When to plant Cotton in Cabo Verde

Cotton is grown for one thing: the soft white fibre — the lint — that grows wrapped around the seeds inside a pod called a boll.

Cotton in Cabo Verde, rain-fed and with irrigation
Measure	Rain-fed	With irrigation
Fit	Favourable
When to plant	11 Jul 2027 – 31 Jul 2027 opens in 41 weeks	21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027
Expected harvest	about 1.4 t/ha	about 3.1 t/ha
Harvest	From 8 Dec 2027 to 26 Feb 2028, depending on the planting date
Ready to harvest	150–210 days after planting
Work it takes	91–187 days per hectare, by hand
Rain meets its needs	67%

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 11 Jul 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.

This season's rainfall outlook for Cabo Verde is close to normal, so these dates match the pattern the area usually follows.

Planting after 31 Jul 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.

What decides this in Cabo Verde

Rain and temperature	96%
The soil	76%
The lie of the land	60%

For cotton in Cabo Verde, 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 2027 season in Cabo Verde

When the rains are expected	August 2027 to October 2027
Rain in a typical year	About 290 mm in a typical farming district
Across its districts	From about 82 mm in the driest of 32 districts to about 542 mm in the wettest
This season's rain	Rain close to usual — plan around about 290 mm falling roughly when it always does
What that supports	too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation, warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season
Ground this covers	5 kinds of ground. The season below is one typical farming district's, not a figure for the whole of this area.

Agro-ecological zones covering this area
35%	too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 190 mm · August to October
35%	enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 101 growing days · about 350 mm · July to November
16%	too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 180 mm · August to October
12%	enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 97 growing days · about 360 mm · July to November
3%	enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 149 growing days · about 610 mm · July to November

last updated 17 September 2026 · from all 32 areas within it

Limited water holds back about 30% of yield here.

What cotton needs to grow here

Soil it likes	well-drained sandy loam, loam, clay loam or clay soil
Soil sourness (pH)	Happiest between pH 6.0 and 7.5
Spacing	90 cm between rows, 25 cm between plants
Feed it most with	nitrogen, potassium and boron

What it takes to grow cotton in Cabo Verde

Planting material	About 80,000 plants per hectare
Nitrogen (N)	About 39 kg per hectare
Phosphate (P₂O₅)	About 20 kg per hectare
Potash (K₂O)	About 42 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	91–187 days per hectare, by hand

These are the nutrients a cotton 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

Pest/disease risk — manageableNot enough water in seasonLate-maturing — drought risk

Grow Cotton with a plan, not a guess

Everything above describes Cabo Verde 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.

Or check your field first

Cotton in nearby districts

How to grow Cotton, step by step Land preparation to harvest — every task, in order

Frequently asked questions

Will cotton grow well in Cabo Verde?

Cabo Verde rates as favourable for cotton.

When should I plant cotton in Cabo Verde?

Typically 11 Jul 2027 to 31 Jul 2027, forecast-adjusted.

Is this exact for my own field?

No — these are readings taken across Cabo Verde, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.