FAISALABAD: Farmers have been advised to use approved varieties of seeds for wheat cultivation to get a bumper crop. According to a spokesman for the agriculture (extension) department, the government had fixed a target of 16.5 million acres for wheat cultivation across the province which
would help in getting 21 million tonnes wheat yield this year.
He said the government had announced a subsidy of Rs 1200 per bag, if farmers used seed of approved varieties. The wheat sowing has started from November 1st and the growers should cultivate wheat variety Fakhar-e-Bhakkar by November 15 in irrigated areas, whereas, Bhakkar Star was the best for cultivation from November 10 to December 10. Similarly, Urooj-22, Devorum-2021, Akbar-19, Dilkash-20, NARC Super, Ghazi-19, Subhani-21, Rehbar-21 and MH-21 should be cultivated from November 1 to 30, he added. He further said that Johar-16, Borlog-16, Zinkol-16, Ujala-16, Anaaj-17 and Faisalabad-8 should be used for cultivation from 1st November to 10th December while Sadiq-21 and Nawab-21 were the best wheat varieties for southern Punjab areas. He said that farmers should use 40-50 kg seed per acre for wheat cultivation from 1st November to 10th December. However, the quantity should be 50-55 kg per acre if the cultivation was late from December 10. Growers should also grade their seed before cultivating it as healthy seed was imperative for getting bumper crops, he added.