Lentil (Lens culinaris) is a cool-season annual pulse grown for its protein-rich edible seeds. A bushy, semi-erect legume reaching roughly 12-20 inches tall, it fixes atmospheric nitrogen and is valued both as a food crop and as a soil-building rotation crop ahead of cereals. Adapted to temperate and semi-arid regions across roughly Zones 3-8, lentil is direct-seeded in early spring as soon as soils can be worked and matures in about 80-110 days. It is notably drought-tolerant, performs on 10-20 inches of growing-season moisture, and tolerates soils from pH 6.0-8.0, including calcareous and alkaline ground. It does best on well-drained loam and is sensitive to waterlogging, salinity, and heat stress during flowering.
Crop Snowflake Score
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Overview
Lentil (Lens culinaris) is a cool-season annual legume in the family Fabaceae, grown as a pulse for dry edible seed. Plants are bushy and semi-erect, typically 12-20 inches tall, and fix atmospheric nitrogen in symbiosis with Rhizobium leguminosarum, making lentil a valuable rotational crop ahead of cereals. The crop is direct-seeded in early spring as soon as soils can be worked, because seedlings tolerate light frost; typical seeding is about 1-2 inches deep at populations near 10-12 live plants per square foot. Maturity ranges roughly 80-110 days depending on cultivar and season. Lentil is well adapted to cool, semi-arid conditions and is notably drought-tolerant, but it is sensitive to waterlogging, salinity, and extreme heat during flowering. It performs across soils of pH 6.0-8.0, including calcareous and alkaline ground, and does best on well-drained loam. Seed is harvested once pods and stems have dried; the crop is low-growing and prone to harvest losses, so even, firm seedbeds and timely cutting or desiccation matter. Major constraints include root rots (Aphanomyces, Fusarium), ascochyta blight, anthracnose, sclerotinia white mold, and weed competition during slow early growth. Nitrogen fertilizer is generally unnecessary when seed is properly inoculated; phosphorus, potassium, and sulfur are matched to soil tests.
Growing Season
- Plant
- Early spring, as soon as the soil can be worked – Mid-spring
- Harvest
- Mid to late summer – Late summer to early fall
- Frost-free days
- 80+
Yield
- Typical yield
- 1,200 lbs/acre
- Productive lifespan
- 1 years
- Years to full prod.
- 1
Market Fit
Active Regional Buyers
1 active buyer on record purchasing this crop.
Price Trend Stable/Up
3-year price trend recorded as "declining".
Supply Below Demand
Priced on national grain markets where supply is well established, leaving little regional headroom regardless of local channel strength (1 of 5 channels rate "strong").
Multiple Buyer Channels
3 of 5 documented market channels rate viable or better (wholesale, retail, direct_to_consumer). Multiple independent routes to market.
Value-Added Potential
1 viable direct-market channel (direct_to_consumer). Limited direct-market routes; value chiefly captured at wholesale.
Market Growth Projected
Mature grain market; growth over a 5-year horizon is expected to track population rather than outpace it.
Market Channels
Climate Fit
Hardiness Zone Match
Crop tolerates zones 3-8; region spans 5-6. Overlaps.
GDD Sufficient
Crop GDD minimum not recorded. Region accumulates 2500+ GDD (base 50F), sufficient for most temperate crops.
Precipitation Compatible
Crop needs ~12 in; region receives ~38 in/yr. Compatible, irrigation available as supplement.
Frost-Free Season OK
Crop needs 80 frost-free days; region provides ~180. Sufficient.
Chill Hours Met
Not applicable — annual crop has no winter chill requirement.
Climate Trend Favorable
Crop spans 6 hardiness zones (3-8). Wide adaptive range buffers against warming trend.
Fit by region
The farm matcher, run on each region's cited climate normals. Soil and site are not included here; add your own on the match page.
No limiting condition found. 5 criteria evaluated, 1 not yet researched; 100% cited.
No limiting condition found. 5 criteria evaluated, 1 not yet researched; 100% cited.
No limiting condition found. 5 criteria evaluated, 1 not yet researched; 100% cited.
Climate envelope & site
What the farm matcher compares your conditions against.
Climate envelope
- Hardiness zone
- n/a
- Frost-free season
- 80+ days
- Heat (GDD base 50°F)
- not yet recorded
- Winter chill
- n/a
- Rainfall
- 23.6–98.4 in/yr
Below the minimum, irrigation is needed; above the maximum the crop fails.
- Soil pH target
- 6.0–8.0
Extension lime target; within 1.0 of it is correctable.
Site & structure
- Spring frost at bloom
- n/a
- Needs cold-air drainage
- n/a
- Shade tolerance
- none — full sun
- Mature height
- not yet recorded
- Rooting depth
- not yet recorded
- Wind exposure tolerance
- not yet recorded
- Workable slope
- not yet recorded
Height, rooting depth and shade tolerance are the inputs an alley or guild layout needs.
Soil Compatibility
Soil Texture
Drainage
Infrastructure Fit
Equipment Compatible
4 of 11 documented equipment items are crop-specific (36%) against a catalog median of 29%. Above-median share of purpose-built equipment, implying real capital outlay.
Storage Available
3 documented storage routes; at least one (Grain bin (on-farm)) is reachable with conventional on-farm or third-party facilities.
Irrigation Compatible
Requires ~12 in. Deliverable with conventional drip or overhead irrigation.
Field Layout Suitable
Grain crops need large contiguous acreage to be economic; the region's parcels are typically small and fragmented by topography.
Labor Availability
Labor requirement not recorded. Catalog 75th percentile is 250 hr/ac.
Processing Proximity
1 processor/cooperative buyer on record for this crop.
Equipment Requirements
planting
Primary seeding implement; places lentil shallow into firm, moist soil at narrow row spacing for an even, competitive stand.
Lentil-specific Rhizobium leguminosarum inoculant (granular, liquid or peat) applied at seeding to establish nodulation and biological nitrogen fixation.
Treats seed with fungicide/insecticide to manage seed-borne ascochyta/anthracnose and protect against wireworm and damping-off.
cultivation
Rolls the field after seeding to press down stones and level the soil surface so the combine can cut low without picking up rocks — essential for the low-podded lentil canopy.
spraying
Applies pre-seed/in-crop herbicides and the timed foliar fungicides needed to control ascochyta and anthracnose at the 10-12 node/early-flower window.
general
Provides power for seeding, rolling, spraying and grain handling; shared fixed cost across the rotation.
harvesting
Desiccation or swathing evens maturity and dries the short, indeterminate crop ahead of harvest; many growers desiccate and straight-cut.
Harvests the low-podded crop; a flexible cutterbar or draper header follows the ground closely to capture pods set near the soil and minimise shatter loss.
post_harvest
Moves seed gently to avoid cracking and chipping the seed coat, which downgrades milling and seed quality in pulses.
Stores lentil cool and dry with aeration to hold grade, prevent heating/spoilage and preserve seed-coat colour.
Removes dockage, splits and stained seed to meet contract grade and maximise saleable value.
Storage Requirements
Grain bin (on-farm)
Temperature
?–59°F
Max Storage
280 days
Long-term dry storage
Temperature
?–50°F
Max Storage
560 days
Commercial elevator silo
Financial Return
Revenue Above Average
Gross revenue $231.8/ac vs catalog median $6,000/ac. Below median.
Input Costs Acceptable
Total input cost $250.42/ac vs catalog 75th percentile $6,300/ac. Within typical range.
Payback Period OK
Reaches full production in 1 year. Acceptable payback.
Insurance Available
Federal crop insurance or an equivalent risk product is available.
Revenue Per Labor Hour
Cannot compute — labor hours not recorded. Catalog median is $13.16/hr.
Grants/Subsidies
No specialty-crop or cover-crop incentive program identified for this grain crop.
Economics Breakdown
| Avg Price/Unit | $19/$/cwt |
| Gross Revenue/Acre | $232 |
| Annual Operating Cost | $153/acre |
| Establishment Cost | $0/acre |
| Total Input Cost | $250/acre |
| Net Return/Acre | -$19 |
| Revenue/Labor Hour | — |
| Crop Insurance | Available |
| Subsidies | ARC-CO, PLC, Pulse Crops MAL/LDP |
Source: NDSU Extension EC1657 'Projected 2026 Crop Budgets: North West North Dakota' (Feb 2026): yield 1,220 lb/ac, projected price $0.19/lb (=$19.00/cwt), direct cost $152.68/ac, total cost $250.42/ac, return to labor & mgmt -$18.62/ac. Corroborated by EC1652 South West ND (1,300 lb/ac, total $248.86/ac, return -$1.86/ac). Current spot: USDA NASS Agricultural Prices (Apr 2026) US lentils $21.80/cwt Mar 2026 vs $37.80/cwt Mar 2025 (declining). Lentils are a Northern Plains pulse not commercially grown in the Lake Erie region; ND dryland budget used as best-available proxy. ARC/PLC + 2026 Pulse Crops MAL/LDP per USDA FSA. (2026)
Risk Profile
Manageable Pest/Disease
2 of 11 documented risks are high-severity (18%) against a catalog median of 36%. Risk load is manageable by conventional IPM.
Market Diversified
3 viable market channels of 5 documented, plus 1 named buyer. Not dependent on a single outlet.
Low Establishment Risk
1 year to full production at $0/ac establishment cost. Low establishment exposure.
Climate Resilient
Tolerates zones 3-8 (6 zones). Broad tolerance indicates resilience to seasonal variability.
Regulatory Burden Low
No crop-specific licensing or reporting regime beyond standard food-safety and pesticide rules.
Diversifies Portfolio
Adds a grain revenue stream distinct from the region's grape-dominated base.
Known Risks
market
Disease (anthracnose/ascochyta) staining and seed-coat defects, plus weathering, reduce grade and saleable value; most economic loss in lentil comes from quality reduction rather than yield alone.
disease
Grey-to-tan lesions with dark margins and pycnidia on leaflets, stems, flowers and pods, beginning on lower leaflets and spreading up the canopy; stem lesions can girdle plants. Seed-borne and favoured by cool, wet weather.
White-to-cream lesions on lower leaves and stems that move up the canopy; leaves and whole plants die back and mature stems blacken. The most destructive lentil disease, capable of yield losses exceeding 50%.
Root system and plant base become brown and rotten with white mould; plants yellow then bleach and shred. Develops once the canopy is dense; foliar fungicides are generally ineffective because they cannot penetrate the closed canopy.
Infected seed produces seedlings that die soon after emergence, lowering stand; later, wilting, premature ripening, poor pod fill and grey mouldy growth on stems and pods that releases spore clouds at harvest.
pest
Sap-feeding aphids colonise growing tips and flowers during flowering/early pod fill; heavy populations reduce pod set and yield and can require insecticide control.
Night-feeding larvae clip seedlings and cut stems near the soil surface, thinning stands; crops can often recover under good conditions but maturity may be delayed.
Click-beetle larvae in moist soils shred below-ground tissue and hollow seeds/seedlings, reducing emergence; there is no in-crop rescue treatment.
Defoliating grasshoppers move in from field margins in hot, dry seasons and can strip foliage and clip pods, mainly a problem in drier areas.
weather
Lentil’s short, weak stature lodges in wet, lush conditions, which traps humidity in the canopy, favours botrytis/sclerotinia and complicates low harvest, raising harvest losses.
climate
Although relatively drought-tolerant, lentil aborts flowers and pods under heat and moisture stress during flowering and pod fill, reducing seed number and size.
Nutritional Yield
Macronutrients
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per acre |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 352 kcal | 1,915,964 kcal |
| Protein | 24.6 g | 134,063 g |
| Total fat | 1.1 g | 5,770 g |
| Carbohydrates | 63.4 g | 344,819 g |
| Fiber | 10.7 g | 58,241 g |
| Sugar | 2 g | 11,049 g |
Key micronutrients
Uncertainty: Per-acre values are estimates that compound the yield range, edible-fraction assumption, and a single representative nutrient panel. Treat them as order-of-magnitude planning numbers, not nutritional advice. Confidence: high.
Ecosystem Services
Soil nitrogen
- Biological nitrogen fixationhigh
As a cool-season grain legume in symbiosis with Rhizobium leguminosarum, lentil fixes atmospheric nitrogen, meeting most of its own N need and leaving a nitrogen credit that reduces fertilizer demand for the following crop.
Applies when: With effective Rhizobium inoculation and active nodulationEvidence: Extension guidance·Confidence: high
Soil health
- Rotational break cropmoderate
Lentil is a low-residue broadleaf that breaks cereal disease and weed cycles, improves soil structure through diverse rooting and supports more resilient, diversified rotations.
Applies when: When grown in rotation with cereals/oilseedsEvidence: Extension guidance·Confidence: high
Nutrient cycling
- Nitrogen-rich residue for the following cropmoderate
Decomposing lentil residue and nodules release nitrogen and cycle nutrients, typically raising yield and protein of a subsequent cereal relative to continuous cereal.
Applies when: Residue returned and incorporated/retainedEvidence: Extension guidance·Confidence: medium
Climate adaptation
- Drought-tolerant low-water-use cropmoderate
Lentil has relatively low water requirements and matures early, fitting dryland and water-limited systems and adding climate resilience to the rotation, though it is sensitive to heat at flowering.
Applies when: In semi-arid and dryland systemsEvidence: Extension guidance·Confidence: medium
Pollinator support
- Limited floral resourcelow
Lentil is predominantly self-pollinated, so its small flowers provide only a minor incidental nectar/pollen resource and contribute little to pollinator support compared with bee-pollinated crops.
Applies when: During the short flowering windowEvidence: Industry consensus·Confidence: medium
Cultivars
Named varieties and what the sources say sets each apart. A cultivar-specific zone, chill or maturity figure overrides the species value above.
No cultivars recorded yet for this crop.
Grows With / Avoid Near
Documented interactions with other catalog crops — shared pests, allelopathy, rotation effects, alley and understory pairings — for companion, guild and rotation planning. Plan a combination with Lentil →
Avoid near, or plan around (5)
Grows with (4)
Direction matters: a rotation benefit of A before B says nothing about B before A. Interactions are documented pairs only; absence is a research gap, not a clean bill.
Nearby Buyers
Data Sources
Every data point on this page is traceable to its source. Below you'll find the complete provenance trail — which sources were used, when data was last verified, and a full change history.
Primary sources: USDA PLANTS (LECU2) for taxonomy; NDSU Extension Pulse Crop Production Field Guide for agronomy and management; USDA NASS QuickStats for yield. GDD not yet assigned. Image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) and verified. Added by automated maintenance task run daily-2026-05-23.
Economics data year: 2026 · Basis: lake erie View economics source →
25 tracked changes across 11 data categories