Sesame cultivation:
Sesame is an East Indian flowering plant that
comes from the family of Pedalliaceae and the genus Sesamum. The plant is a
tropical annual herb having white and purple flowers. It is renowned for its
seeds, which are a source of very useful sesame oil and are also used as a flavouring
agent. It is an erect herb that bears tiny, flat, nutty flavoured seeds that are
oval in shape. Moreover, the seeds come in several colours like red, white,
black, yellow etc depending upon the variety of the seeds. As a condiment, the
seeds had added a slight crunchy flavour to the preparations since ages, as it
was one of the earliest flavouring agents known to man.
Sesame seed is one of the oldest condiments the
human race has ever known. The sesame plant had been grown since ages in
various tropical areas of the world since prehistoric times and had been used
as a flavouring agent. Though the origination of the sesame is a topic that is
subject to controversy, some of the historians believe that the plant
originated on the lands of Indian subcontinent as the earliest references
regarding this plant and the flavouring agent are given in the early Hindu
legends. Also, some legends also describe the origination of sesame in their
own way. One of those legends mentions that when the world was to be created,
the gods consumed wine prepared from sesame seeds.
Initially sesame seeds were only known
for the use of condiments and for oil and wine. Its other uses as medicine or
perfumes were discovered much later with time. The sesame travelled to the
Middle East from India with the help of ancient traders and wanderers. It still
forms a significant part of their culture and cuisine. The earliest use of
sesame oil was traced back to around 3000 BC in the Middle East. The Europeans
encountered the seed when it was imported from India in the 1st century AD. The
use of sesame seeds in baked foods was started by the early Egyptians. It
became popular world over even before the beginning of the 16th century and the
Africans introduced it into America in the 17th century.
Sesame plant is one of those plants that thrives in
the tropical conditions and are easily adaptable to the environment. That is
why it is mostly found in the countries lying in the tropical belt of the
world. Sesame is a drought resistant annual plant and yields maximum when grown
at temperatures 25 to 27 degree Celsius. Sandy loam, well-drained soil type
with alkalinity ranging from 5.5 to 8 is required for the efficient performance
of the plant but the crop can be grown on the various other soil types also.
Many a varieties of the plant are multi branched and the other less branched and
it gains a height of 20 to 60 inches. White to pale-rose, bell shaped flowers
begin to occur in 6 to 8 weeks of plantation and the leaves are generally
variable in size. The sesame seeds are derived from the fruit of the plant, one
fruit containing 50 to 100 seeds. Most of the harvesting is done manually
making it basically a commercial crop the cost being quite nominal.
The plant does not survive water logging or wet conditions. In India,
sesame is available throughout the year as it is grown both in the winter as
well as summer season, most of it cultivated as kharif crop. Northern part of
the country produces its entire sesame yield as kharif crop while the southern
part of the country produces the same as both kharif and rabi. 
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