Three cropping seasons in India - Rabi, Kharif and Zaid.
Rabi season : Rabi crops are sown in winter from October to December and harvested in summer from April to June. Some of the important rabi crops are wheat, barley, peas, gram and mustard. These crops are grown in large parts of India, states from the north and north - western parts such as Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh are important for the production of wheat and other rabi crops. Availability of precipitation during winter months due to the western temperate cyclones helps in the success of these crops.
Kharif season: Kharif crops are grown with the onset of monsoon in different parts of the country and these are harvested in September - October. Important crops grown during this season are paddy, maize, jowar, bajra, tur(arhar), moong, urad, cotton, jute, groundnut and soyabean.
Zaid season : In between the rabi and the kharif seasons, there is a short season during the summer months known as the Zaid season. Some of the crops produced during 'zaid' are watermelon, muskmelon, cumumber, vegetables and fodder crops.
