Lentil (Masoor) Sowing in Punjab 2026: Late October to 15 November, 12 to 16 kg Seed an Acre

Sow lentil (masoor) in Punjab from late October to 15 November 2026, or by the first week of November in Narowal, Rawalpindi, Sialkot and Chakwal. The Punjab Agriculture Department sets 12 to 14 kg of seed an acre on irrigated land and 14 to 16 kg on rainfed land, with one bag of DAP and half a bag of SOP.

Masoor is the small red or brown pulse that ends up as daal on most Pakistani tables. The retail price was Rs 265.99 a kilo on average in the week to 8 October 2026, by the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics count. For a farmer with light land and little canal water, lentil is a low-cost winter crop. We read the department's Urdu farm advisory for 16 to 31 October 2026, signed by Shahbaz Akhtar, Director General Agriculture (Extension) Punjab, and set out its lentil advice in plain English below.

Lentil sowing in Punjab runs from late October to 15 November

The department gives two windows. In Narowal, Rawalpindi, Sialkot and Chakwal, sow from late October to the first week of November. In Bhakkar, Rajanpur, Muzaffargarh, Jhang, Mandi Bahauddin, Gujrat, Faisalabad and southern Punjab, sow from late October to 15 November.

For now, the department's instruction for the second half of October is to start preparing the land and to arrange seed, so the crop can go in as soon as the window opens.

Use 12 to 14 kg of seed on irrigated land and 14 to 16 kg on rainfed land

The department sets 12 to 14 kg of seed an acre on irrigated land and 14 to 16 kg on rainfed land, for recommended varieties with 90 per cent germination. Rainfed land gets more seed because fewer plants survive on stored moisture alone.

Germination is the share of seeds that sprout. If your seed sprouts less than 90 per cent, you need more of it for the same stand. A simple check is to put 100 seeds on a damp cloth for a few days and count how many sprout. The department also says to treat the seed with a fungicide before sowing, on the advice of your local extension staff. Fungicide protects the young plant from seed and soil diseases.

The department recommends five lentil varieties

The advisory names five approved varieties: Punjab Masoor 2009, Chakwal Masoor, Punjab Masoor 2019, Punjab Masoor 2020 and Markaz 2009. It asks farmers to arrange seed of these now. Certified seed from a licensed dealer is the safer route.

Punjab Masoor 2019 and 2020 are the newest on the list. The names are our English spelling of the Urdu list, so check the bag. If you are unsure whether a seed packet is genuine, you can get seed tested in Punjab at a government lab.

Lentil needs one bag of DAP, half a bag of SOP and 10 kg of urea

The department's first fertiliser option is one bag of DAP, half a bag of SOP and 10 kg of urea an acre. The second is two and a half bags of SSP (18 per cent), half a bag of urea and half a bag of SOP. On current prices the second option is cheaper.

The costs are our arithmetic from the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics average retail prices for the week to 8 October 2026: DAP Rs 17,127.78, SSP Rs 4,605.20, SOP Rs 15,422.22 and urea Rs 4,779.51 a 50 kg bag. Option 2 saves about Rs 4,180 an acre on those prices. Lentil, like gram, fixes much of its own nitrogen, so the urea doses are small. Urea and DAP prices rose through September and early October.

SSP is single super phosphate, a cheaper phosphorus fertiliser than DAP but with less phosphorus in each bag, which is why the dose is two and a half bags. Check that the bag says 18 per cent. If a dealer sells you a bag that looks wrong, the steps to report fake fertiliser in Punjab apply.

A short checklist for sowing masoor this season

Prepare the land in late October, buy one of the five approved varieties, treat the seed with a fungicide, and sow inside your district's window. Use the higher seed rate on rainfed land and pick the fertiliser option that suits your budget.

1. Start land preparation now, in the second half of October.
2. Buy certified seed of Punjab Masoor 2019, Punjab Masoor 2020 or another listed variety.
3. Do a 100-seed sprout test, and add seed if germination is below 90 per cent.
4. Treat the seed with a fungicide on your extension officer's advice.
5. Sow 12 to 14 kg an acre irrigated, or 14 to 16 kg rainfed, inside your window.

Water will be tight this winter. IRSA has set a 22 per cent canal shortage for Punjab, which suits low-water crops like lentil and gram. For the farm plan behind that figure, see the Rabi 2026-27 farm plan. For rain and frost alerts aimed at farmers, use PMD's free farm weather advisories.

Common questions

When is the best time to sow lentil in Punjab?

Late October to 15 November in most districts, and late October to the first week of November in Narowal, Rawalpindi, Sialkot and Chakwal.

How much masoor seed is needed per acre?

12 to 14 kg an acre on irrigated land and 14 to 16 kg on rainfed land, for seed with 90 per cent germination.

Which lentil varieties are approved in Punjab?

Punjab Masoor 2009, Chakwal Masoor, Punjab Masoor 2019, Punjab Masoor 2020 and Markaz 2009.

What fertiliser does lentil need?

One bag of DAP, half a bag of SOP and 10 kg of urea an acre, or two and a half bags of SSP with half a bag each of urea and SOP.

Should lentil seed be treated before sowing?

Yes. The department says to apply a fungicide to the seed before sowing, on the advice of local extension staff.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

We read the Punjab Agriculture Department's farm advisory for 16 to 31 October 2026, listed on its crop advisory page, on 20 October 2026. It is a scanned Urdu document, read page by page and translated by us. Fertiliser and masoor prices are Pakistan Bureau of Statistics averages for the week to 8 October 2026, and the costs per acre are our arithmetic. The advisory does not name a fungicide or a dose, and we could not check seed prices for each variety.