Divisi
When to plant Cotton in Obi Ngwa
These figures also cover Obot Akara, where the engine returns the same answer.
Abia, Nigeria
Known here as auduga
Cotton is grown for one thing: the soft white fibre — the lint — that grows wrapped around the seeds inside a pod called a boll.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Favourable | |
| When to plant | 1 Feb 2027 – 27 Jul 2027 opens in 18 weeks | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 2.3 t/ha | about 3.7 t/ha |
| Harvest | From 1 Jul 2027 to 22 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-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 Feb 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
This season's rainfall outlook for Obi Ngwa 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 27 Jul 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Obi Ngwa
| Rain and temperature | 96% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 76% |
| The lie of the land | 88% |
For cotton in Obi Ngwa, the soil is the tightest of the three at 76%. This is the one you can actually move. Lime raises a sour soil, manure and compost lift what it holds, and both work within a season or two — money spent here changes the answer.
The 2026 season in Obi Ngwa
| When the rains are expected | February 2026 to December 2026 |
|---|---|
| Rain in a typical year | About 2,341 mm |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — February, September, October 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 +0.6 °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 a long crop, or two in a year, 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 85% of this area. |
| 85% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 322 growing days · about 2,370 mm · February to December |
|---|---|
| 15% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 322 growing days · about 2,320 mm · February to December |
last updated 16 September 2026
Frost and pest pressure hold back about 15% 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 Obi Ngwa
| Planting material | About 80,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 64 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 32 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 69 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
Grow Cotton with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Obi Ngwa 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.
Cotton 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 cotton grow well in Obi Ngwa?
Obi Ngwa rates as favourable for cotton.
When should I plant cotton in Obi Ngwa?
Typically 1 Feb 2027 to 27 Jul 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Obi Ngwa, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
