G4 (Guntur)
The variety behind Guntur’s name as a chilli market — grown for the export-grade dry-chilli trade more than the fresh market.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Chilli
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- 160–170 days
- Seed rate
- 1.0 kg per hectare for an open-pollinated variety
- Expected yield
- 40–45 q/ha (dry chilli)
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Moderate thrips and mite tolerance
- Release
- No releasing institute is confirmed. It reads as an established Guntur-area open-pollinated farmer and trade type rather than a single documented ICAR or state-university breeding release
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
G4, also marketed as 'Bhagyalakshmi G4,' is an open-pollinated chilli type long grown in Andhra Pradesh's irrigated chilli belt around Guntur, valued for slender, high-pungency fruit that ripens from olive-green to dark red. No institute is confirmed as having formally bred or released G4 as an official ICAR or state-university variety. It reads more as an established local farmer and trade type of the Guntur area than a single documented breeding release. It's consistently described as tolerant of insect-transmitted viral disease, i.e. resistant through thrips/mite tolerance rather than a direct antiviral trait and is grown for both the fresh green-chilli export trade (prized in Gulf markets for glossy skin and shelf life) and the dry red-chilli trade. Its yield is reported at 40–45 q/ha from a single source, which is broadly in line with general Guntur dry-chilli benchmarks (commonly 8–25 q/ha under irrigation). Treat it as approximate.
Should you pick this variety?
Pick G4 if you farm the irrigated Guntur belt in Andhra Pradesh or Telangana and want one crop you can sell either way — fresh green chillies for the Gulf export trade, which values glossy skin and shelf life, or dry red chilli for the Guntur spice trade. It is slender, highly pungent fruit that ripens olive-green to dark red, and is consistently described as tolerating insect-spread viral disease through thrips and mite tolerance. Honest limits: no institute or release year is confirmed, and the 40–45 q/ha dry yield comes from a single source, so treat it as approximate. Choose Teja if you sell to oleoresin buyers, and Guntur Sannam for the GI-registered reference grade.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeJanuary–February, June–July or September–October
- Seed rate1.0 kg per hectare for an open-pollinated variety
- Spacing60 x 45 cm on ridges
- Sowing methodUnder a protected nursery, 300 protrays of 98 cells raise the 29,000 seedlings a hectare takes in the 90 x 60 x 45 cm paired row system. Otherwise sow on raised beds and transplant at 40–45 days
- IrrigationIrrigate at weekly intervals
Soil & climate
Soil
- Suitable soil
- Well-drained loam rich in organic matter
- pH
- 6.5–7.5
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Consistently described as tolerant of insect-transmitted viral disease through its thrips and mite tolerance, which fits its moderate thrips-and-mite rating.
- Dual-purpose fruit — used for both the fresh green-chilli export trade (Gulf markets, known for glossy skin and shelf life) and the traditional Guntur dry red-chilli trade.
Things to consider
- No institute or release year could be confirmed for G4 — every source found describes it as an established local Guntur-area type rather than naming a specific breeding programme, so release is deliberately left general rather than guessed.
- G4's 40–45 q/ha yield figure comes from a single source, so treat it as approximate rather than precisely confirmed.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Andhra Pradesh
- Telangana
Green export or dry red: deciding, and switching
G4 is dual-purpose: the fresh green trade, including Gulf export, which wants glossy skin and shelf life, and the Guntur dry red trade. The same field can serve either, and the choice is a cash-flow decision as much as an agronomic one.
Green picking starts earlier and pays sooner, in several rounds, but needs quick handling, clean fruit and a buyer who takes a steady supply. Dry red means waiting for the fruit to ripen, then drying and storing it, with the money arriving later but in one lot and with less spoilage risk. Many farmers take two or three green pickings and then let the rest of the crop ripen for drying — if you do that, stop green picking in time so the plant can carry the red crop, and keep the two lots and their accounts separate.
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 Chilli variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arka Lohit | Pungent long chilli for pickles and chutney, irrigated or rainfed | 150–170 days | Medium–High | Karnataka |
| Byadgi | Deep red colour for the oleoresin and masala trade, not heat | 170–180 days | 8–15 q/ha (dry chilli) | Karnataka |
| G4 (Guntur)this page | Guntur-belt chilli for both the green export trade and dry red sale | 160–170 days | 40–45 q/ha (dry chilli) | Andhra Pradesh, Telangana |
| Guntur Sannam (LCA-334) | The GI-registered dry-chilli grade for domestic trade and export | 160–180 days | High (20–25 q/ha dry) | Andhra Pradesh, Telangana |
| Kashi Anmol | Early green chilli from a short, compact plant | 150–170 days | Medium–High | Uttar Pradesh |
| Pusa Jwala | High-pungency chilli with easy bunch picking, seed you can save | 150–160 days | 16–18 q/ha (dry chilli) | Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh |
| Teja (S-17) | Extreme-heat dry chilli for oleoresin extraction and export | 160–180 days | High (20–25 q/ha dry) | Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh |
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 Chilli is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Chilli 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 Chilli variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Chilli into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Chilli in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Chilli rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Chilli seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Was G4 bred by a specific research institute?
No source found could confirm one — it reads as an established open-pollinated Guntur-area farmer/trade type rather than a single documented breeding-programme release, unlike, say, Pusa Jwala's confirmed IARI origin.
What is G4 mainly grown for?
Sources describe dual use — fresh green chillies for export to Gulf markets (valued for glossy skin and shelf life) and dry red chillies for the traditional Guntur spice trade.
Can I sell G4 as green chilli and as dry red chilli from the same crop?
That is how it is commonly grown. Early pickings go to the fresh green market, and the fruit left to ripen turns dark red for drying. Decide the split before flowering, because every green picking you take is dry weight you will not harvest later.
Does G4 resist leaf curl virus?
Not directly. What sources describe is tolerance of thrips and mites, the insects that spread the virus, so infection pressure falls without the plant carrying an antiviral trait. Keep managing thrips — that is where the protection actually comes from.
Why is no release year given for G4?
Because no source could confirm an institute or a year. G4, sold as Bhagyalakshmi G4, reads as an established Guntur-area farmer and trade type rather than a documented ICAR or university release, so that is said plainly instead of guessing.
What seed rate and spacing does G4 need?
1.0 kg of seed per hectare, transplanted at 60 x 45 cm on ridges. Planting on ridges rather than flat is what saves a Guntur-belt crop in a wet spell, because chilli roots will not take standing water.
How often should I irrigate G4?
At weekly intervals. Keep it steady rather than heavy: swings between dry and wet are what cause flower drop and fruit rot, and they hit you twice here, because an uneven crop loses both the green export grade and the dry red grade.
Sourced from: Crop Production Guide (Horticulture), TNAU and Department of Horticulture, Tamil Nadu: chilli seed rate, protected nursery and seedling numbers, spacing, season and irrigation. editorial policy.