Divisi
When to plant Tobacco in Andapa
Sava, Madagascar
Tobacco is a tall, broad-leaved plant in the same family as tomato and potato, grown not for food but for its leaves, which are dried and cured, then sold by weight and grade.
| Measure | Rain-fed | With irrigation |
|---|---|---|
| Fit | Moderate | |
| When to plant | 8 Oct 2026 – 11 Apr 2027 opens in 1 week | 21 Jan 2026 – 1 Jan 2027 |
| Expected harvest | about 1.1 t/ha | same |
| Harvest | From 6 Jan 2027 to 9 Aug 2027, depending on the planting date | |
| Ready to harvest | 90–120 days after planting | |
| Work it takes | 120–242 days per hectare, by hand | |
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 Andapa 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 Apr 2027 leaves the crop short of season: it runs into the dry months before it has finished filling.
What decides this in Andapa
| Rain and temperature | 96% |
|---|---|
| The soil | 96% |
| The lie of the land | 30% |
For tobacco in Andapa, the lie of the land is the tightest of the three at 30%. 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 season in Andapa
| When the rains are expected | September 2026 to September 2026 |
|---|---|
| Rain in a typical year | About 2,088 mm |
| This season's rain | Leaning dry — September looks 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 +0.8 °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 81% of this area. |
| 81% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 365 growing days · about 2,120 mm · September to September |
|---|---|
| 6% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 322 growing days · about 1,710 mm · October to September |
| 5% | enough rain for a long crop, or two in a year; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 290 growing days · about 1,670 mm · October to August |
| 4% | enough rain for one full main crop; warm all year, so nothing but rain ends the season 250 growing days · about 1,520 mm · October to July |
last updated 17 September 2026
Sloping ground holds back about 65% of yield here.
What tobacco needs to grow here
| Soil it likes | well-drained sandy loam or loam soil |
|---|---|
| Soil sourness (pH) | Happiest between pH 5.5 and 6.5 |
| Spacing | 120 cm between rows, 55 cm between plants |
| Feed it most with | nitrogen and potassium |
What it takes to grow tobacco in Andapa
| Planting material | About 16,000 plants per hectare |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (N) | About 41 kg per hectare |
| Phosphate (P₂O₅) | About 12 kg per hectare |
| Potash (K₂O) | About 66 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 | 120–242 days per hectare, by hand |
These are the nutrients a tobacco 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 Tobacco with a plan, not a guess
Everything above describes Andapa 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.
Tobacco 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 tobacco grow well in Andapa?
Andapa rates as moderate for tobacco.
When should I plant tobacco in Andapa?
Typically 8 Oct 2026 to 11 Apr 2027, forecast-adjusted.
Is this exact for my own field?
No — these are readings taken across Andapa, not on your field. Soil, slope and rainfall change from one farm to the next. Check your own location to see your own numbers.
