Pusa Asita (black carrot)
An IARI black carrot with deep purple-black roots rich in anthocyanin, grown for kanji, juice and natural colour rather than the table. The national checklist gives 95–100 days, about 30 t/ha and late bolting.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Carrot (Gajar)
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- 95–100 days
- Expected yield
- About 30 t/ha
- Suitable soil
- Deep, loose, stone-free sandy loam to loam
- Disease resistance
- No special resistance claimed
- Release
- Released by ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Pusa Asita is a black (deep purple) carrot from ICAR-IARI, New Delhi, coloured right through by a high anthocyanin content. It is grown as a special crop rather than a table carrot. The main outlets are the traditional fermented drink kanji, black-carrot juice, and use as a natural food colour. The national checklist says it gave more than 30% higher yield than Pusa Kesar, is a late bolter and matures in 95–100 days, with an average yield of about 30 t/ha.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Pusa Asita only if you have a buyer for black carrots: a kanji maker, a juice unit or a natural-colour processor. The checklist gives 95–100 days, about 30 t/ha and late bolting. Choose Pusa Kesar or Pusa Rudhira if you are selling red carrots for eating in the mandi. The catch is that the black carrot market is small, and a big plot without a buyer is a risk.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Deep purple-black, anthocyanin-rich roots for a premium, niche market
- Strong demand from the kanji, juice and natural-food-colour trade
- Late bolter, and listed at more than 30% higher yield than Pusa Kesar
Things to consider
- A niche crop, so line up the buyer (kanji maker, juice unit or colour processor) before you plant a large area
- It takes 95–100 days, about 10–15 days longer than Pusa Kesar, and has no special disease resistance
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Uttar Pradesh
- Punjab
- Haryana
- Delhi
- Rajasthan
Sell it as a product, not as a carrot
Black carrot does not sell well as an ordinary vegetable in the mandi. The money is in the people who need the colour: kanji makers in winter, juice units, and processors who make natural food colour.
Before sowing, ask each buyer four things: how many tonnes they will take, in which weeks, what root size and colour they want, and what they pay per kilo. Ask for it in writing, even a message.
Start with a small plot, about 0.25 acre, the first season. Learn what the buyers actually accept before you plant more.
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 Carrot (Gajar) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hisar Gairic | A long-rooted red carrot from CCS HAU, with a self-coloured core, for Haryana | No separate figure published | About 30 t/ha | Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh |
| Nantes | The small, sweet, bright orange temperate carrot for salads and the table, sown in the cool season | 90–100 days | About 12 t/ha | Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir, Tamil Nadu |
| Pusa Asita (black carrot)this page | A black, anthocyanin-rich carrot for kanji, juice and natural colour, from IARI | 95–100 days | About 30 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan |
| Pusa Kesar | The all-India standard red carrot from IARI: deep red, self-coloured, 80–90 days | 80–90 days | About 30 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan |
| Pusa Nayanjyoti | An orange, coreless carrot hybrid from IARI, for the NCR and Himachal Pradesh | No separate figure published | 35–45 t/ha | Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh |
| Pusa Rudhira | An improved red carrot from IARI with 85–90 days, delayed bolting and about 33 t/ha | 85–90 days | About 33 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Bihar, Rajasthan, Delhi |
| Pusa Vrishti | A heat-tolerant carrot that can be sown from July, for the early market, from IARI | ~85–90 days | About 25 t/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana |
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 Carrot (Gajar) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Carrot (Gajar) 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 Carrot (Gajar) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Carrot (Gajar) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Carrot (Gajar) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Carrot (Gajar) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Carrot (Gajar) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
What is black carrot used for?
Mainly kanji (a fermented winter drink), black-carrot juice, and as a natural food colour. Because of the high anthocyanin it is also sold for its health value. It is not the usual table carrot.
How much does Pusa Asita yield?
The national checklist gives an average of about 30 t/ha and says it gave more than 30% higher yield than Pusa Kesar. It matures in 95–100 days.
Does Pusa Asita bolt early?
No. The checklist lists it as a late bolter, which gives you more weeks to harvest before the plants run to seed. Still, do not leave mature roots in the ground for too long.
Can I sow Pusa Asita at the same time as red carrots?
Yes. It grows on the same October–November calendar as the red types. Remember it takes 10–15 days longer than Pusa Kesar, so harvest dates will differ.
Can I save seed from Pusa Asita?
It is open-pollinated, so seed from healthy plants stays close to type. Carrot makes seed in its second stage, and it crosses with other carrots, so keep the seed plot well away from red carrots, or the black colour will fade.
Sourced from: Checklist of Commercial Varieties of Vegetables (capsicum, carrot, cucumber, bottle gourd, bitter gourd) — TNAU Agritech national bulletin. editorial policy.