West Bengal has Good Potential for Spices Cultivation
The story of Indian Spices dates back to 7000 years into the past. It is a chequered history of lands, discovered or destroyed, kingdoms built or brought down, wars won or lost, treaties signed or flouted, favours sought or offered. Today Indian Spices hold the same spell. Within the past one decade the international trade in spices has grown by leaps and bounds. An estimated 500,000 tonnes of spices and herbs valued at 1500 million US dollars are now imported globally every year. An impressive 46% of this supply comes from India. India's exports of spice extracts have shown spectacular growth attaining over 50 percent of the global market within a short span. Over the past decade, the Indian Spices industry has made quality the cutting edge of its global game plan. In recent years, export of Indian Spices has been taking giant leaps. The Indian export of spices has crossed the 450 million US dollar mark during 1999-2000 and has reached 468 million US dollar. This remarkable achievement is born of a sea change in the industry scenario. From traditional commodity exports, Indian Spices have evolved into a state-of-the-art industry, absorbing technology, broad basing its product range, developing value added products, identifying niche markets, forging strategic alliances clinching global collaborations and joint ventures. While all these have helped in creating international market, the bottomline still remains at producing large amounts of high quality spices for higher profit.
Variable Climate and soils in different parts of India help raise different types of spices. Although the southern states are the front runners, West Bengal has also its share of spices cultivation. From the hilly areas in the north to the coastal zone in the south, the climate and soils are conducive to cultivation of a number of spices namely, Ginger, turmeric, chilli, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, fennel etc. Black pepper, cardamom, ginger, garlic and turmeric are extensively cultivated in the northern hilly and Terai region of the state, while seed spices like coriander, cumin, ajwan seed (Bishop's weed) and fenugreek have good potential in the dry red and lateritic region. Chilli is a major crop in the saline soils of the southern coastal region of the state and the alluvial zone grows ginger, turmeric and other seed spices.
Area | Temperature(0C) | Rainfall (cm) | Soil | Spices cultivated | Potential Spices |
Minimum | Maximum |
Hilly Zone | 1.9 | 24.2 | 220-400(high relative humidity) | Acidic, deficient in micronutrient | Cardamom, Ginger | - |
Terai Zone | 10.5 | 31.1 | 300 (high relative humidity) | Light, Acidic | Ginger, Turmeric, Garlic, Chilli | Black Cumin |
Alluvial Zone | 10.0 | 38.0 | 120-150 | Deep loam, neutral | Turmeric, Ginger, Chilli, Fenugreek, Coriander, Onion, Garlic | Ajwanseed (Bishop weed), Fenugreek, Black Cumin |
Red & Lateritic Zone | 9.0 | 45.0 | 110-130 (Low relative humidity) | Red, acidic, low water holding capacity | Turmeric, Chilli, Black Cumin, Coriander | Fenugreek, Onion, Ajwanseed (Bishop weed) |
Coastal Zone | 15.0 | 27.6 | 150-200 | Acidic to alkaline, good water holding capacity | Chilli, Coriander | Fennel, Ajwanseed (Bishop weed) |
Source: Chattopadhyay et al. (2004), Sar Samachar published by Fertilizer Association of India, Eastern Region.
The following table shows the area, production and productivity of various spices in West Bengal. Except chilli, area under other spices are low due mainly to lack of knowledge among the farming community about market potential as well as scientific crop management. However, spices cultivation, alone or as companion crop, is very remunerative and can offer a profitable alternative to other conventional crops in the state.
Crop | Area (Hectares) | Production (Tonnes) | Productivity (kg/ha) |
Ginger | 9165 | 94417 | 10302 |
Turmeric | 13283 | 20023 | 1507 |
Chilli | 63142 | 52304 | 828 |
Cardamom (large) | 2875 | 690 | 240 |
Coriander | 10470 | 6844 | 654 |
Black Cumin | 840 | 680 | 810 |
Fenugreek | 592 | 291 | 497 |
Fennel | 404 | 165 | 407 |
Source: Govt. of West Bengal
Just like any other crop, spices cultivation also requires proper nutrient management to improve yield and quality of products. District-wise productivity data of various spices in the state shows wide variation in productivity between districts. For example, productivity of ginger varies between 1 t/ha to 14 t/ha while that of turmeric varies between 300 kg/ha to 3.3 t/ha. Obviously some parity in productivity could be obtained by increasing productivity through soil test-based fertilizer application. In absence of soil testing, farmers can follow the nutrient application schedule as advised below to ensure higher yield per unit area. Lack of information on scientific cropping of spices and lack of extension activities are two of the reasons why spices cultivation is still not very popular in the state. However, availability of quality seeds, proper technology of cultivation and necessary marketing facilities can give the right fillip to this sector. The requirement of spices in the International market is ever increasing and scientific cultivation of spices can definitely improve the profitability of farmers in the state.
Crop | Basal | Split |
Ginger | Organic matter @ 2.5 t/ha and P2O5 @60 kg/ha | At 60 days & 90 days: N @ 30 kg/ha ; K2O @ 45 kg/ha |
Turmeric | Organic matter @ 4 t/ha and P2O5 @30 kg/ha and K2O @ 30 kg/ha | At 45 days, N @ 19 kg/ha. At 90 days, N @ 11 kg/ha and K2O @ 30 kg/ha |
Chilli | Organic matter @ 3 t/ha. N @ 60 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 60 kg/ha and K2O @ 30 kg/ha | At 45 days, N @ 23 kg/ha |
Onion | Organic matter @ 3 t/ha. N @ 128 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 75 kg/ha and K2O @ 113 kg/ha | At 45 days, N @ 128 kg/ha and K2O @ 113 kg/ha |
Garlic | Organic matter @ 7 t/ha. N @ 75 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 53 kg/ha and
K2O @ 53 kg/ha | After 30-40 days, N @ 75 kg/ha |
Coriander | Organic matter @ 2 t/ha. N @ 15 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 38 kg/ha and
K2O @ 19 kg/ha | At 30 days, N @ 15 kg/ha |
Fenugreek | Organic matter @ 2 t/ha. N @ 11 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 38 kg/ha and
K2O @ 19 kg/ha | At 30 days, N @ 11 kg/ha |
Black Cumin | Organic matter @ 1 t/ha. N @ 15 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 15 kg/ha and
K2O @ 15 kg/ha | At 30 days & 60 days: N @ 15 kg/ha |
Ajwanseed (Bishop weed) | Organic matter @ 1.5 t/ha. N @ 53 kg/ha, P2O5 @ 53 kg/ha and
K2O @ 53 kg/ha | After 30 days, N @ 23 kg/ha |
Source: Chattopadhyay et al. (2004), Sar Samachar published by Fertilizer Association of India, Eastern Region.
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