Arka Mohini
An ICAR-IIHR (Bengaluru) selection from an American cultivar, determinate plant with dark green foliage and thick-fleshed, 3-4 lobed, dark green blocky fruit that ripens red. A reliable, well-tested southern recommendation.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- ~160 days full cycle
- Seed rate
- 400–500 g/ha for nursery sowing (about 160–200 g/acre)
- Expected yield
- ~20 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 Mohini is a capsicum selection from ICAR-IIHR, Bengaluru, developed from the American cultivar Titan. The determinate plant carries dark green foliage and thick-fleshed, three-to-four lobed, dark green blocky fruit averaging 180–200 g, which hangs pendent and ripens red. It is a well-tested public-sector recommendation for southern growing conditions and gives dependable yield over a roughly 160-day full cycle.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Arka Mohini if you want the best-documented public-sector bell pepper for the south: 3–4 lobed blocky fruit of 180–200 g, about 20 t/ha, and a seed yield of 150 kg/ha if you save seed. Choose Arka Gaurav instead if bacterial wilt is a problem on your land. Choose Indra if you will pay for hybrid seed and want the company's 12–15 t/acre (about 30–37 t/ha), with fruit set from 50–55 days after transplanting. Choose California Wonder for an older, simpler open-pollinated type.
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
- Well-tested, dependable public-sector variety for the south
- Thick-fleshed, uniform, dark green blocky fruit
- Determinate habit suits open-field and shade-net systems
Things to consider
- No special resistance to leaf curl virus or bacterial wilt
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Karnataka
- Andhra Pradesh
- Tamil Nadu
What 20 t/ha means for each plant
At the spacing given above (60–75 cm between rows, 45–60 cm between plants), one hectare holds roughly 22,000 to 37,000 plants. The tight spacing gives the higher number.
Divide 20 t/ha by those plant counts and you get about 540 to 900 g per plant over the whole crop. At 180–200 g a fruit, that is only about 3 to 5 fruits per plant.
So the average is not a high bar. If your plants carry fewer than 3 good fruits each, look at nursery quality, whitefly control and water before you blame the seed.
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 Basant | 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 Mohinithis page | 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
How much does Arka Mohini yield?
The national checklist gives an average of 20 t/ha and a seed yield of 150 kg/ha. Average fruit weight is 180–200 g.
Does Arka Mohini resist leaf curl virus or bacterial wilt?
No special resistance is claimed. Control the whitefly and thrips that carry leaf curl from the nursery onward, and keep beds well drained. Choose Arka Gaurav if wilt has hit your land.
How long does an Arka Mohini crop last?
The full cycle is about 160 days. The checklist does not give a first-picking date for Arka Mohini, so note your own date in the first season.
Should I grow Arka Mohini or the Indra hybrid?
Arka Mohini is open-pollinated, needs 400–500 g of nursery seed per hectare and yields about 20 t/ha. Indra is a private F1 hybrid from Syngenta. It needs 250–300 g of seed per acre (about 620–740 g per hectare), gives 12–15 t/acre (about 30–37 t/ha) by the company's own figures, and starts fruit set 50–55 days after transplanting, but you must buy new seed every season. Work out the seed cost per hectare before you decide.
Can I save seed from Arka Mohini?
Yes, it is open-pollinated and the checklist even gives a seed yield of 150 kg/ha. Grow it away from other capsicum and chilli plots, and keep seed only from your healthiest plants.
Sourced from: Checklist of Commercial Varieties of Vegetables (capsicum, carrot, cucumber, bottle gourd, bitter gourd) — TNAU Agritech national bulletin. editorial policy.