Like most alternative crops, sesame’s fertility needs are modest.
Nitrogen should be supplied at 50 to 80 pounds per acre, with the lower figure for situations where the sesame follows soybeans or another legume in the rotation.
Sesame’s nitrogen requirement can be fulfilled through organic sources, such as leguminous cover crops or animal manure.
Phosphorous and potassium needs are not known exactly, but should be comparable to soybeans or sorghum. If soils are acidic, pH should be brought up through liming.
Harvest and Storage
Dry down of sesame plants prior to harvest can seem slow relative to a crop like soybeans. When planted in early June, sesame will normally drop its leaves and begin drying down in early October, but it can take a while for the last of the green to disappear from the stem and upper seed capsules.
To deal with the indeterminate nature of the crop, some farmers have windrowed it. Given the potential of fall rains in Missouri, however, it is probably better to plan on direct combining the crop. Harvest should be done before frost if at all possible, because frost can damage the appearance of the seed (important for whole seed confectionery use) and sometimes the quality of the seed.
Sesame can be combined using an all crop reel head or a row crop header, such as a soybean row header. Air speed and cylinder speed should be lowered.
A bottom screen or sieve with a 1/8″ hole size is recommended by the Sesaco Corporation to their growers.
Since seed size is small, holes in combines or trucks may need to be sealed with duct tape.
Since sesame is a small flat seed, it is difficult to move much air through it in a storage bin.
Therefore, it is recommended that the seed be harvested as dry as possible, and stored at a moisture of 6% or less. If the seed is too moist, it can quickly heat up and become rancid.
Freshly harvested seed above 6% should not be left sitting on a truck for long to avoid spoilage. Idle trucks with sesame on board should generally not be tarped on a sunny day, since the tarp can increase heat build-up.
Sesame grain is sold on a weight basis rather than a bushel basis. No market classes have been established, but dockage will be charged by Sesaco Corporation for foreign material, broken seed, or moisture above 6%.
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