Divisi
When to plant Sunflower in Botswana
Sunflower is a tall, upright plant — about 1–2 m, higher than your head — that carries one big flower head on top.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Favourable | |
| When to plant | 3 Dec 2026 – 23 Dec 2026 opens in 9 weeks | 21 Jan 2027 – 9 Aug 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 1.2 t/ha | about 3.2 t/ha |
| Harvest | From 3 Mar 2027 to 2 May 2027, depending on the planting date | |
| Ready to harvest | 90–130 days after planting | |
| Work it takes | 74–155 days per hectare, by hand | |
| Rain meets its needs | 62% | |
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 23 Dec 2026. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
No seasonal forecast reaches Botswana yet, so these dates follow the rains it usually gets rather than this year's.
Planting after 23 Dec 2026 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Botswana
| Rain and temperature | 88% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 96% |
| The lie of the land | 88% |
For sunflower in Botswana, 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 2026/27 season in Botswana
| Rainy seasons | One each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it |
|---|---|
| When the rains are expected | November 2026 to March 2027 |
| Rain in a typical year | About 468 mm in a typical farming district |
| Across its districts | From about 296 mm in the driest of 28 districts to about 598 mm in the wettest |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — January, February 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 heat | Hotter than usual — about +2.1 °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 one short crop, and only if timed to it, warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season |
| Ground this covers | 3 kinds of ground. The season below is one typical farming district's, not a figure for the whole of this area. |
| 36% | enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 112 growing days · about 430 mm · November to March |
|---|---|
| 33% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 340 mm · December to March |
| 28% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm, with a cool spell that slows winter growth no rain-fed season · about 300 mm |
last updated 18 September 2026 · from all 28 areas within it
Limited water holds back about 40% of yield here.
What sunflower needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sandy loam, loam or clay loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 6.0 and 7.5 |
| Rain it needs | About 400–750 mm across the season |
| Spacing | 60 cm between rows, 25 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | boron, nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium |
What it takes to grow sunflower in Botswana
| Planting material | About 50,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 54 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 24 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 96 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. |
| Hand work | 74–155 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a sunflower 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 Sunflower with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Botswana 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.
Sunflower 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 sunflower grow well in Botswana?
Botswana rates as favourable for sunflower.
When should I plant sunflower in Botswana?
Typically 3 Dec 2026 to 23 Dec 2026, typical season.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Botswana, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
