Divisi
When to plant Cocoa in Vakinankaratra
Madagascar
Cocoa (Theobroma cacao) is a small evergreen tree of the hot, wet tropics.
| Fit | Favourable |
|---|---|
| When to plant (establish) | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 open now |
| Expected harvest | about 1.5 t/ha |
| Bearing cycle | 150–180 days per crop once the plant is established. Planting to the first harvest takes longer than one cycle. |
| Work it takes | 128–255 days per hectare, by hand |
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 1 Jan 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
This season's rainfall outlook for Vakinankaratra 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 1 Jan 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Vakinankaratra
| Rain and temperature | 88% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 76% |
| The lie of the land | 60% |
For cocoa in Vakinankaratra, the lie of the land is the tightest of the three at 60%. You cannot flatten it, but you can farm it: plant along the contour rather than up and down, ridge or tie ridges to hold water on the slope, and expect shallower rooting than the crop would manage on flat ground.
The 2026/27 season in Vakinankaratra
| Rainy seasons | One each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it |
|---|---|
| When the rains are expected | October 2026 to June 2027 |
| Rain in a typical year | About 1,341 mm in a typical farming district |
| Across its districts | From about 1,339 mm in the driest of 7 districts to about 1,686 mm in the wettest |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — January, February, 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 +1.2 °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 all year, so nothing but rain ends the season |
| Ground this covers | 4 kinds of ground. The season below is one typical farming district's, not a figure for the whole of this area. |
| 46% | enough rain for one full main crop; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 187 growing days · about 1,460 mm · October to April |
|---|---|
| 23% | enough rain for one full main crop; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 247 growing days · about 1,400 mm · October to June |
| 13% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 284 growing days · about 1,390 mm · October to July |
| 11% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 327 growing days · about 1,410 mm · October to August |
last updated 17 September 2026 · from all 7 areas within it
What cocoa needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sandy loam, loam or clay loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 6.0 and 7.0 |
| Spacing | 300 cm between rows, 300 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | potassium |
What it takes to grow cocoa in Vakinankaratra
| Planting material | About 1,100 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 60 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 21 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 112 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 | 128–255 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a cocoa 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 Cocoa with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Vakinankaratra 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.
Cocoa 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 cocoa grow well in Vakinankaratra?
Vakinankaratra rates as favourable for cocoa.
When should I plant cocoa in Vakinankaratra?
Typically 21 Jan 2026 to 1 Jan 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Vakinankaratra, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
