Beginner’s Guide to Planting and Caring for Black Sesame

Beginner’s Guide to Planting and Caring for Black Sesame

Preparation Before Planting
✅ Planting Season:
Best sown in early summer.

Can be grown year-round, preferably during the rainy season

✅ Soil Requirements:
Prefers loose, well-drained soil with pH between 5.5 – 6.5.

Sandy loam or light loam soils, especially along riverbanks, are ideal.

✅ Seeds:
Use high-yielding, disease-resistant black sesame varieties (e.g., V6, V64).

Seed quantity: 3–5 kg per hectare, depending on sowing method (broadcast or row planting).

Soil Preparation & Base Fertilization
Plow the soil thoroughly, make raised beds about 1–1.2 meters wide, and 20–30 cm high for good drainage.

Apply base fertilizer (per 360 m² area):

Well-decomposed manure: 300–500 kg

Superphosphate: 5–7 kg

Lime powder: 10–15 kg (apply 7 days before sowing to reduce soil acidity)

Sowing the Seeds
📌 Sowing Method:
Direct seeding is most common: Mix seeds with dry sand in a 1:10 ratio and sow evenly in rows spaced 30–40 cm apart.

Cover seeds with a thin layer of soil and water gently.

📌 Spacing:
Plant spacing: 15–20 cm between plants

Row spacing: 30–40 cm between rows

Crop Care
✅ Watering:
Keep soil moist after sowing until seedlings are 10–15 cm tall.

Once established, water only during dry periods. Avoid waterlogging.

✅ Weeding & Soil Cultivation:
First weeding: when plants reach 10–15 cm.

Second weeding: before flowering.

Apply topdressing fertilizer:

Urea: 2–3 kg per 360 m²

Potassium: 1–2 kg per 360 m²

✅ Pest & Disease Control:
Common diseases: wilt, leaf spots, stem rot.

Control methods: crop rotation, use treated seeds, disease-resistant varieties.

Common pests: leaf-eating caterpillars, aphids. Use biological or chemical treatments as recommended.

Harvesting
Growth duration: approximately 90–100 days after sowing.

Harvest when leaves turn yellow and 2/3 of the pods turn dark.

Cut entire plants, dry thoroughly, then thresh to collect seeds.

Average yield: 600–1000 kg per hectare, depending on conditions.

📌 Notes:
Avoid planting sesame on the same land for multiple seasons in a row.

After harvesting, make sure the seeds are well dried for long-term storage.

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