Divisi
When to plant Sweet potato in Omaheke
Namibia
Sweet potato is a trailing vine you grow from vine cuttings (slips), not from seed and not by planting the root.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Favourable | |
| When to plant | 24 Dec 2026 – 3 Jan 2027 opens in 12 weeks | 29 Aug 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 12.3 t/ha | about 35.0 t/ha |
| Harvest | From 24 Mar 2027 to 2 Jun 2027, depending on the planting date | |
| Ready to harvest | 90–150 days after planting | |
| Work it takes | 70–148 days per hectare, by hand | |
| Rain meets its needs | 49% | |
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 3 Jan 2027. That is the point in the window where the rains are most reliably established.
No seasonal forecast reaches Omaheke yet, so these dates follow the rains it usually gets rather than this year's.
Planting after 3 Jan 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Omaheke
| Rain and temperature | 96% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 96% |
| The lie of the land | 96% |
For sweet potato in Omaheke, rain and temperature is the tightest of the three at 96%. 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 Omaheke
| Rainy seasons | One each year — one chance to plant, so timing carries it |
|---|---|
| When the rains are expected | December 2026 to March 2027 |
| Rain in a typical year | About 423 mm in a typical farming district |
| Across its districts | From about 296 mm in the driest of 7 districts to about 450 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 | 4 kinds of ground. The season below is one typical farming district's, not a figure for the whole of this area. |
| 42% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season no rain-fed season · about 330 mm |
|---|---|
| 34% | enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 97 growing days · about 410 mm · December to March |
| 15% | enough rain for one short crop, and only if timed to it; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 94 growing days · about 420 mm · December to April |
| 6% | too dry for rain-fed cropping without irrigation; warm, with a cool spell that slows winter growth no rain-fed season · about 260 mm |
last updated 18 September 2026 · from all 7 areas within it
Limited water holds back about 50% of yield here.
What sweet potato needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sandy, sandy loam or loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 5.0 and 6.5 |
| Rain it needs | About 750–1,000 mm across the season |
| Spacing | 100 cm between rows, 30 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | potassium and nitrogen |
What it takes to grow sweet potato in Omaheke
| Planting material | About 33,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 49 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 18 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 98 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 | 70–148 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a sweet potato 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 Sweet potato with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Omaheke 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.
Sweet potato 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 sweet potato grow well in Omaheke?
Omaheke rates as favourable for sweet potato.
When should I plant sweet potato in Omaheke?
Typically 24 Dec 2026 to 3 Jan 2027, typical season.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Omaheke, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
