IPM 410-3 (Shikha)
An ICAR-IIPR variety valued for fairly synchronous maturity, needing fewer pickings than an older, highly staggered variety.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- All seasons
- Maturity period
- 60–65 days
- Expected yield
- 13–16 q/ha
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Highly resistant to yellow mosaic disease, powdery mildew and Cercospora leaf spot
- Release
- ICAR-IIPR, Kanpur — released 2016 by the Central Variety Release Committee (CVRC)
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
IPM 410-3, popularly named Shikha, is a moong (green gram) variety released in 2016 by the Central Variety Release Committee (CVRC), developed by ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR), Kanpur. An IIPR variety listing gives it a maturity of 60–65 days, a yield of 13–16 q/ha, and describes it as highly resistant to yellow mosaic disease (YMD), powdery mildew (PM) and Cercospora leaf spot (CLS) — three diseases covered, not just one. It is recommended for the North West Plain Zone and Central Zone.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Shikha when harvest labour is your main cost. Its pods ripen fairly together, so you need fewer pickings than with a variety that keeps ripening for weeks. It also has the highest published yield on this list, 13–16 q/ha in 60–65 days, and ICAR-IIPR rates it highly resistant to yellow mosaic, powdery mildew and Cercospora leaf spot. It was released for the North West Plain Zone and the Central Zone, so check with your KVK if you farm elsewhere. Choose IPM 205-7 (Virat) instead if about 10 days decides your rotation, or Pusa Vishal if the market pays for bold grain.
Sowing & cultivation
Advantages & considerations
Things to consider
- A corroborated secondary summary lists the North West Plain Zone recommendation as covering Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu & Kashmir, plus Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat in the Central Zone. That is considerably wider than the three states shown above (Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh), but it rests on a single secondary summary, so check locally.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Punjab
- Haryana
- Madhya Pradesh
Planning the harvest around a short picking window
Moong that ripens unevenly is picked two, three or more times, and every round needs labour and a day of walking the field. Shikha's pods ripen fairly together, which is the main reason to grow it.
Make use of that. As the crop nears 60–65 days, check a few plants in different corners of the field. Start picking when most pods are dark and dry, not when the first few are. If you wait for the last green pod, the pods at the top shatter. If you start too early, you pick green seed.
Tell your pickers the dates early. A crop that is ready all at once needs more people in the same week, not more weeks of fewer people. Labour is easier to book a fortnight ahead than on the morning.
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 Moong (Green Gram) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Maturity | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IPM 02-3 | A well-tested north-west moong for kharif or summer, with strong yellow mosaic resistance | 65–70 days | 12–15 q/ha | Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh |
| IPM 205-7 (Virat) | The fastest moong on this list, about 55 days, with three disease resistances | 52–56 days | 13–15 q/ha | Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh |
| IPM 410-3 (Shikha)this page | High published yield and pods that ripen together, so fewer pickings and a smaller labour bill | 60–65 days | 13–16 q/ha | Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh |
| Pusa Vishal | Very bold, shiny moong grain that earns a better market grade, for summer sowing in the north-west | 60–65 days | 10–12 q/ha | Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh |
| Samrat (PDM 139) | Early kharif moong for eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, where yellow mosaic is the worry | 60–65 days | 10–12 q/ha | Uttar Pradesh, Bihar |
| SML 668 | A short, dwarf moong for the gap between wheat harvest and the next kharif sowing | 60–65 days | 8–10 q/ha | Punjab, Haryana, Uttar 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 Moong (Green Gram) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Moong (Green Gram) 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 Moong (Green Gram) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Moong (Green Gram) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Moong (Green Gram) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Moong (Green Gram) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Moong (Green Gram) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Who released IPM 410-3 (Shikha) and when?
ICAR-IIPR, Kanpur, developed it, and the Central Variety Release Committee released it in 2016.
How much yield does IPM 410-3 give?
ICAR-IIPR's listing gives 13–16 q/ha.
What diseases is IPM 410-3 resistant to?
ICAR-IIPR describes it as highly resistant to yellow mosaic disease, powdery mildew and Cercospora leaf spot.
Which zones is IPM 410-3 recommended for?
The North West Plain Zone and Central Zone — a corroborated secondary source lists this as covering Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, J&K, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Gujarat, wider than the three-state field.
Why is Shikha's synchronous maturity valuable?
It reduces the number of pickings needed compared with older, highly staggered varieties, cutting labour costs at harvest.
How many pickings does Shikha need?
No exact number is published. The point is a comparison: its pods ripen fairly together, so you need fewer pickings than a variety whose pods ripen over a long stretch. Walk the field when most pods have turned dark, and book your pickers for that week.
Is Shikha better than IPM 02-3?
On paper, slightly. Shikha gives 13–16 q/ha against 12–15, takes 60–65 days against 65–70, and covers powdery mildew and Cercospora leaf spot as well as yellow mosaic. IPM 02-3 has the longer record as ICAR-IIPR's check variety. Both are open-pollinated.
Is the 13–16 q/ha yield of Shikha realistic on my farm?
It is the range ICAR-IIPR publishes for the variety, not a promise for every field. Plan your costs on 13 q/ha and treat 16 as the top of the range.
Shikha or Virat — what decides?
Days against labour. Virat is ready in about 55 days, Shikha in about 65, so about 10 days is the price of Shikha's fewer pickings and its higher published yield of 13–16 q/ha. If about 10 days decides your rotation, take Virat. If harvest labour is your main cost, take Shikha.
Can I save seed from Shikha for the next season?
Yes. Shikha is an open-pollinated variety, not a hybrid, so seed from your own crop grows true to type. Pick seed from healthy plants with no yellow mosaic, dry the pods well, and store the seed dry. Buy fresh certified seed every few seasons to keep the variety clean and the yield from slipping.