Dhaincha/Prickly Sesban/Sesbania Bispinosa/Sesbania Aculeata/Malaimurungai

Seed Rate

For green manure crop sow 20 kg seed/acre. For grain production, use 8 to 10 kg seeds per acre.

Germination time

6-10 Days

Seed treatment

The seed has a hard seedcoat and may benefit from scarification before sowing to speed up germination. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 – 24 hours in warm water. By this time, they should have imbibed moisture and swollen – if they have not, soak further for 12 hours before sowing.

Time of sowing

Optimum time for sowing for green manure purpose is from April – July whereas for seed purpose optimum time for sowing is from Mid-June to Mid-July.

Sowing Method

Spacing:

For manuring purpose, use row spacing of 20-22.5cm and for seed purpose use spacing of 45×20 cm. 

Sowing Depth:

Sowing depth should be 3-4 cm.

Method of sowing:

For sowing use seed drill method.

Soil Requirement

It can be grown on all type of soil. It gives best results when grow in sandy loam to loamy soils. The plant is very tolerant of soil types, tolerating a pH ranging from 4.3 right up to 10.

Irrigation

If crop is grown for green manure purpose, in summer period, three to four irrigations are required. When it is grown for grain purpose, avoid water stress at flower initiations and grain development stage.

Harvesting

For green manure purpose buried crop in soil when crop is of 40-60 days old. For grain purpose crop is ready to harvest from mid-October to early November depending upon the sowing period.

Uses

It is a generally used as green manure crop. It not only improves physical properties but also helps in meeting nitrogen requirement of succeeding crop.

Weeding

When it is grown for grain purpose, give one hoeing one month after sowing.