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Vegetables · Stem

Growing knol-khol

Brassica oleracea var. gongylodes · also called ganth gobhi, monj (Kashmiri)A cool season cole crop grown for its swollen, tender stem, cooked or pickled along with its leaves. A biennial grown as an annual, it is one of the main kitchen vegetables of Kashmir.

Gangetic plains: eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plains

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Includes AI suggestions where no published guide covers a detail
A purple knol-khol plant in a vegetable bed, its round swollen stem sitting just above the soil under a crown of leaves
Photo: Σ64 · CC BY 4.0

At a glance

Knol-khol in the Gangetic plains

  • Season

    Winter crop, planted in September and October3

  • Sowing to last picking

    About two and a half to three and a half months from nursery sowing to harvest.

    No published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

  • Nursery

    Late August to September3

    Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  • First harvest

    45 to 60 days after sowing3

    Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

Across India

When to sow it

Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.

Too late this season

The window here was Late August to September. The next one opens in August.

Sowing now in:South interiorWest coastEast coast
  • Sow
  • Nursery
  • Transplant
  • Harvest
  • Under cover
  • Today
Gangetic plainseastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal plainsNorth-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, SikkimCentral plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Vidarbha
Compare all 12 regions
Temperate HimalayaKashmir valley, Shimla, KulluCold desertLadakh, Lahaul and SpitiSub-tropical foothillsJammu, Kangra, DehradunNorth-west plainsPunjab, Haryana, DelhiNorth-east hills and valleysAssam, Meghalaya, SikkimArid westRajasthan, Kutch, north GujaratCentral plateauMadhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, VidarbhaDeccan plateauinterior Maharashtra, Telangana, north KarnatakaSouth interiorBengaluru, Mysuru, interior Tamil NaduWest coastKerala, Goa, KonkanEast coastcoastal Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, coastal Andhra
Today
See the dates as a table
RegionSowNurseryTransplantHarvest
Gangetic plainsLate August to SeptemberSeptember to OctoberLate November to January
Temperate HimalayaMarch to mid-AprilJulyMid-April to mid-MayAugustJune to JulyOctober to November
Cold desertUnder cover: April, under polytheneMayUnder cover: Mid-October, in a polyhouseJuly to early September
Sub-tropical foothillsLast week of August, sown directMid-SeptemberMid-OctoberMid-FebruaryLast week of MarchMid-OctoberSecond week of DecemberLast week of MarchMid-April
North-west plainsSeptemberOctoberDecember to January
North-east hills and valleysSeptember to mid-OctoberOctober to mid-NovemberDecember to mid-February
Arid westMid-September to OctoberMid-October to NovemberLate December to mid-February
Central plateauMid-September to OctoberMid-October to NovemberDecember to January
Deccan plateauOctoberNovemberLate December to mid-February
South interiorSeptember to mid-NovemberOctober to mid-DecemberDecember to February
West coastOctober to mid-NovemberNovember to mid-DecemberJanuary to mid-February
East coastOctober to mid-NovemberNovember to mid-DecemberJanuary to mid-February

From seed to harvest

One season, day by day

Days from sowing

  1. Before sowing

    Farmyard manure3

    200 to 250 quintals per hectare · Mix it in thoroughly while preparing the field. · Field preparation

  2. Day 0

    Sow

  3. Day 5 to 8

    Seeds come up1,3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  4. Day 45 to 60

    First picking3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

  5. Day 75 to 100

    Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Water every 7 to 10 days, more at knob swelling.No published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

What it needs

Soil, sun and warmth

  • Soil pH1

    Grows on most soils if they are fertile. Light sandy or sandy loam soils suit an early crop; clay loam and silty soils, which hold more moisture, suit a late crop.

  • SunlightNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

    At least 6 hours a day

    Full sun in an open spot. In shade the stems swell slowly and stay small.

  • Temperature1,3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.

    Grows best at 15 to 25 °C

    Takes hard frost.

    Monthly temperatures for the Gangetic plains aren't in the library yet.

Water and feeding

WateringNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Water right after transplanting, then keep the soil evenly moist. A dry spell checks growth and makes the knobs woody.

WeedingNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Hoe shallowly two or three times in the first month after transplanting, since the roots stay near the surface.

WhenWhatHow muchHow
Field preparationFarmyard manure200 to 250 quintals per hectareMix it in thoroughly while preparing the field.

Sources3

Varieties and yield

Typical range3

12 to 25 tonnes a hectare

Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.

Good neighbours1

Grows well with

Pests and diseasesNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Organic and cultural controls only.

  • Pest

    Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella)

    Signs

    Small green caterpillars make windows and holes in the leaves.

    What to do

    • Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.
    • Pick off caterpillars in small plots.

    Prevention

    • Grow a row of mustard every 20 to 25 rows as a trap crop.

  • Pest

    Cabbage aphid

    Signs

    Grey waxy colonies under the leaves; leaves curl.

    What to do

    • Wash colonies off with a strong jet of water.
    • Spray neem seed kernel extract 5%.

    Prevention

    • Conserve ladybird beetles and hoverflies.

  • Pest

    Cutworm

    Signs

    Young plants cut at the base overnight.

    What to do

    • Search the soil around cut plants in the morning and destroy the caterpillars.

    Prevention

    • Plough before planting and keep the field free of weeds.

  • Disease

    Black rot

    Signs

    V-shaped yellow patches at the leaf edges with black veins.

    What to do

    • Pull out and destroy infected plants.

    Prevention

    • Use seed from healthy plants and soak it in hot water at 50 °C for 30 minutes.
    • Rotate with crops outside the cabbage family.

  • Disease

    Damping off

    Signs

    Seedlings collapse at the soil line in the nursery.

    Prevention

    • Raise the nursery on raised, well drained beds and avoid overwatering.
    • Transplant only healthy seedlings.

Seed and the season's end

Saving seed1

Leave only healthy knobs that are true to type in the field for seed, and keep the seed crop 1,600 m from other knol-khol and other cole crops. Make sure insect pollinators are about at flowering.

When the seed is ready

Flowers appear 30 to 35 days after the chosen knobs are replanted, then pods set. Cut the branches as the pods ripen.

Cleaning the seed

Stack the cut branches to dry for 4 to 5 days, then turn them upside down and leave them 4 to 5 days more before threshing.

After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Gangetic plains, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.

Clear the stumps and roots after harvest and compost healthy leaves. Do not follow with another cabbage family crop on the same land.

Destroy diseased plant remains after harvest.

Rotation

SKUAST-Jammu advises rotating cole crops with paddy against stalk rot.

Sources

Where this comes from

Our team has checked this guide against the sources at the end of the page.Reviewed by our team on 13 November 2026.

These published guides are the sources. Where none of them covers a detail for this region, the page shows an AI suggestion and labels it.

  1. 1Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops 2020 (Knol-khol; insect-pest and disease management in cole crops; preface)Directorate of Extension, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology of Jammu (SKUAST-Jammu)Read the source
  2. 3Production Technology of Vegetables and Flowers (VSF-231), Part I: Vegetable production (Knol khol; diseases and insect-pests of cole crops)CSK Himachal Pradesh Krishi Vishvavidyalaya, Palampur (Department of Vegetable Science and Floriculture)Read the source

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