Standing Crop And Also Root Stubbles Left In The Soil After Harvest Results In Recycling Of Handsome Amount Of Nutrients Besides Organic Matter In Intensive Cropping Systems. The Recommended Doses Of Fertilizers Are 40 To 80, 20 To 40, 20 To 40 Kg/Ha (Olitorius) And 60 To 80, 30 To 40, 30 To 40 Kg/Ha (Capsularis) Of N:P:K Respectively (As Per CRIJAF).

·       In Heavy Soils With Low To Moderate Rainfall, All Nutrients Are Applied As Basal. In Light Soils And High Rainfall Situations, N Is Applied In 2 Equal Splits, ½ Basal And ½ Top Dressing, I.E. Preferably After Weeding And Thinning Operations. Seed Inoculation With Azotobactor Chroococum And Azospirillum Brasiliense Has Been Found Promising To Supplement Part Of N Fertilizer. Foliar Application Of 20 Kg N Through Urea Solution With Teepol As Sticker At Pre-Flowering Stage Is Promising.

·       In Acid Soils And Regions With High Rainfall, Calcium And Magnesium Deficiency Is Common. Liming Of Soil @ 2-5t/Ha, Once In 4 Years Or Dolomite Application (40 Kg/Ha) Is Found Promising As It Supplies Both Calcium And Magnesium.

6.  Water Management:

·       Jute Requires About 50 Cm Water For Its Growth And Development. In India About 15% Jute Area Is Irrigated And The Remaining Area Is Rainfed. If The Rainfall Is Not Sufficient, The Water Requirement Has To Be Supplemented Through Irrigation. For Germination Of Jute Seed, About 18-20% Soil Moisture Is Required. At Sowing Time, If The Soil Moisture Is Not Sufficient, Then One Pre-Sowing Irrigation Is To Be Given. After Sowing, Usually One Or Two Irrigations At An Interval Of About 20 Days Is Required At The Initial Stages Of Growth. Jute Is Sensitive To Both Drought And Water Logging. At Germination And Knee-High Stages, Adequate Soil Moisture Must Be Ensured By Irrigation. During Rainy Season, The Crop Experiences Water Logging That Adversely Affects Fibre Quality. Provision Of Quick Drainage In Uplands Will Be Beneficial To The Crop. However, In Lowlands, It May Not Be Feasible.

·       In India, Mesta Is Mainly Raised As A Rainfed Crop. Since The Pattern Of Rainfall During The Sowing And Growth Period Is Highly Erratic, Desired Yield Is Not Obtained In Mesta Crop. For Obtaining Good Yield, Along With Other Inputs, The Water Requirement Of The Crop Is To Be Fulfilled. The Water Requirement Of Mesta Is About 50 Cm, If The Rainfall Is Highly Uncertain, In That Case It Is Desirable To Give One Or Two Irrigation To Mesta Crop At An Interval Of 15 To 20 Days.

7.  Weed Management:

·       Jute Crop Suffers From Heavy Weed Infestation In The Initial 6-8 Weeks After Sowing. Two-Three Hand Weedings Or Mechanical Hoeings Are Required To Arrest Weed Menace. The First 2 Manual Weedings Are Combined With Thinning Operations At 20 And 35 DAS. The Third Weeding Should Be Done 55-60 DAS. Due To Continuous Rains, Sometimes Manual Weeding May Not Be Possible. In Such A Situation, Herbicide Integrated With Manual Weeding Is Promising. Butachlor 50% EC Or Pretilachlor 50% EC (Preemergence,Applied During Sowing) @ 0.9-1.0 Kg Ai/Ha Combined With One Hand Weeding At 35DAS May Effectively Control The Weeds. Recommended Postemergence Herbicides For Weed Control Include Quitalofop Ethyl 5% @ 40-60g Ai/Ha And Should Be Applied 20 Days After Sowing.

·       Mesta Is Very Susceptible To Weed Competition At Early Stage Of Growth. The Growth Rate Of Mesta Is Slower At This Stage And Over Powered By Weeds. The Crop Requires About Two To Three Weeding/Thinning Operations Depending Upon The Weed Infestations. While Two Weedings Are Practiced, The First One Is Done About Three Weeks After Sowing And The Second One Is Done At About Five Weeks After Sowing. In Row-Cropping, Wheel Hoe Is Used For Weeding Operations And Thinning Is Done Manually. Weeding May Also Be Done With The Application Of Herbicides. Amongst The Various Herbicides, Basalin Gave Better Result For Mesta Crop. Application Of Basalin (Fluchloralin) @ 2 Litres Per Hectare As Pre-Sowing (3days Before Sowing) Will Kill Almost All The Weeds Except Sedges. However, Application Of Basalin As Above Followed By One Manual Weeding Will Give Good Result.