Fenugreek, Mathi Kasuri Seeds

Leaf crop first, seed second

Trigonella corniculata, Kasuri methi, is grown mainly for its leaves and for seed, and is reported to suit 5–8 leaf cuttings; field trials have taken four and five. The fresh leaves and pods are fried and eaten as a vegetable.

Kasuri methi or common fenugreek

This card is Trigonella corniculata, not common fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum, sold separately as our Fenugreek Seeds). The pods tell them apart: 2–3 cm and sickle-shaped here, against up to about 10 cm on common fenugreek, with smaller, scented seeds.

Kasuri methi grows slowly and stays as a rosette while it builds leaf, then sends up bright orange-yellow flowers on long stalks; common fenugreek flowers are white, lemon-yellow or purplish-blue. Seed ripened 150–160 days after sowing in a field trial, against 105–140 days for common fenugreek.

Spacing and thinning

Field trials set rows 20–30 cm apart and plants 5–20 cm apart in the row. One trial thinned seedlings to 5 cm at 20 days after sowing.

Sowing Kasuri methi in India

Kasuri methi is a rabi crop in India: field trials in Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Telangana were all sown in the rabi season. At Akola in Maharashtra, sowing on 10 October gave the highest seed yield of six dates between 10 October and 20 January, tested over two seasons.

Flowering started 47–54 days after sowing at Akola and about 61–65 days after sowing at Hyderabad. The trial soils were alkaline to neutral, pH 7.2–8.1.

Also known as

Kasuri methi, Kasoori methi, Kasuri fenugreek, Sickle-fruited fenugreek, Nagauri methi, Pan methi, Champa methi and Marwari methi.