Question

What is the difference between Rabi crops and Kharif crops? Give two examples

Answer 1

Hint: Based on climate, crops are broadly classified into two types; Rabi crops and Kharif crops. It includes crops that are grown at different seasons of the year, which includes either summer or winter.

Complete answer: Difference between rabi and Kharif crops are as follows:
i. Kharif crops are sown at the beginning of monsoon rains, while rabi crops are sown after the monsoon rains.
ii. Kharif crops are sown in early May and rabi crops are sown around mid-November.
iii. Kharif crops are called monsoon crops and rabi crops are called winter crops.
iv. Too little or too much rainfall can affect Kharif crops, but rainfall doesn’t have any serious effects on rabi crops.
v. Kharif crops require a huge amount of water and hot weather to grow, whereas rabi crops require a cold climate for growth and warm climate for seed germination.
vi. Kharif crops are harvested around October and November, while rabi crops are harvested around April and May.
vii. Kharif crops require a good amount of rainfall and Rabi crops require a good amount of irrigation.
viii. Examples of Kharif crops are mainly groundnut, maize, rice, cotton, bajra, soybean and examples of rabi crops are wheat, linseed, pulses, oats, barley, mustard etc.

Note: The science and art of growing crops is called agriculture. It includes the preparation of plant and animal products for people to use and their distribution to markets. Agriculture can be of different types; shifting cultivation, subsistence farming, nomadic herding, mixed farming, etc.