Growing wheat
Triticum aestivum · also called gehun, kanak (Kashmiri)The main rabi grain of north India, sown in autumn and harvested in spring. It wants cool, moist weather while it grows and dry, warm weather as the grain ripens.
Cold desert: Ladakh, Lahaul and Spiti
At a glance
Wheat in the Cold desert
Summer crop in the short frost-free season: sown in spring as the snow melts and cut in late summer (AI suggestion).
No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.About 120 to 150 days from spring sowing to harvest.
No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.April to early May
No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Across India
When to sow it
Twelve growing regions, January to December. Your region comes first.
Wait until April
The next sowing here is April to early May.
- Sow
- Harvest
- Today
- Not suited here
Compare all 12 regionsShow fewer regions
See the dates as a table
| Region | Sow | Nursery | Transplant | Harvest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold desert | April to early May | Late August to September | ||
| Temperate Himalaya | Late October to mid-November (Kashmir valley, AI suggestion)1 to 15 November, irrigated timely sown (Northern Hills Zone, national guide)Second to fourth week of November (temperate and mid hills of Jammu)Last week of October to end of November, rainfed (mid hills of Jammu) | June to early July | ||
| Sub-tropical foothills | 1 to 25 November, timely sown20 November to 25 December, late sown26 December to 15 January, very late sown | April to early May | ||
| North-west plains | First fortnight of November (the optimum)Fourth week of October to fourth week of November (most timely sown varieties)Fourth week of November to fourth week of December (late sown varieties)First fortnight of January (PBW 757 only) | April | ||
| Gangetic plains | 10 to 20 November, irrigated timely sownAfter 25 November, late sown (end of the window is an AI suggestion) | Late March to April | ||
| North-east hills and valleys | 10 to 20 November (Assam and the plains of the north-east)1 to 15 November (hills of the north-east, Sikkim and Darjeeling) | Late March to April | ||
| Arid west | 1 to 15 November, irrigated timely sownAfter 25 November, late sown (end of the window is an AI suggestion) | Late March to mid-April | ||
| Central plateau | 10 to 20 November, irrigated timely sown1 to 15 December, irrigated late sown | March to mid-April | ||
| Deccan plateau | 1 to 15 November, irrigated timely sownLast week of November to first week of December, late sown | Late February to March | ||
| South interior | Mid-October to first week of November (Tamil Nadu)1 to 15 November, irrigated (Karnataka plains) | Mid-January to February | ||
| West coast | Not suited here | |||
| East coast | Not suited here | |||
From seed to harvest
One season, day by day
Days from sowing
Before sowing
Field preparation
Well-rotted farmyard manure or compost
About 10 t per hectare (AI suggestion)
Spread and plough in before the last harrowing
No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Day 0
Sow
Day 120 to 150
Last picking
No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Before sowing
Well-rotted farmyard manure or compostNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
About 10 t per hectare (AI suggestion) · Spread and plough in before the last harrowing · Field preparation
Day 0
Sow
Day 5 to 10
Seeds come up1,2,3Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Day 120 to 150
Last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Water every 10 to 15 days, more at crown root initiation and flowering.No published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
What it needs
Soil, sun and warmth
Soil pH1,2Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
6 to 8
Grows on most soils. Avoid badly degraded, alkaline or waterlogged land; soils that hold water well but drain freely suit it. Durum wheat does better on medium to heavy soils.
SunlightNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, 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 open fields.
Temperature2Part of this comes from the sources cited. The rest is an AI suggestion.
Grows best at 15 to 22 °C
Takes hard frost.
Monthly temperatures for the Cold desert aren't in the library yet.
Water and feeding
WateringNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Grown only where glacier-fed channel water reaches the field. Irrigate before sowing, then about every 10 to 15 days, more often in the July heat. Do not let the field dry out at flowering and grain fill.
WeedingNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Hoe or hand weed once or twice in the first five to six weeks, before the crop closes over the rows. Pull any weeds that escape before they set seed.
| When | What | How much | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Field preparation | Well-rotted farmyard manure or compost | About 10 t per hectare (AI suggestion) | Spread and plough in before the last harrowing |
Varieties and yield
15 to 25 quintals a hectare
Yields vary with the plot, the seed and the season.
Good neighbours1
Pests and diseasesNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Organic and cultural controls only.
Aphids
Signs
Small green insects cluster on leaves and ears and suck the sap; leaves lose colour.
What to do
- Leave ladybird beetles and other natural enemies alone
- Check the field borders first, where aphids usually start
Yellow rust (stripe rust)
Signs
Yellow pustules in stripes along the leaves.
Prevention
- Grow resistant varieties suggested by the local agriculture office
- Do not overdo nitrogen
Loose smut
Signs
Ears turn into a black powdery mass.
What to do
- Pull out smutted ears before the spores blow about
Prevention
- Save seed only from a clean plot
Seed and the season's end
Saving seed1,2,3
Start from good foundation or certified seed. Pull out off-type and diseased plants several times through the season and keep the seed plot's harvest separate.
When the seed is ready
Harvest when the ears are fully ripe and golden but before they are dead ripe, so the grain does not shatter.
Dry the grain well before storing, or moulds and heat spoil it: Punjab says to 10 per cent moisture, the national guide to below 12 per cent. Keep seed lots apart at threshing and in store.
After the last pickingNo published guide covers this for the Cold desert, so this is an AI suggestion. Check it with local advice before you rely on it.
Bring the straw in dry and keep it under cover: it is valuable winter fodder for livestock. Return manure from the animals to the field.
Do not burn the straw. Work the stubble and residues back into the soil after harvest to hold up soil organic matter, or bale the straw as fodder.
Rotation
Usually follows rice, maize, cotton, millets or pulses. Common sequences are rice then wheat then summer moong, maize then wheat, and green manure then rice then wheat.
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.
- Package of Practices for Rabi Crops 2020: WheatDirectorate of Extension, SKUAST-JammuRead the source
- Wheat Cultivation in India: pocket guide (Extension Bulletin 52)ICAR-Directorate of Wheat Research, Karnal (now ICAR-IIWBR)Read the source
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