Tropical and subtropical vegetables (2+1)

Land preparation

• The soil is brought to fine tilth after a shallow cultivation. After the final preparation of the land the field should be divided into convenient size.

Sowing
Seeds are sown in rows 1-1.5 m apart. It is dibbled or drilled behind the ploughed at a distance of 10-15cm. It climbs on the roof tops.

Nutrition
Although dolichos bean is a legume crop it responds well to the application of fertilizers, about 25t of FYM is applied to the soil at the time of final preparation of land. Application of 25 kg of N, 50 kg of P and 25 kg of K per hectare is recommended. Half of the N alone with the entire dose of P and K should be applied at the time of sowing. Remaining half dose of N should be top dressed 30 days after sowing.

Irrigation
It is a hardy crop comes up well under rainfed conditions. Flowering and pod development period are the critical stages. Depending on the atmospheric conditions 2 to 3 protective irrigations are needed. For higher yields the crop should be irrigated regularly at 7-10 days interval.

Weed control
Shallow cultivation during the early stages of crop is necessary to check the weeds and to facilitate earthing up. A pre sowing application of Fluchloralin @2lit/ha checks the weed growth for 20-25 days. At the later stages of crop growth, the weeds are kept under check due to the thick canopy of the crop.