When to plant Mango in Maputo

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Mango

Moçambique

Known here as manga

Mango is a big, long-living evergreen tree that, once planted, can feed your family and earn money for decades.

Mango in Maputo, rain-fed and with irrigation
Measure Rain-fed With irrigation
Fit Favourable
When to plant (establish) 12 Nov 2026 – 11 Jan 2027 opens in 6 weeks 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027
Expected harvest 14.9–17.5 t/ha about 25.0 t/ha
Work it takes 62–147 days per hectare, by hand
Rain meets its needs 82%

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.

This season's rainfall outlook for Maputo 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 11 Jan 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.

What decides this in Maputo

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

For mango in Maputo, the lie of the land is the tightest of the three at 76%. 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 2026/27 season in Maputo

Rainy seasonsOne each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it
When the rains are expectedOctober 2026 to April 2027
Rain in a typical yearAbout 664 mm in a typical farming district
Across its districtsFrom about 568 mm in the driest of 8 districts to about 832 mm in the wettest
This season's rainLeaning dry — January, February, October, November 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 heatHotter than usual — about +1.5 °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 one short crop, and only if timed to it, warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season
Ground this covers4 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
53% enough rain for one full main crop; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 194 growing days · about 720 mm · October to April
26% enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 172 growing days · about 630 mm · November to April
12% enough rain for one full main crop; warm, with a cool spell that slows winter growth 215 growing days · about 660 mm · October to May
4% enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm, with a cool spell that slows winter growth 167 growing days · about 600 mm · November to April

last updated 17 September 2026 · from all 8 areas within it

What mango needs to grow here

Soil it likes well-drained sandy loam or loam soil
Soil sourness (pH) Happiest between pH 5.5 and 7.5
Spacing 900 cm between rows, 900 cm between plants
Feed it most with nitrogen, potassium, zinc and boron

What it takes to grow mango in Maputo

Planting materialAbout 135 plants per hectare
Nitrogen (N)About 30 kg per hectare
Phosphate (P₂O₅)About 7 kg per hectare
Potash (K₂O)About 52 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 work62–147 days per hectare, by hand

These are the nutrients a mango 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 Mango with a plan, not a guess

Everything above describes Maputo 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

Mango 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 mango grow well in Maputo?

Maputo rates as favourable for mango.

When should I plant mango in Maputo?

Typically 12 Nov 2026 to 11 Jan 2027, forecast-adjusted.

Is this exact for my own field?

No — these are readings taken across Maputo, 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 Maputo

Keep going

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