Crop calendar India: when to sow and harvest
This crop calendar for India puts the usual sowing and harvesting months of 19 major crops on one chart — kharif crops sown with the south-west monsoon, rabi crops sown after it, summer (zaid) crops grown with irrigation, and year-round sugarcane. Green cells mark sowing or planting, amber cells mark harvest.
Filter by season or crop group, search in English or Hindi, and pick a month to see what is sown and harvested then. Each crop has a short note on regional differences and the source of its dates. Print the chart or save it as a PDF, or download it as a CSV file for a spreadsheet.
How to use the crop calendar
- Choose a season — kharif, rabi, zaid/summer or annual — or keep All.
- Narrow the list by crop group (cereals, pulses, oilseeds, commercial, vegetables) or type a crop name.
- Pick a month under Highlight a month, or press This month, to list what to sow and harvest now.
- Read the notes below the chart for state-level differences and sources.
- Press Print or save as PDF for a paper chart, or download the CSV.
Crop Calendar (India) features
Month-by-month chart
Twelve columns, with sowing, harvest and overlapping months shaded for each crop.
Kharif, rabi and zaid
Seasonal crops of India in one view, including rabi rice, rabi maize and summer moong and groundnut.
What to sow now
Lists crops sown and harvested in any month you pick.
Notes and sources
Each crop explains its regional spread and names where its dates come from.
Print, PDF and CSV
A clean printable chart and a spreadsheet file.
The three cropping seasons of India
Arthapedia, the Indian Economic Service’s reference, describes the kharif season as July–October with the south-west monsoon and the rabi season as October–March, with summer crops between March and June. In practice sowing begins as soon as the monsoon or soil moisture allows, so the same crop can be sown weeks apart in different states.
| Season | Sowing | Harvest | Main crops |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kharif (monsoon) | June–July | September–November | Rice, maize, bajra, tur, moong, urad, soybean, groundnut, cotton |
| Rabi (winter) | October–December | February–May | Wheat, barley, gram, lentil, mustard, potato |
| Zaid (summer) | February–April | April–June | Summer moong, groundnut, vegetables, melons, fodder |
Where the dates come from
Harvest periods follow the state-wise harvesting seasons published by the Directorate of Economics and Statistics, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare (Farm Harvest Prices of Principal Crops, Appendix II). Sowing windows come from ICAR institutes and advisories: wheat sown in November, with December counted as late sowing; soybean 20 June–5 July in central India after about 100 mm of rain; mustard from mid to end October; potato in the plains from the first week of October.
The calendar is deliberately general. For a district calendar, check your state agriculture department, the nearest Krishi Vigyan Kendra or the agromet advisory, which also warn when the monsoon is late.
Planning with the calendar
- Line up inputs early: seed, fertilizer and credit are needed a few weeks before the sowing month — see the seed rate calculator and fertilizer calculator.
- Crop insurance enrolment closes around sowing time; estimate the premium with the crop insurance calculator.
- Before harvest, check the MSP chart and your state’s procurement dates.
Crop Calendar (India) FAQ
Which crops are sown in October in India?
Mainly rabi crops: mustard and toria, gram, lentil, barley, rabi maize and potato in the plains, plus autumn-planted sugarcane. Wheat follows in November.
What is the sowing time of wheat in India?
November is the timely sowing window (about 1–25 November in the north-western and north-eastern plains); sowing in December is treated as late sown and needs suitable varieties.
When is kharif paddy harvested?
Mostly October–November; across India the harvest runs from September to January.
What are zaid crops?
Short crops grown in the hot, dry months between rabi and kharif with irrigation — summer moong and urad, groundnut, watermelon, muskmelon, cucumber and fodder.
Can I download the crop calendar as a PDF?
Yes. Press Print or save as PDF and choose “Save as PDF” in the print dialog. A CSV download is also available.
Is this crop calendar right for my district?
It is a general all-India guide. Dates differ by state, variety and rainfall, so check your state agriculture department or KVK for local recommendations.