Divisi
When to plant Robusta coffee in Jimara
Upper River, Gambia
Robusta (Coffea canephora) is a hardy evergreen coffee tree of the warm lowlands — bigger, tougher and higher-yielding than highland Arabica, and far better at shrugging off leaf rust.
| Fit | Favourable |
|---|---|
| When to plant (establish) | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 open now |
| Expected harvest | about 1.7 t/ha |
| Bearing cycle | 270–330 days per crop once the plant is established. Planting to the first harvest takes longer than one cycle. |
| Work it takes | 122–255 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.
No seasonal forecast reaches Jimara yet, so these dates follow the rains it usually gets rather than this year's.
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 Jimara
| Rain and temperature | 76% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 76% |
| The lie of the land | 88% |
For robusta coffee in Jimara, 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 2027 season in Jimara
| Rainy seasons | One each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it |
|---|---|
| When the rains are expected | June 2027 to October 2027 |
| Rain in a typical year | About 690 mm |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — September looks 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 short crop, and only if timed to it, warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season |
| Ground this covers | 2 kinds of ground. The season below is the largest that farms — about 86% of this area. |
| 86% | enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 133 growing days · about 710 mm · June to October |
|---|---|
| 14% | enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 131 growing days · about 690 mm · June to October |
last updated 17 September 2026
Temperature holds back about 40% of yield here.
What robusta coffee needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | sandy loam, loam or clay loam |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 5.0 and 6.5 |
| Spacing | 275 cm between rows, 275 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | potassium |
What it takes to grow robusta coffee in Jimara
| Planting material | About 1,350 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 60 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 12 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 66 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 | 122–255 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a robusta coffee 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 Robusta coffee with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Jimara 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.
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 robusta coffee grow well in Jimara?
Jimara rates as favourable for robusta coffee.
When should I plant robusta coffee in Jimara?
Typically 21 Jan 2026 to 1 Jan 2027, typical season.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Jimara, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
