Snowball-16
A popular late snowball with heavy, white curds for the winter market.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Cauliflower
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Rabi
- Maturity period
- 95–110 days
- Seed rate
- 250 g per acre, the late-season rate
- Expected yield
- High
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- pH
- 6.0–7.0
- Disease resistance
- Moderate
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Snowball-16 is a late-maturing cauliflower in the Snowball group, corroborated across independent secondary sources as ideal for the cooler winter climate of North India, ready for harvest January to March. Curds are medium-sized, solid and an attractive white colour. Reported average yield ranges 25-30 t/ha (equivalently cited as 100-125 q/acre in another source), in line with the "High" yield rating. No developing institute, parentage or release year could be found for this exact variety code.
Should you pick this variety?
Pick Snowball-16 if you want cauliflower to sell from January to March, after the early and mid-group crops are finished and the market has thinned out. It is a late Snowball-group variety suited to the colder North Indian winter, giving medium-sized, solid, attractively white curds at 25–30 t/ha, listed here for Punjab. Be aware that no breeding institute, parentage or release year could be traced for this exact variety code, so buy labelled seed from a dealer you trust. For the November–December window choose Pusa Sharad, for December–January Pant Shubhra, and for an early autumn crop Early Kunwari or Pant Gobhi 3.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeOctober to the first week of November, the late-season window for snowball cauliflower (PAU)
- Seed rate250 g per acre, the late-season rate
- Spacing45 x 30 cm
- Sowing methodA late snowball is transplanted at about 45 days. Sow in rows 10 cm apart on beds drenched with copper oxychloride at 2.5 g/litre, and avoid any field that has carried club root
- IrrigationWater right after transplanting, then every 10–15 days in the winter months, 8–12 irrigations across the crop (PAU)
- Fertilizer40 tonnes farmyard manure with 50 kg N, 25 kg P2O5 and 25 kg K2O per acre, half the nitrogen top-dressed four weeks after transplanting (PAU)
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Heavy, solid curd well suited to the North Indian winter market, in line with the "High" yield rating
- Late-season window (January-March harvest) fills the market gap after early and mid-group cauliflowers finish
Things to consider
- No developing institute, parentage or exact release year could be found for Snowball-16. It is recognized as a North Indian late-group cultivar, but its breeding origin is not confirmed by any primary source.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Punjab
Selling into a thin late market
Snowball-16 is harvested in the latest window, January to March, after most farmers have already cut in November and December. Arrivals are thinner then, which is usually where a steadier price sits — that, not yield, is the reason to grow a late variety.
Check the assumption against your own mandi before you plant a large area: look at last season's arrival and rate pattern for late cauliflower in your market, and ask two or three traders what they expect. Then make sure the crop can wait — heavy white curds hold better if you keep a few leaves over them and cut in the cool morning — and stagger the transplanting by a week or two so the whole field does not come ready at once. If your local market collapses in February, a nearby city market or a contract buyer is worth lining up in advance.
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 Cauliflower variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Early Kunwari | The first cauliflower of the season, cut mid-September to mid-October | 60–75 days (after transplant) | Medium | Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi |
| Pant Gobhi 3 | Curding in the autumn heat, when snowball types cannot | 70–80 days from transplanting | 120–150 q/ha | Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh |
| Pant Shubhra | The December–January window, with curds that keep their colour | 75–90 days | Medium–high | Uttarakhand |
| Pusa Meghna | A well-known early cauliflower for September–October curding | 60–75 days (after transplant) | 170–180 q/ha | Uttar Pradesh |
| Pusa Sharad | The November–December window at the highest yield here | About 80–85 days after transplanting | 240–260 q/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Bihar, West Bengal |
| Pusa Snowball K-1 | Snow-white winter curds that hold colour if harvest slips | 90–100 days from transplanting | 150–200 q/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Bihar |
| Snowball-16this page | The latest window, harvested January to March | 95–110 days | High | Punjab |
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 Cauliflower is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Cauliflower 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 Cauliflower variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Cauliflower into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Cauliflower in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Cauliflower rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Cauliflower seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
When is Snowball-16 ready for harvest?
January to March, per corroborated secondary sources — the latest curding window among the cauliflower groups compared here.
What does a Snowball-16 curd look like?
Medium-sized, solid and an attractive white colour, per corroborated secondary sources.
What yield does Snowball-16 give?
25–30 t/ha on average, per secondary sources, in line with the "High" yield rating.
Which climate does Snowball-16 suit best?
The cooler winter climate of North Indian states, per corroborated secondary sources.
Who developed Snowball-16?
Not found. No developing institute, parentage or release year could be found for this exact variety code.
Why does the January–March window pay better?
Because most farmers cut in November and December, and supply drops once those crops are gone. A late variety sells into a thinner market, which is where a steady price usually sits. Check your own mandi's arrival pattern, since a belt full of late cauliflower removes that advantage.
Does it matter that no institute is recorded for Snowball-16?
It matters for seed quality, not for the crop itself. With no notified release behind the name, lots sold as Snowball-16 can vary, so buy labelled seed with a bill from an established dealer, and sow a small area of any new lot before committing the whole field.
Will Snowball-16 work in a mild winter?
It is built for the colder North Indian winter, so a mild one risks loose or ricey curds just as it would with any snowball type. Where winters are mild or short, an early or mid-group variety is the safer crop.
How much Snowball-16 seed do I need, and at what spacing?
250 g per acre, the late-season rate, planted at 45 x 30 cm. Keep the spacing even: in a late crop the curd is the whole product, and a crowded row gives small, uneven curds that drop a grade at sale.
Snowball-16 or Pusa Snowball K-1 for the late window?
Snowball-16 runs 95–110 days and is harvested January to March, and it is listed for Punjab. Pusa Snowball K-1 runs 90–100 days at 150–200 q/ha and is listed for Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Bihar, with field tolerance to black rot. On black-rot land, take K-1.
Sourced from: Package of Practices for Vegetable Crops, Punjab Agricultural University: cauliflower late-season transplanting window, seed rate, spacing, fertiliser and irrigation. editorial policy.