Divisi
When to plant Cashew in Somntongo
Shiselweni, Eswatini
Cashew is a tough evergreen tree that lives and bears nuts for 20 years or more.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Favourable | |
| When to plant (establish) | 5 Jan 2027 – 6 Mar 2027 opens in 14 weeks | 11 Apr 2026 – 22 Mar 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 0.7 t/ha | about 1.2 t/ha |
| Bearing cycle | 60–90 days per crop once the plant is established. Planting to the first harvest takes longer than one cycle. | |
| Work it takes | 57–127 days per hectare, by hand | |
| Rain meets its needs | 69% | |
Rain-fed. These dates are worked out from each place's own rainfall, for a field watered by the season — with irrigation a window can open earlier, close later, or come round more than once a year. Check your own field under What grows, or get the Divisi app for a calendar dated to your farm.
If you only get one chance to plant, aim for around 24 Feb 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
This season's rainfall outlook for Somntongo leans dry, so these dates sit later than the long-run average. Planting on the date you are used to risks germinating into a false start and having to replant.
Planting after 6 Mar 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Somntongo
| Rain and temperature | 76% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 96% |
| The lie of the land | 96% |
For cashew in Somntongo, rain and temperature is the tightest of the three at 76%. This one is fixed. It is why the planting window above is where it is — hitting those dates is the whole of your control here.
The 2026/27 season in Somntongo
| Rainy seasons | One each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it |
|---|---|
| When the rains are expected | October 2026 to April 2027 |
| Rain in a typical year | About 589 mm |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — January, February, October, November and December look short of rain. Plant at the early end of the window, favour quicker and more drought-tolerant crops, and keep moisture in the soil: mulch, and weed early. |
| This season's heat | Hotter than usual — about +1.5 °C over the growing months. Heat makes the same rain do less, so a dry spell bites sooner: do not plant late, and shade or mulch what you can. |
| What that supports | enough rain for one full main crop, warm, with a cool spell that slows winter growth |
| Ground this covers | One kind of ground throughout. |
last updated 17 September 2026
Temperature holds back about 35% of yield here.
What cashew needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sand or sandy loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 4.5 and 6.5 |
| Spacing | 800 cm between rows, 800 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | sulphur, zinc and boron |
What it takes to grow cashew in Somntongo
| Planting material | About 156 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 24 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 6 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 15 kg per hectare |
| In the shops | A basal compound at planting — Compound D, or an NPK blend — covers the phosphate and potash. A nitrogen top dressing — urea or AN — goes on once the crop is established. |
| Hand work | 57–127 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a cashew crop of that size carries off the field. What you actually apply depends on what your soil already holds — which is what a soil test, or the app's field records, tell you.
What to watch for
Grow Cashew with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Somntongo as a whole — your own soil, slope and rainfall will shift the dates. The Divisi app works them out for your field, and dates each job that follows.
Cashew in nearby districts
This calendar moves
Planting windows shift with the forecast. Leave your email and we'll send what changed, and a note when planting time nears — a couple of emails a month at most.
Frequently asked questions
Will cashew grow well in Somntongo?
Somntongo rates as favourable for cashew.
When should I plant cashew in Somntongo?
Typically 5 Jan 2027 to 6 Mar 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Somntongo, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
