Crops Critical Stages Rice Initial tillering, flowering Wheat Most critical stage: Crown root initiation, tillering, jointing,. booting, flowering, milk and dough stages Wheat Boot stage; dough stage Pulses Flowering and podding. Peas Pre bloom stage. Berseem After each cutting. Gram Pre flowering and flowering. Pigeonpea Flower initiation, pod filling. Sorghum Initial seedling, pre flowering, flowering, grain formation. Barley Boot stage, dough stage Maize Early vegetative, taselling and silking stage.