It is very easy to grow turmeric plants. Growing practices of turmeric plants are almost similar to those of ginger plants. A detailed account of various growing practices for turmeric is as given below:

Commercial Varieties: There are a number of turmeric varieties available for cultivation. Some of the major varieties of turmeric are ‘Aleppey Turmeric’, ‘Madras Turmeric’, ‘Lokhandi’, ‘Duggirala’, ‘Tekurpeta’, ‘Kasturi Pasupa’, ‘Armoor’, ‘Roma’, ‘Suroma’ and ‘Chaya Pasupa’. Turmeric varieties with more than 5% curcumin content and having lemon yellow or orange yellow interior are preferred in the international markets.

There is a highly aromatic variety of turmeric available in the market which is called ‘kasturi turmeric’. Its scientific name is Curcuma aromatica. It has a great cosmetic value and used extensively in cosmetic industries for preparing face creams, facial scrubs and face wash.

Climate: Turmeric needs a warm and humid climate. It can be grown as a rainfed crop in heavy rainfall areas. In other areas it is grown as an irrigated crop.  It can be successfully be grown from mean sea level (MSL) up to an altitude of 1200 meters.

Soil: Turmeric crop thrives well in well-drained fertile loamy soils which are rich in humus content. Turmeric plantation cannot withstand waterlogged soils and soil alkalinity.

Propagation: Propagation is mainly via rhizome cuttings and rhizome fingers (small tubers attached to mother rhizomes).

Crop Rotation: Crop rotation is recommended because turmeric is an exhaustive crop just like ginger. In wet and moist lands, turmeric crop may be rotated with paddy, sugarcane, banana and plantain once in 3-4 years. In plains turmeric can be grown in rotation with sugarcane, chilli, onion, garlic, wheat, pulses and short season vegetables.

Turmeric as an Intercrop: In tropics, turmeric may be grown as an intercrop with mango, coconut, areca nut, jackfruit tree and litchi plantations.

Field Preparation: Land is ploughed 3-4 times to bring the soil to a fine tilth. Then raised beds or ridges of one meter width and length of convenient size with a height of 15 cm are prepared with a spacing of 30-45 cm between two ridges.

Planting for Rainfed Crop: A spacing of 30-45 cm is given between two ridges/raised beds. Shallow pits are prepared on the ridges to plant rhizome cuttings which are planted in two rows. Row to row distance is 30 cm and plant to plant distance within a row is 15 cm.

Planting for Irrigated Crop: A spacing of 45-60 cm is given between two ridges/raised beds. Wider spacing is allowed to facilitate irrigation process. Shallow pits are prepared on top of the ridges in a single row to plant rhizome cuttings. Plant to plant distance within a row is 15-25 cm.

Planting Materials: Both the mother rhizomes and fingers are used as planting materials. Mother rhizomes are planted as such or split into two or more parts and used for planting. Fingers are cut into 5 cm long cuttings along with at least one healthy bud in order to be used as planting materials.

Sowing Depth: Rhizome cuttings or fingers are normally planted approximately 5- 10 cm deep into the pits prepared on the ridges with the growing buds up and then it is covered by a thin layer of soil.

Rate of Planting Materials Required for Planting: About 2-3 tons of rhizomes and fingers are required to plant one hectare of land.

Planting Time: In tropics, turmeric is planted during April to July.

Fertilizer and Manure Application: Turmeric plants require heavy manuring. Chemical fertilizers are seldom used in turmeric plantations. Turmeric is mostly grown with organic manures and biofertilizers. First application of organic manures i.e. FYM (farm yard manure) or compost is done at the time of field preparation@4-5 tons/hectare. Then soon after planting, groundnut cake or neem cake is applied @1-2 tons/hectare in two equal doses. First application is 2 months after planting and second application is done 2 months after first application. Vermicompost or coir pith compost or any other organic manure may be supplemented with the application of compost or FYM.

Irrigation: Irrigation is done in the furrows available between two ridges/raised beds. For irrigated crop, first irrigation is done soon after planting; subsequent irrigations are given just to keep the soil moist throughout the growth phase of the plants. Water logged or soggy soils should be avoided. For rainfed crop, moist leaf mulch (of dried or green leaves) is spread over the beds soon after planting. In certain areas, farm yard manure is used as mulch. New shoots emerge within 2-3 weeks after planting.

Mulching of the Turmeric Beds: Mulching is an important cultural practice while growing turmeric. At least two or three mulching are required during the growth period of a turmeric plantation. First mulching is done soon after planting rhizome cuttings. Mulching with green leaves is highly recommended as this practice is proved to be more beneficial for turmeric growth. Second mulching is done after first weeding and hoeing practices are over, which is about 40-50 days after planting. Third mulching is done after second weeding and hoeing practices are over, which is about 40-50 days after second mulching. Subsequent weeding and hoeing, and mulching practices are done as and when necessary.

Interculture and Aftercare: Hoeing and weeding are done to keep the field weed-free. It is recommended to mulch the beds thickly with biodegradable mulch soon after planting rhizome cuttings. This biomulch effectively controls weeds as well as conserves moisture.

Insect-Pest Management: Shoot borer is a major insect found attacking turmeric plantations. In order to control shoot borers the infected shoots may be removed and destroyed. Neem oil 5% spray once every 2 weeks is found to be effective in controlling shoot borers.

Disease Management: Leaf spot and leaf blotch are two major diseases of turmeric. These fungal infections may be treated successfully by the restricted application of fungicide Bordeaux mixture (1%). Another major disease is rhizome rot. It can be controlled either by soil solarization or by Trichoderma application to soil at time of planting.

Harvesting: Turmeric crop will be ready for harvesting within 8-10 months after planting. Turmeric is harvested when green leaves have completely turned yellow and started withering. Dried leaves are cut close to the ground. Then land is irrigated if necessary to facilitate harvesting process. The rhizomes are dug and taken out by using a digging fork or crowbar or a spade. Alternatively, the rhizomes may be hand-picked after ploughing the land.

Curing Turmeric: Freshly harvested turmeric rhizomes are transported into pack houses where they are cleaned from dirt and all attached fibrous roots are removed. Fingers are separated from mother rhizomes and kept for curing before selling in the markets. Mother rhizomes are normally used as planting materials for next season planting.

Finger turmeric is boiled in drums until white fumes appear giving out characteristic earthy turmeric odour. Then the cooked fingers are spread on a clean floor or mat in the sun in order to dry them. Generally two weeks of sun drying is required to obtain properly cured turmeric fingers. The market of turmeric depends on its curcumin content and colour. Proper curing process is essential in order to ensure proper colour development and quality in the cured turmeric.

Storage: Fresh turmeric may be stored in a refrigerator or in cold storage for several weeks. Turmeric powder if stored in an air tight container in a cool place will last for several years. Cured dried turmeric can be stored in a dry cool place in gunny bags.

Yield: Approximately 20-25 tons of turmeric is obtained from one hectare turmeric plantation. Cured turmeric is about 25 percent of the fresh rhizomes by weight.

We have books on ‘Turmeric’ and ‘Organic Turmeric’….

Check out our publishing services here…

We publish top quality videos on various ‘Food & Agriculture’ topics. You may subscribe our video channel here…