When to plant Lettuce in Webuye East

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Lettuce

Bungoma, Kenya

Known here as saladi · letusi

Lettuce is a fast, leafy salad crop grown for its crisp, tender leaves — and because people eat it raw, you must grow it clean.

Lettuce in Webuye East, rain-fed and with irrigation
Measure Rain-fed With irrigation
Fit Favourable
When to plant 22 Mar 2027 – 20 Jul 2027 opens in 25 weeks same
Expected harvest about 23.2 t/ha about 32.4 t/ha
Harvest From 6 May 2027 to 3 Oct 2027, depending on the planting date
Ready to harvest 45–75 days after planting
Work it takes 40–80 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 May 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.

This season's outlook for Webuye East leans wet. Plant at the early end of the window, and make sure water can drain off the field — a wet year does more damage through waterlogging than through the rain itself.

Planting after 20 Jul 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.

What decides this in Webuye East

Rain and temperature 96%
The soil 76%
The lie of the land 88%

For lettuce in Webuye East, 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 2026/27 season in Webuye East

When the rains are expectedFebruary 2026 to January 2027
Rain in a typical yearAbout 1,392 mm
This season's rainLeaning wet — January, February, November and December look heavier than usual. Make sure water can drain off the field; a wet year does more damage through waterlogging and disease than through the rain itself.
This season's heatHotter than usual — about +1.3 °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 supportsenough rain for a long crop, or two in a year, warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season
Ground this covers3 kinds of ground. The season below is the largest that farms — about 63% of this area.
Agro-ecological zones covering this area
63% enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 341 growing days · about 1,470 mm · February to January
21% enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 341 growing days · about 1,490 mm · February to January
16% enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 343 growing days · about 1,520 mm · February to January

last updated 30 September 2026

Frost and pest pressure hold back about 15% of yield here.

What lettuce needs to grow here

Soil it likes well-drained sandy loam or loam soil
Soil sourness (pH) Happiest between pH 6.0 and 6.8
Spacing 38 cm between rows, 30 cm between plants
Feed it most with nitrogen, potassium and calcium

What it takes to grow lettuce in Webuye East

Nitrogen (N)About 58 kg per hectare
Phosphate (P₂O₅)About 23 kg per hectare
Potash (K₂O)About 116 kg per hectare
In the shopsA 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 work40–80 days per hectare, by hand

These are the nutrients a lettuce 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 — manageable

Grow Lettuce with a plan, not a guess

Everything above describes Webuye East 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

Lettuce 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 lettuce grow well in Webuye East?

Webuye East rates as favourable for lettuce.

When should I plant lettuce in Webuye East?

Typically 22 Mar 2027 to 20 Jul 2027, forecast-adjusted.

Is this exact for my own field?

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

Also worth considering in Webuye East

Keep going

Timing is one question. What the crop needs at every stage, what attacks it and where to sell it are the others.