A History of Agriculture in India v1.c40.s1: Soil

v1.c40.s1.1

In *Abhidhanaratnamala*, soils were classified as fertile (*urvara*), barren (*irina*), fallow (*khila*), desert (*maru*), and excellent (*mritsa* or *mritsna*), as well as those green with grass (*sadvala*) or abounding in reeds (*nadvala*), those which were black or yellow, and those which owed their fertility to rivers or rains. The *Abhidhanaratnamala* further states that different kinds of fields were selected for different classes of crops. It includes terms for fields producing several varieties of rice (*vrihi*, *sali*, *kodrava*, and a variety ripening in 60 days), of beans (*mudga* and *masha*), of oilseeds (sesame and linseed) as well as those producing hemp, barley and vegetables.