N–R
Neem oil
Oil pressed from neem seed, used as a soft spray against aphids, whitefly, mites and young caterpillars. It works slowly by putting pests off feeding and disrupting their growth, is gentle on most natural enemies, and needs repeat sprays.
Related guides →NPK
Short for the three nutrients every crop needs most: nitrogen for leaf and stem growth, phosphorus for roots and grain filling, potassium for strength and disease tolerance. A fertiliser bag's NPK numbers tell you the percentage of each inside.
Related guides →NPOP
The National Programme for Organic Production, India's official rulebook for organic farming and its third-party certification, run under the commerce ministry. Its standards and accredited agency list are revised from time to time, so check the current notification before you plan.
Related guides →Okra
Bhindi, a fast vegetable that starts picking in about six to seven weeks and needs picking every second day. Yellow vein mosaic spread by whitefly is the main yield killer.
Related guides →Onion
Pyaz, grown in kharif, late kharif and rabi, with rabi onion being the one that stores. Because prices move violently, good storage is as important as good yield.
Related guides →Organic certification
Written proof from an accredited certification body that your farm follows organic standards, which is what lets you sell legally as organic and earn the premium. Fees, paperwork and inspection requirements vary by agency and change over time, so confirm with the body itself.
Related guides →Organic matter
The decayed plant and animal material in soil that holds moisture, feeds soil life and keeps the soil loose. Fields low in organic matter harden fast, need more water and give less return on the same fertiliser.
Related guides →Paddy (rice)
India's main kharif cereal, grown in standing water or on puddled fields and called dhan or chawal locally. Water availability at flowering decides the yield more than almost anything else.
Related guides →Permaculture
A way of designing land so that its parts feed each other — trees, crops, water and animals arranged to cut outside inputs year after year. It suits small Indian holdings because it works with what the land already gives.
Related guides →PGS-India
Participatory Guarantee System, a group-based organic certification where nearby farmers form a local group and vouch for each other through peer inspection. It is aimed at smallholders selling in the domestic market; current rules and registration steps should be checked with the official programme.
Related guides →Pheromone trap
A trap baited with the pest's own mating scent to draw in and kill adult males, so you can track when moth activity starts and break the breeding cycle. Widely used for bollworm, fruit borer and fruit fly.
Related guides →PM-KISAN
A central scheme that puts income-support money straight into eligible landholding farmers' bank accounts in instalments. Amounts, eligibility and payment dates change from time to time, so check the official PM-KISAN portal or your village office.
Related guides →PM-KUSUM
A scheme that subsidises solar pumps and solarising existing irrigation pumps, cutting diesel and electricity cost. Subsidy shares, pump capacities and application windows differ by state and are revised, so check with your state nodal agency.
Related guides →PMFBY (Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana)
The government crop insurance scheme that pays out when a notified crop fails from drought, flood, pest or other covered causes. Premium shares, cut-off dates and notified crops vary by state and season, so confirm on the official PMFBY portal.
Related guides →PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana)
The umbrella irrigation scheme under which drip and sprinkler systems are subsidised, along with water-source and watershed work. Subsidy percentages, per-hectare ceilings and category rules vary by state and get revised, so check with your state horticulture or agriculture department.
Related guides →Pollinator
An insect or other animal that carries pollen between flowers so fruit and seed can set. Honeybees, hoverflies and solitary bees are the main ones on Indian farms, and in crops like cucurbits and mustard they are often the biggest single yield factor.
Related guides →Potato
Aloo, a rabi tuber crop of the cool months, biggest in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab. Because it is bulky and perishable, cold storage decides when and at what price you sell.
Related guides →Powdery Mildew
A fungal disease showing as a white to greyish powdery coating on the upper leaf surface that rubs off with a finger. It favours warm days with cool humid nights and is common on cucurbits, peas, grapes and mango.
Related guides →Praying Mantis
An unmistakable ambush predator with a triangular swivelling head and spiked forelegs folded as if in prayer. It eats almost any insect it can catch, and its presence is a sign of a healthy, insect-diverse field.
Related guides →Pre-harvest interval (PHI)
The minimum number of days that must pass between the last spray and harvest so residue in the produce falls to a safe level. It is printed on the label, differs by product and crop, and ignoring it is what gets a consignment rejected on residue testing.
Related guides →Price volatility
How sharply a crop's market rate swings within a season, worst in perishables like onion, tomato and green chilli. Staggered sowing, storage and selling in lots are the practical ways to survive it.
Related guides →Puddling
Working a flooded paddy field until the soil turns to soft mud and a sealed layer forms below. That layer slows water seeping away, kills weeds already up, and softens the ground for transplanting.
Related guides →Rabi
The winter cropping season, sown from about October to December and harvested in March and April. Its crops need irrigation and cool weather, and depend on moisture left behind by the monsoon.
Related guides →Rainwater harvesting
Catching and storing monsoon runoff in farm ponds, pits, check dams or contour trenches instead of letting it leave your land. It gives you water for the dry spell and recharges the wells and borewells nearby.
Related guides →Ratoon
The crop that grows back from stubble left in the field after harvest, most commonly in sugarcane. It saves the cost of fresh planting, but yields drop unless the stubble is shaved, gap-filled and manured on time.
Related guides →Red Spider Mite
An arachnid barely visible to the naked eye, so the damage shows first: fine dusty stippling or bronzing on the upper leaf surface with silk-like webbing underneath along the veins. It multiplies explosively in hot, dry weather.
Related guides →Rice Blast
A fungal disease of rice showing diamond or spindle-shaped leaf spots with a grey centre and brown border. When it reaches the panicle neck, the stem blackens and breaks and the panicle dries with little or no grain filling.
Related guides →