Safflower

A winter crop. Sow in Sep–Oct, harvest in Jan–Feb.

Check it on your land
Season
Rabi
JJASONDJFMAM

Sowing Growing Harvest

100% of its area.
Ready in
130 days
about 4½ months
Water
420–430 mm
of water over its season (rain plus irrigation)
Grows best at
20–32 °C
0 °C survives 5–45 °C 40 °C

When to sow and harvest

Rabi 100% of its area
Today
J J A S O N D J F M A M
Sow Growing Harvest
The year starts in June, with the monsoon. Your district can shift a few weeks.

Sowing Growing Harvest

Will it grow on your land?

Water
Season

Pick your place and water to see:

  • Whether Safflower suits your land Good fit, possible or won't work, with the reasons.
  • What it could earn an acre From yields near you and mandi prices.
  • Water and fertiliser it needs Irrigations for your water, and bags for one acre.

What it needs

Temperature

20–32 °C
0 °C40 °C

Survives 5–45 °C.

Water

420–430 mm over its season

Rain and irrigation together, worked out where most of it grows:

Bidar Latur Kalaburagi Dharashiv Nanded

Soil pH

4 acidic7 neutral9 alkaline

Likes neutral soil. Grows from pH 5 to 8.

Soil

  • Takes a little salt
  • Ordinary farm soil is fine
  • S Needs plenty of sulphur and boron
How the soil score works

Source: FAO ECOCROP crop requirements (via OpenCLIM/ecocrop); FAO-56 crop coefficients (Allen et al. 1998); IMD gridded daily rainfall (0.25°); IMD gridded daily max/min temperature (1°); TerraClimate 1991–2020 temperature normals (about 4 km), where each district's villages are.

Fertiliser for one acre

Not covered yet. Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra for the dose.

Watch out for

Not covered yet. Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to watch for.

What an acre earns

At India's average yield and a recent price, named below. Your land, water and mandi will differ.

Left an acre, a season

₹4,300

Yield India's average
3.1 quintals an acre
× Price harvest price last season (Jan–Feb 2026)
₹6,200 a quintal
= Income
₹19,100
− Costs seed, fertiliser, labour and machines, as the government costs them
−₹14,800
= Left
₹4,300

This week safflower sells at about ₹6,131 a quintal: India's middle price at 11 mandis, latest 12 Nov. At that price an acre would leave about ₹4,000 a season.

Sold at the support price (MSP, ₹7,215 a quintal) to government procurement, an acre would leave about ₹7,400 a season. Procurement isn't open everywhere: ask at your mandi or agriculture office.

A good year or field earns about a fifth more, a poor one a fifth less: ₹15,200 to ₹22,900 income an acre. Costs stay the same either way.

Work it out for your land

Mandi price, month by month

Best month
December, ₹7,725 a quintal
Lowest
March, ₹4,869 a quintal
₹4,869
₹7,725
J F M A M J J A S O N D

Rupees a quintal, typical across India's mandis: each month's latest price (Dec 2025–Nov 2026).

Government minimum support price (MSP): ₹7,215 a quintal for 2027-28. Every crop's MSP

Latest prices at mandis near you Today's price across India

Source: Agmarknet daily prices and arrivals (India Data Portal).

Where it grows in India

Area grown in India
1.6 lakh acres
2024-25
Average yield
3.1 quintals an acre (0.8 tonnes a hectare)
recent years, to 2024-25
Most area
Bidar
Karnataka
Best yield
Ranga Reddy
5.0 quintals an acre

Where it grows most

The districts with the most area in recent years. The map colours every district growing it on at least 100 ha by yield; the numbers mark these districts.

76% of India's safflower area is in these 10 districts

  1. 1 Bidar Karnataka 17% 31,090 acres
  2. 2 Latur Maharashtra 17% 30,908 acres
  3. 3 Kalaburagi Karnataka 8.9% 16,532 acres
  4. 4 Dharashiv Maharashtra 7.8% 14,500 acres
  5. 5 Nanded Maharashtra 6.5% 12,155 acres
  6. 6 Gadag Karnataka 6.0% 11,213 acres
  7. 7 Dharwad Karnataka 5.7% 10,529 acres
  8. 8 Parbhani Maharashtra 2.8% 5,298 acres
  9. 9 Vijayapura Karnataka 2.6% 4,752 acres
  10. 10 Hingoli Maharashtra 2.3% 4,312 acres

Safflower yield, quintals an acre (average of 2020-21 to 2024-25 in most districts)

  1. 0.9–2.1
  2. 2.2–2.4
  3. 2.5–2.9
  4. 3.1–3.4
  5. 3.6–5.0
No data

1 Numbers match the list: the districts with the most area.

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 2020-21 to 2024-25.

Where yields are highest

Districts growing it on at least 100 ha, against the average across India. The line runs from India's average to each district.

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 2020-21 to 2024-25.

Across India over the years

Yield across India, quintals an acre

0 1 q 2 q 3 q 4 q
1999-00 2024-25
Latest 2.7 quintals an acre in 2024-25

Area sown across India, acres

0 2.5 lakh 5 lakh 7.5 lakh 10 lakh
1999-00 2024-25
Latest 1.6 lakh acres in 2024-25

Years run July to June. Only years in which most of the usual districts reported are shown.

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 1999-00 to 2024-25.

Soil and yield

How district soil tests line up with this crop's yields across India.

Safflower yields tend to be higher in districts with

  • More soil that is neutral moderate 49 districts

Safflower yields tend to be lower in districts with

  • More soil that is salty weak 47 districts
  • More soil that is alkaline weak 49 districts

A pattern is not proof that soil causes the difference.

Source: Soil Health Card – soil nutrient analysis (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare).