My groundnut and pulses are pale with poor pod fill, is it sulphur deficiency and what supplies sulphur?

Pale plants with poor pod filling in groundnut and pulses can well be sulphur deficiency, since these crops have a high sulphur demand for protein and, in groundnut, for oil. Sulphur shortage shows as uniform pale yellow-green on the younger leaves first because sulphur is fairly immobile, along with thin growth and poor pod and seed filling. The fertilisers that supply sulphur are: single super phosphate (SSP), which carries both phosphorus and sulphur and is a popular choice for oilseeds; gypsum (calcium sulphate), widely used in groundnut both for sulphur and for the calcium the pegs need; elemental sulphur and bentonite sulphur products; and ammonium sulphate, which gives nitrogen plus sulphur. A common gypsum range for groundnut is roughly 80 to 100 kg per acre, often part basal and part at pegging, but please confirm with your Soil Health Card or a soil test first, because pale plants can also mean nitrogen shortage, poor nodulation or water stress. Match the source and dose to your soil test and local KVK advice and do not over-apply. Note groundnut especially benefits from gypsum at the pegging stage for calcium and sulphur together.