Critical growth stages for major crops in the semi-arid region.

Crop Critical stages for irrigation

Wheat (dwarf) CRI, flowering, jointing, milk and dough

Wheat (tall) Tillering, heading and dough

Barley Tillering, booting

Rice (dwarf) Flowering, grain filling, tillering

Rice (Basmati) Flowering, grain development

Summer maize Tasseling & silking, and grain development

Winter maize Tasseling, grain development

Pearl millet Heading

Sorghum Flowering, seeding, grain filling

Cotton Flowering and boll development

Chickpea Pre-flowering and pod development

Pigeon pea Flowering initiation, pod development

Moong bean Flowering

Cluster bean Branching and flowering

Mustard Pre-flowering and pod development

Groundnut Pegging, pod-setting and pod filling

Sunflower Flowering, seed filling, late vegetative

Sugarcane Tillering and grand growth

Irrigation management
Wheat crop
Generally 5-6 irrigations are applied to wheat crop in the absence of winter rainfall. The first irrigation
should be applied at CRI stage (22DAS). In case of late sowing 1st irrigation should be delayed to 4 weeks
after sowing. Irrigation at CRI should not be avoided in wheat crop. Depending upon the irrigation
availability the following schedule should be followed.
Available number of irrigations Irrigation application (DAS)
 1 (at CRI) 22
2 (at CRI and heading) 22, 85
3 (at CRI, Jointing and milking) 22, 65, 105
4 (at CRI, Tillering, heading and milking) 22, 45, 85, 105
5 (at CRI, Tillering, heading, milking and dough) 22, 45, 65, 105, 120
6 (at CRI, Tillering, jointing heading, milking and dough) 22, 45, 65, 85, 105, 120
In high water table areas, after pre-sowing irrigation only two irrigations at 25 and 85 DAS are
sufficient.

Barley crop
Due to low water requirement, barley can be grown as a rainfed crop. To harvest good yields, barley requires
two irrigations at the active tillering stage (40 - 45 DAS) and the other at the anthises stage (80 - 85 DAS).
One extra irrigation is required only on sandy soils. If the supply of water is inadequate, its efficiency can
be increased by a proper timing of its application at the critical stages of growth of the crop. If only one
irrigation is available, its application near the tillering stage has proved very profitable. On highly alkali-
saline soils, frequent light irrigation gives better results than a fewer heavy irrigation
Chickpea crop
Pre-flowering (45-60 DAS) and pod filling stages appear to be the most sensitive to soil moisture stress.
Depending upon the initial moisture content, winter rains and sowing time, the schedule may vary. Kabuli
chickpea needs a little more irrigation. Chickpea should not be irrigated at flowering stage otherwise flower
drop may take place.
Lentil crop
Providing one or two irrigations particularly when winter rains are not properly distributed, higher yields
can be obtained. First irrigation should be given at 45 days after sowing and second, if needed, at pod filling
stage.
Field Pea
First irrigation should be given at 45 days and second, if needed, at pod filling stage. Light and uniform
irrigation should be given.
Rapeseed and Mustard
The irrigation requirement of rapeseed-mustard varies depending upon the crop conditions, moisture
storage in the soil profile and prevailing weather conditions. Two irrigation i e. one at flowering and another
at siliquae development stage is recommended. If irrigation water is limiting and is available for one
irrigation only, then the crop should be irrigated at the time of flowering. Excessive water at later stages of
crop growth reduces the yield by inducing secondary flowering and lodging in the crop
Sunflower
Sunflower is a crop of medium water requirement. Total 4-6 number of irrigations is required for better
production of sunflower in Haryana condition. Give first irrigation at 30-35 days after sowing and
remaining after an interval of 12-15 days and last irrigation should be applied at 75-80 days stage. Its
extensively branched taproot, penetrating up to 185 cm, aids the plant during water stress. A critical time
for water stress is the period 20 days before and 20 days after flowering. Sunflower crop is highly sensitive
to water stress between flowering and grain filling stages and at least one of the irrigation must be applied
during this period. Irrigation at grain filling stage should be given light and on a calm and windless evening
to avoid lodging
Sugarcane
First irrigation should be done after 5-6 weeks after sowing. Irrigate the crop at 10 days interval before
monsoon and 25 days interval after monsoon.