Black Gram
Family- Fabaceae
Scientific Name- Vigna mungo (L) Hepper
Common Name Hindi- Urad
Black gram finds mention in the ancient Indian literature like Kautilya's 'Artha Sastra' and Charaka's 'Charaka Samhita'. In those days the seed of black gram were used as weights known as 'masha', 12 of which made tola.
Vavilov (1926) mentioned India as the centre of origin and Central Asia as the secondary centre. Zokovskij (1962) was of the opinion that Urd originated in India from Phaseolus sublobatus- its wild projenitor.
It is grown all over India, the main areas of production being Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
Botany of the plant
- Herbaceous annual, ranging in height from 30-100 cm.
- The trifoliate leaves have leaflets 5-10 cm long, entire-ovate to rhombic-ovate in outline and accuminate.
- Flowers are small, and typically papilionaceous.
- Stamens in groups of 9 and 1.
- Pod is 4-6 cm long, rounded, erect or spreading and has long hair and a short-hooked beak. There are 4-10 seeds in the pod.
Cultivation Practices
It is sown commonly as a mixed crop, subsidiary to cotton, maize or Jowar, the cultural practises for the main crop are adopted and serve the purpose very well. The sowing is done in February or June or July and in October-November, depending on the climatic and agricultural conditions. The seed rate varies from 8 to 18 kg per hectare depending on the practice of cultivation. Phosphate and potash fertilisers are useful in stepping up the yield of the crop.
Harvesting
The crop come to maturity in three months time. The plants were pulled out, stacked and kept for drying for a week and then crushed by beating with sticks or trodden by bullocks.
Yield
Yield of beans varies from 500-700 kg/hectare as a pure crop but is much less when taken as a mixed crop. The yield of straw is about 1600 kg/hectare.
Ecology
Urd is a warm season crop and is grown both in Kharif and Rabi seasons. IN the North, where the winter is severe, Urd is a Kharif crop, while in eastern states it is grown in Rabi season and in South during both seasons. The crop does well on heavier soils such as black-cotton soils which retain moisture better.
Chemistry of Black Gram
Analysis of Urd gave the following values (Rudra. J. 1939)-
- Moisture- 10.9 g/100g
- Protein- 24.0 g/100g
- Fat- 1.4 g/100g
- Fibre- 0.9 g/100g
- Other Carbohydrates- 59.6 g/100g
- Minerals- 3.2 g/100g
- Ca- 154 mg/100g
- P- 385 mg/100g
- Fe- 9.1 mg/100g
- Mg- 185 mg/100g
- Na- 39.8 mg/100g
- K- 800 mg/100g
- Cu- 0.72 mg/100g
- S- 174 mg/100g
- Cl- 9 mg/100g
- Sucrose- 1.6 g/100g
- Raffinose- 0.51 g/100g
- Stachyose- 1.8 g/100g
- Verbascose- 3.7 g/100g
Protein
- Globulins A and B account for 55-56% of the total nitrogen
- Albumin, protamine and glutein together account for 24-25%
- 13-14% is in the form of non-protein nitrogen, and
- 5-6% remains unextracted in the residue
Uses
- The beans are consumed in the form of dhal or parched.
- It is the chief constituent of 'papad' and 'bari' which makes a delicious curry.
- In the South, the husked dhal is ground to a fine paste and allowed to ferment and is then mixed with equal quantity of rice flour to make Dosa and Idli.
- Dhal also makes a rich halwa and imarti.
- Urd is also used as a cattle feed and green manure crop.
- The plant prevents soil erosion and conserve soil moisture.
Diseases and Pests
Fungal diseases
- Powdery Mildews (Erysiphe polygoni)
- Bean Rot (Phytophthora parasitica)
- Bean Blight (Ascochyta phaseolorum)
- Dry Root Rot (Macrophomina phaseoli)
- Leaf Spot (Cercospora cruenta)
- Rust (Uromyces appendiculatus)
- Anthracnose (Glomerella lindimuthianum)
Bacterial diseases
- Bacterial Bean Blight (Xanthomonas phaseoli var. indicus)
Viral diseases
- Yellow mosaic virus
Insect pests
- Leaf-eating caterpillar (Amsacta albistriga)
- Pod Borer (Apion anpulum)
- Aphid (Aphis craccivor)
- Bruchid in godowns
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