Divisi
When to plant Onion in Baringo Central
Baringo, Kenya
Known here as kitunguu
Onion is a cool-season vegetable you grow for its bulb — the swollen base of the leaves — but across sub-Saharan Africa it is most often grown as an irrigated hot dry-season crop, and it stands real heat (up to about 42 °C) as long as the water never stops.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Favourable | |
| When to plant | 25 Mar 2027 – 23 Jun 2027 opens in 25 weeks | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 19.0 t/ha | about 28.5 t/ha |
| Harvest | From 23 Jun 2027 to 21 Oct 2027, depending on the planting date | |
| Ready to harvest | 90–120 days after planting | |
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 9 Apr 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
This season's rainfall outlook for Baringo Central is close to normal, so these dates match the pattern the area usually follows.
Planting after 23 Jun 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Baringo Central
| Rain and temperature | 96% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 76% |
| The lie of the land | 45% |
For onion in Baringo Central, the lie of the land is the tightest of the three at 45%. 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 Baringo Central
| When the rains are expected | March 2026 to January 2027 |
|---|---|
| Rain in a typical year | About 1,173 mm |
| This season's rain | Rain close to usual — plan around about 1,173 mm falling roughly when it always does |
| This season's heat | Hotter than usual — about +1.2 °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 | 4 kinds of ground. The season below is the largest that farms — about 39% of this area. |
| 39% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 320 growing days · about 1,150 mm · March to January |
|---|---|
| 28% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 273 growing days · about 930 mm · March to December |
| 15% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 288 growing days · about 1,040 mm · March to December |
| 15% | enough rain for one full main crop; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 267 growing days · about 860 mm · March to December |
last updated 30 September 2026
Sloping ground holds back about 35% of yield here.
What onion needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sandy loam or loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 6.0 and 7.0 |
| Spacing | 20 cm between rows, 7 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | nitrogen, potassium and sulphur |
What it takes to grow onion in Baringo Central
| Planting material | About 500,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 34 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 7 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 38 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. |
These are the nutrients a onion 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 Onion with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Baringo Central 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.
Where to sell Onion nearby
Onion 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 onion grow well in Baringo Central?
Baringo Central rates as favourable for onion.
When should I plant onion in Baringo Central?
Typically 25 Mar 2027 to 23 Jun 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Baringo Central, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
