How to Grow Lentils

By the SoilCommander Editorial Team, under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder · · How we check our facts

On this page
  1. Lentil (Lens culinaris)
  2. At a Glance
  3. Quick Facts
  4. Soil & Growing Conditions
  5. Growth Stages
  6. Harvest & Storage
  7. Diseases
  8. Pests
  9. Plan your Lentils planting
  10. Growing Lentil in another region
  11. Sources
  12. Frequently Asked Questions

Lentils are ready to harvest 90 days after planting.

Lentils (Lens culinaris) — annual.

The short answer

Ready in
90 days
Site
soil pH 5.5–7.5
Biggest risk
Powdery mildew

Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.

Lentil (Lens culinaris)

Lentil foliage with delicate tendrils — “Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

9 sources cited · Verified

At a Glance

A lentil stem with flowers and developing pods — “Lens culinaris sl50” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl50” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Lens culinaris Lentil Powdery mildew Downy mildew (general) Aphids Pea and bean weevil DISEASES PESTS

Quick Facts

Lentil foliage with delicate tendrils — “Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Factor Value
Soil pH 5.5 - 7.5
Optimal growing temp 15-29°C
Time to harvest 90-90 days
Drainage Well-drained
Lifecycle annual
Edible parts seeds (pods)

Soil & Growing Conditions

A lentil plant growing in the field with flowers — “Lens culinaris sl15” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl15” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Soil pH range

5.5 7.5

Span reflects genuine variation between the cited authorities, not a single agreed figure.

Growth Stages

Close-up of a small lentil flower — “Lens culinaris sl48” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl48” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Stage BBCH Notes
Sowing and germination 0 Sow under cover in late winter or direct outdoors from mid-spring, seed 3-4cm deep in rows 30cm apart, about 8-10g of seed per square metre; UK trials found heavier yields from an early April sowing (Bite Sized Gardening).
Establishment and staking 1 Sprawling habit reaching 40-50cm; stake young plants with twiggy pea sticks or canes and string if space is limited, to keep growth more upright (Bite Sized Gardening).
Flowering and pod set 6 Water during dry spells as pods develop; otherwise needs little attention (Bite Sized Gardening).
Pod ripening and harvest 8 Harvest once pods have turned brown, then dry and store the small lens-shaped seeds (Bite Sized Gardening).

Harvest & Storage

A row of small green lentil pods — “Lens culinaris sl20” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl20” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to pick: Gardeners' World: first pods appear "approximately three months after sowing"; harvest "when the pods turn brown"; pods contain "only two to three lentils".

Storage

Dried pods/seeds stored for long-term use

Diseases

Lentil foliage with delicate tendrils — “Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Downy mildew (general)

Pests

Lentil foliage with delicate tendrils — “Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Lens culinaris sl1” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Aphididae (various spp.)

Pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) and cowpea aphid (Aphis craccivora) are key pests of lentil, feeding on tender leaves/stems/pods.

Pea and bean weevil

Sitona lineatus

ICRISAT: Sitona spp. leaf weevils are major lentil pests, adults creating characteristic semicircular notches along leaf edges.

Plan your Lentils planting

Timing for Lentils follows soil temperature and frost, not the calendar date. The Global vegetable planting calendar explains the method. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.

Growing Lentil in another region

Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.

Sources

  4. Names Sitona spp. leaf weevils among lentil pests

  5. Peer-reviewed

These 5 sources are specific to this region. The full list of 9 sources behind this guide (BBC Gardeners' World Magazine, Bite Sized Gardening, FAO EcoCrop and others) is in the references of our UK guide to lentils; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long do lentils take to grow?

Typically 90 days, depending on cultivar and growing conditions.

What soil pH do lentils need?

A pH of about 5.5–7.5. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.

What problems affect lentils?

Our data links 2 diseases and 2 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.

Plan next season before the problems start

This page gives you the thresholds; the planner turns them into your own calendar. It works from what you can observe and measure in your garden rather than from dates written for somebody else’s latitude.

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SoilCommander Editorial Team — under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder

Every growing guide is checked against RHS, USDA Cooperative Extension, and other named horticultural authorities before publishing. How we check our facts.

How this guide is put together

The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against international horticultural research and extension sources. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.

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Last verified 2026-08-30

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Where To Go From Here

Take this crop from reading into a written plan for your own beds.

Global garden plannerTurn this crop guide into sowing dates, bed layouts and a harvest record. All growing guidesBrowse every crop we cover for your region, A to Z. Planting CalendarSee how this crop fits alongside everything else you are growing.

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