When to plant Lettuce in Isu

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Lettuce

Imo, Nigeria

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 Isu, rain-fed and with irrigation
Measure Rain-fed With irrigation
Fit Favourable
When to plant 23 Jun 2027 – 27 Jul 2027 opens in 38 weeks 10 Jun 2027 – 9 Aug 2027
Expected harvest about 11.4 t/ha about 16.0 t/ha
Harvest From 7 Aug 2027 to 10 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 10 Jul 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.

This season's rainfall outlook for Isu 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 Isu

Rain and temperature 60%
The soil 76%
The lie of the land 88%

For lettuce in Isu, rain and temperature is the tightest of the three at 60%. 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 2026 season in Isu

When the rains are expectedFebruary 2026 to December 2026
Rain in a typical yearAbout 2,155 mm
This season's rainLeaning dry — September and October 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 heatHotter than usual — about +0.9 °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 covers2 kinds of ground. The season below is the largest that farms — about 86% of this area.
Agro-ecological zones covering this area
86% enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 313 growing days · about 2,150 mm · February to December
14% enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 312 growing days · about 2,120 mm · February to December

last updated 16 September 2026

Temperature holds back about 50% 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 Isu

Nitrogen (N)About 28 kg per hectare
Phosphate (P₂O₅)About 11 kg per hectare
Potash (K₂O)About 57 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 — manageableSoil pH outside the crop's rangeCorrect soil pH (lime)

Grow Lettuce with a plan, not a guess

Everything above describes Isu 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 Isu?

Isu rates as favourable for lettuce.

When should I plant lettuce in Isu?

Typically 23 Jun 2027 to 27 Jul 2027, forecast-adjusted.

Is this exact for my own field?

No — these are readings taken across Isu, 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 Isu

Keep going

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