Divisi
When to plant Onion in Ceel Dheer
Galgaduud, Somalia
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.
| Fit | Favourable |
|---|---|
| When to plant | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 open now |
| Expected harvest | about 33.8 t/ha |
| Harvest | From 21 Apr 2026 to 1 May 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 1 Jan 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
This season's outlook for Ceel Dheer 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 1 Jan 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Ceel Dheer
| Rain and temperature | 88% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 96% |
| The lie of the land | 88% |
For onion in Ceel Dheer, rain and temperature is the tightest of the three at 88%. 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 season in Ceel Dheer
| Rain in a typical year | About 294 mm |
|---|---|
| This season's rain | Leaning wet — make sure water can drain off the field. |
| What that supports | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation, 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 97% of this area. |
| 97% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 300 mm |
|---|---|
| 3% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 240 mm |
last updated 1 October 2026
Temperature holds back about 25% 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 Ceel Dheer
| Planting material | About 500,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 61 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 12 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 68 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 Ceel Dheer 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.
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 Ceel Dheer?
Ceel Dheer rates as favourable for onion.
When should I plant onion in Ceel Dheer?
Typically 21 Jan 2026 to 1 Jan 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Ceel Dheer, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.