Tropical and subtropical vegetables (2+1)

Climate and soil

• It is a tropical plant. However, it is found growing in the subtropical climate also. It is predominantly a crop of dry and arid track where it has been found to perform well with higher yields. The optimum temperature is 25-350C. It is highly susceptible to frost, water logginig & high temperature exceeding 400C causes flower shedding.
• It grows almost all types of soils except stiff clays. However sandy loam soils containing lime is the best suited for its cultivation. The crop is more or less confined to sandy soils as seen in the coastal areas.