Arka Basant
An ICAR-IIHR capsicum with small, conical, cream-coloured fruit that turns orange-red when ripe. It is not the usual big blocky bell pepper, so check that your buyer wants this type before you plant.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- ~150–160 days full cycle
- Seed rate
- 400–500 g/ha for nursery sowing (about 160–200 g/acre)
- Expected yield
- About 15 t/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- No special resistance claimed
- Release
- Released by ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR), Bengaluru
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Arka Basant is a capsicum from ICAR-IIHR, Bengaluru. The fruit is not the big blocky type. It is conical, has 2–3 lobes and weighs only 50–80 g. It stands erect, is cream-coloured and turns orange-red when ripe. The national checklist of vegetable varieties gives an average yield of about 15 t/ha. It is open-pollinated, so you can save seed from a healthy crop.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Arka Basant only if your buyer wants a small, conical capsicum of 50–80 g that goes from cream to orange-red. It is a different product from the big green bell pepper, and the average yield is about 15 t/ha. Choose Arka Mohini if you want the usual thick-walled bell pepper of 180–200 g at about 20 t/ha. Choose Arka Gaurav if bacterial wilt has hit your land. Choose California Wonder if you want the simplest open-pollinated green bell pepper.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeNursery sown September; transplanted October–November in southern plains
- Seed rate400–500 g/ha for nursery sowing (about 160–200 g/acre)
- Spacing60–75 cm between rows, 45–60 cm between plants
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Small, conical, cream-coloured fruit that ripens orange-red, a different look from the usual green bell pepper
- Public-sector seed, so it costs less than most private F1 hybrids
- Open-pollinated, so seed can be saved from a healthy crop
Things to consider
- Each fruit weighs only 50–80 g, against 180–200 g for Arka Mohini, so there is more picking work for every kilo
- The average yield of about 15 t/ha is the lowest of the three Arka capsicums
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Karnataka
Count the fruits before you count the tonnes
Arka Basant fruit weighs only 50–80 g. To fill one tonne you must pick 12,500 to 20,000 fruits. Arka Mohini fruit weighs 180–200 g, so one tonne is only about 5,000 to 5,556 fruits.
That means two to four times the picking work for the same weight. Check what pickers cost in your area and whether your buyer pays enough for small, coloured fruit to cover it.
Try a small block first. Pick it for one month and write down the hours it took to pick 50 kg. If the price per kilo does not cover those hours, this variety is not for you.
Can you keep your own planting material?
This is an open-pollinated variety, so seed from a healthy crop of your own can be sown again. Keep seed only from disease-free plants, dry it properly, store it cool and dry, and bring in fresh certified seed every three to four years so the variety does not drift.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arka Basantthis page | A small, cream-coloured, conical capsicum that ripens orange-red, from ICAR-IIHR | ~150–160 days full cycle | About 15 t/ha | Karnataka |
| Arka Gaurav | A bacterial-wilt-tolerant green capsicum that ripens orange-yellow, from ICAR-IIHR | ~150 days full cycle | ~16 t/ha | Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh |
| Arka Mohini | A thick-walled, dark green blocky capsicum that ripens red, with about 20 t/ha from ICAR-IIHR | ~160 days full cycle | ~20 t/ha | Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu |
| Bomby / Orobelle (coloured F1 hybrids) | Coloured F1 capsicums from Syngenta, for farmers who can sell red or yellow fruit, and who stake the plants | Mature green fruit picked from 60–70 days; red (Bomby) or yellow (Orobelle) takes longer | Bomby 12 t/acre (about 30 t/ha), per Syngenta; no figure published for Orobelle | Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Punjab |
| California Wonder | The plain open-pollinated green bell pepper that many Indian capsicums descend from, with seed you can save | First picking about 90–100 days after transplanting | 15–20 t/ha (open field) | Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab |
| Indra (F1 hybrid) | A private F1 green capsicum with strong plants and uniform 170 g fruit, for farmers selling to distant markets | Fruit set from 50–55 days after transplanting; mature green fruit picked from 60–70 days | 12–15 t/acre (about 30–37 t/ha), per Syngenta | Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Odisha, Punjab, Tamil Nadu |
| Yolo Wonder | An open-pollinated green bell pepper close to California Wonder, with slightly darker, longer fruit | First harvest ~70–80 days after transplant | 15–20 t/ha (open field) | Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Capsicum (Shimla Mirch) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Arka Basant the same kind of capsicum as California Wonder?
No. California Wonder has thick-walled, 4-lobed, blocky green fruit. Arka Basant has small, conical fruit with 2–3 lobes, weighing 50–80 g, cream-coloured before it turns orange-red. They sell to different buyers.
What yield can I expect from Arka Basant?
The national checklist gives an average of about 15 t/ha. That is lower than Arka Gaurav (16 t/ha) and Arka Mohini (20 t/ha). The fruit is small, so there is more picking work for every kilo.
Can I save seed from Arka Basant?
Yes. It is open-pollinated, so seed from a healthy crop comes close to the parent. Capsicum can cross with nearby plants, so grow it well away from other capsicum varieties if you want to keep seed.
When do I sow Arka Basant in the south?
Nursery sowing is in September and transplanting in October–November in the southern plains. The nursery seed rate is 400–500 g/ha, about 160–200 g/acre.
Which colour should I pick Arka Basant at?
The checklist describes the fruit as cream-coloured, turning orange-red at ripening. Ask your buyer which stage pays before you plant. Waiting for full colour keeps the fruit longer on the plant.
Sourced from: Checklist of Commercial Varieties of Vegetables (capsicum, carrot, cucumber, bottle gourd, bitter gourd) — TNAU Agritech national bulletin. editorial policy.