Mangalwedha Jowar (also know as Maldandi Jowar. scientific name Sorghum vulgarie) is a traditional crop being cultivated for several hundred years for grain and fodder use in Solapur District of Maharashtra. The Mangalwedha Jowar is pearly white bold and round grain. Its head is brown in colour. It gives the best grain yield and grain quality, fodder yield and fodder quality.
Distinguishing morphological characteristics:
- Plant pigment : Nontan
- Leaf : Dark green during early age while yellowish green, long at maturity
- Stem : Juicy and sweet
- Earhead : Oval shape
- Glume : Straw coloured, wrinkled.
- Grain : Pearly white, bold and round
This jwari as it is locally known grows exceedingly well in the black soil found in this area that is rich in organic matter and moisture. As jwari is grown using indigenous practices, it has certain inherent qualities like low temperature tolerance, resistance against pests and insects (fungicides and insecticides are not used) and flowering and maturity remains unaffected with fluctuating temperatures and sowing time.
The cropping system in Mangalwedha Taluka is unique. Instead of growing the crop in the warm summer-monsoon season it is sown after the rain end in September/October and harvested in February.
Jowar is a rabi crop and the age-old method of sowing called tiffani is done at the end of the monsoon (Mid-September – Mid-October) as it facilitates growth and development. Intercropping practices are quite common in this area where jowar is either grown along with tur dal or kardai (safflower).
Mangalwedha jowar is harvested when the grain has become hard with less than 25 percent moisture (120 – 130 days after sowing). The entire plant is uprooted and dried for 3 – 4 days. The ear heads are separated from the plants and threshed either by beating the ear heads with sticks or by trampling.
The threshed grain is cleaned and dried in the sun for at least a week to reduce the moisture content for storage. It is best to store jowar in good quality jute bags to avoid spoilage and protect it from possible insect attacks.
Mangalwedha jowar is sweet to taste as it contains high percentage of glucose as against other varieties of jowar. It has a bold lustrous grain with thin pericarp and high nutritional value. Farmers say that the milk of cows and buffaloes has higher fat content and thereby fetch higher prices when they are given the Maldandi fodder.
As this jowar has high gluten content, the bhakri (roti) made from this flour is delicious to taste and extremely soft.
GI Tag Registration Date : 31 March 2016
GI Tag Number : 472
Certificate Number : 249
Geographical Area : Maharashtra
Special Cover Release Date : 27 August 2021
Cancellation : Mangalvedha 413 305
Type : GI Tag Cover
Cover Identification Number : MH/21/2021
The cover has a sample of Mangalwedha Jowar. 4000 Nos of covers are issued and each cover is numbered.
Enlarged View of Illustration
Back Side Scan of Cover
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