Hello, today in this post vetiver grass planting guide we will share vetiver cultivation economics practices. Vetiver oil price per kg is shared in this post.
Khas is a multi-year grass that grows up to 2-3 meter. Khas flower blooms in the month of october-november and it grows well in the rainy season in comparison to winter and summers. Vetiveria zizanioides is the botanical name of khas which originated from Tamil word vetiver. Khas is an aromatic grass and the rhizome of this grass spreads tremendous fragrance.
It is also capable of producing oil that is used in the perfume industry and medicinal industry. This dense tufted grass is a natural growing grass that mostly grows in Rajasthan specially in Bharatpur and Ajmer districts. However, it also grows in other states of India.
The plant has strong stalks that emerge from the rhizome upto 2 meter high, in dense clusters with strong spongy roots. The oil obtained from the root of khas plant is used in the perfume industry to make cosmetics and to transmit aroma in soaps.
What is vetiver
Vetiver is a type of grass that grows naturally. This grass is also capable of producing oil that is used in cosmetics, perfume and medicinal industries. It is an important grass and vetiver price per kg is around Rs 10,000 to Rs 14000. Many farmers also use this grass in the boundaries of their farm due to soil erosion capacity of it.
Khas plant benefits
- It is considered stimulating and coolant.
- Its massage gives relief from sprain.
- Khas grass can also be used for agriculture land improvement.
- Khas plant is capable of preventing water pollution of rivers, lakes and streams.
- Vetiveria can be used as natural water purification.
- Vetiver grass absorb carbon dioxide
- Government usually uses this important grass to convert barren land into fertile land
- You can use wasteland for khas cultivation which directly reduces the land preparation cost from khas project report
- Vetiver grass is free of disease.
- Animals usually do not damage it in case of damage they only eat leaves but root holds the whole value.
- It can easily survive in water logging land as well.
- To prevent soil erosion in the river, lake vetiver grass should be planted in the banks of the rivers.
Vetiver grass cultivation in India
- Kerala - Trichur, Palghat, Venad and Trivandrum
- Tamilnadu - Tirunelveli, Madurai, Koyambattur
- Andhra Pradesh - Kurnool, Godavari
- Apart from India vetiver grass grown in Australia, vetiver plants uk etc.
How to grow vetiver
To grow vetiver you need to follow the below given steps including soil requirements, fertilizer, water, land etc.
Soil required for vetiver farming
It can grow easily in any soil but it prefers sandy soil, alluvial soil and fertile soil.
Land for vetiver farming
Vetiver plants naturally grow in wetland but it does not survive in marshy land however it can survive in water logging region. Khas grass easily sustains at ponds, rivers, drains and such regions where moisture is found more in the land. This grass contains soil erosion capacity therefore it is mostly planted on the slopes of the land to prevent soil conservation in the catchment area of the rivers. In the south region the cultivation of this plant is being done in sandy and alluvial soil. This grass is majorly grown in Rajasthan state of India.
Vetiver climate requirements
Vetiver grass price per kg can be up to Rs 200. It naturally grows in tropical and subtropical regions. Khas grass is climate tolerant so it can grow in heavy rainfall regions as well as in low rainfall regions.
Vetiver rainfall
Vetiver grass can easily grow in both circumstances meaning in low rainfall area (100 cm) and high rainfall area (200 cm)
Vetiver grass growing zones
It is widely grown in south India and also cultivated in most Indian states.
It is naturally grown in most regions of Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
Soil vetiver essential oil
Vetiver essential oil is vitaly extracted from the natural growing vetiver grass that is mostly found in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan and in Uttar Pradesh it is found in Musanagar, Biswan (sitapur) and Nawabganj.
Vetiver grass varieties
Some of the vativer types are given below
- K S 1
- K S 2
- Dharini keshari gulabi Simvridhi CIMAP Khas 15 CIMAP Khas 22 Khush Nalika Sugandha
- Main varieties are developed by CIMAP
- Hybrid vativer 8 and hybrid 7 varieties are developed by IAR
Vetiver grass slips per hectare
You can easily plant 80,000 vetiver slips per hectare and 30,000 to 35000 vetiver slips per acre.
Water requirement for vetiver farming
Vetiver grass growing conditions - Very less water is required for this plant and at the same time it can survive in good rainfall region as well. It is a natural growing weed that does not demand for water, instead it grows well in low rainfall regions as well as high rainfall regions. It can be grown in barren land as well so you can use your waste land for this precious grass.
Vetiver grass spacing
Vetiver grass planting distance - 35 cm to 45 cm is ideal spacing for vetiver grass plantation.
Vetiver grass growing season
Vetiver grass growing time - After land preparation vetiver seeds are sown. Rainy season is the ideal season to sow the vetiver seeds in a proper row. However, it can be planted from January to March as well. While planting the vetiver slip, prepare a bund at 50 cm distance. Khas slip needs to be planted on both sides of the bund with a gap of 24 to 30 cm.
Vetiver fertilizer
10 - 12 ton per hectare cow dung
You should give ash and ground cake at the time of planting
Nitrogen 25 kg per hectare after 1 month
Harvesting vetiver roots
Vetiver harvesting - After 12 months or 1.5 - 2 years (18 - 24 months) vetiver roots are excavated in dry weather. Vetiver stem is cut off from a height of 15 to 20 cm then digging is performed to take out the roots completely.
Vetiver grass root production
In 1 hectare 3-5 ton fresh vetiver roots are produced after planting 80,000 vetiver slips. Oil is produced between 0.4 to 0.6 percent.
Vetiver oil yield per hectare
12 to 17 kg per hectare khas oil is produced. Essential oil recovery in coastal grass is 0.8 % whereas 1.49 % in inland grass.
Vetiver oil yield per acre
6 to 8 kg vetiver oil can be produced in 1 acre land.
1 kg vetiver yield = 300 gram oil
What is the price of vetiver oil
It was approximately Rs 21,000 way back in 2019 but after the pandemic the price fell down and vetiver oil price in USA also decreased. Vetiver oil price per kg in India is nearly Rs 10,000 - Rs 14,000.
Where to sell vetiver
Vetiver oil market in India
While searching khas oil buyers you can sell vetiver grass oil online as well as offline. Both market strategies are given below
Offline market - You can tie up with some big companies like Dabur India ltd, Baidyanath, Patanjali. You should approach scent and perfume factories directly, it is good to target the cosmetic and pharma sector as well.
Online market - You can create your online store free of cost. Online stores such as razor pay, instamojo. Apart from this you can use WhatsApp business account, Facebook Marketplace and Instagram ID. Farmers can also tie up with some big online companies like Amazon, Flipkart, IndiaMART etc. All these online platforms are free to use.
Vetiver grass project report
Vetiver grass farming cost per acre - After including all expenses such as plantation cost, land preparation, cost fertilizer, cost irrigation cost and labor cost total cost will be nearly Rs 40,000 per acre.
Vetiver cultivation profit
- Current price of vetiver oil is Rs 10,000 - Rs 14,000 per kg.
- And from 1 acre land nearly 6-8 kg vetiver oil can be produced
- Therefore Rs 10,000 x 7 kg = 70,000
- Net profit = Reduce cost from profit : Rs 70,000 - Rs 40,000
- Net profit = Rs 30,000