Tanzania Crop Calendar

CENTRAL PLATEAUX (PLAINS): Flat to gently undulating.In some areas there are some rocky hill- footslope at medium altitude,developed on granites, sandstone,sheles, quartizites and gneisses. Few flat plains at medium altitude developed mainly on alluvium.Soils are well drained moderately deep to deep, red, yellowish red or orange sands and clay loams to loramy sands with sandy loams in depth. The structure is poor and very low natural fertility. Altitude: 6000-1300 m.a.s.l, Rainfall (mm/year): 800-1400 monomodale. Temperature: 18C-30C

Practices: Rainfall regime:One DGP per year with duration of 2-2½ months to 6 months, with a few areas receiving rain for 8 months.Rains start in October/ November. Main crops: Sorghum, milletss, groundnuts, Sunflower, Sweetpotatoes, cassava, Maize (early maturing and medium term),pigeon pea, lyacinth bean, passion fruit, Cotton, Sisal, Castor,simsim, Tea, Coffee, irish potatoes, Common beans, Grasses and Legumes for livestock, Grapes, Rice, Vegetable. Main Farming/ Cropping system: Sorghum/ Burlrush milllet/ Livestock/ Maize/ Bulrush millet/ Cotton/ Livestock. (Other crops are: Oil seeds and Rice). Cotton/ Maize (Other crops involved; Sweet potatoes, Sorghum anf Groundnuts), Pastoralist/ Agropasoralist (with shifting cultivation of sorghum). Irrigatiion: Traditional schemes operating with upgraded ones e.g. Lumuma. Notifiable pests: Any worms, Locusts, Rodents, Large grain borer. Sources of seed: own saved and from stockists. Fertilizers recommended but used in small quantities.

COASTAL PLAINS: Mainly undulating rolling plains of slope range 0-10%. In a few areas there are Strongly dissected uplands and rolling to steep hills, slope range of 10-45% disected. Major soils are well drained, moderately deep to deep, red, yellowish red or orange sands and loamy sands with sandy loams are in the subsoil with poor structure, very low natural fertility. In most cases the soils are moderately well to imperfectely drained, shallow to deep usually calcareous, black, dark grey or brown cracking clays often overlying paler subsoil with ephemeral structure and moderately high natural fertility. However there are few areas with special features: flat, low atitude riverine flood plains and deltas with spatially and temporally varying flooding regime and sedmentation patteins. There covered by young alluvial soils with variaable drainage and flooding conditions. Other special features are those undulating ad rooling plains developed neogenes and quaternary limestone, sandstone, marls, sands and clays. Altitude: 0-500 m.a.s.l ; rainfall (mm/year) 800-1600. Temperatures: 19-30 C.

Practices: Rainfall Regime: a)Two dependable growing periods (DGP) per year, March -May and October-December experienced in the northern coastal areas (Morogoro, Mvomero, Tanga, Zanzibar and Mafia). b) One dependable growing period per year with duration of 3-5 months during November - March. Main crops: cassava, simsim, finger millet, sorghum, cow pea, pigeon pea, pine apple,sweet potato, soya bean, Ground nut, passion fruit, finger millet, mango, cashew, cotton, mango,coconut,sisal, jatropha,citrus cloves,rubber, oil palm and sugar cane. Early maturing maize varieties grown in soils with high moisture storing capacity. Crop rotations: Maize/Beans/Maize. Beans -Maize/Sorghum-Cassava. Tomatoes/Maize/Tomatoes. Main farming/cropping system: Cashew/Coconut/Cassava; Coconut/Citrus/maize/cassava/sweetpotatoes. Some shifting cultivation is still practiced. Rice/Sugar System found in alluvial river valley (Rufiji, Kilombero river valleys, Morogoro, Mvomero and Pangani. Wet rice and irrigation sytem at river valleys and alluvial plains. Irrigation: The sugar cane plantations have modern irrigation facilites. Source of Seed: mainly from informal syatem-own saved, gift or exchange or purchased from local market. The system provide about 90 percent of seed. Formal system- from stockist and provide about 10percent of seed source. Frtilizer although recommended are used in small quantities. Notifiable/emergence pests: Insect pests (army worms, locust. Birds: (Quellea Quellea. Rodents

EASTERN PLATEAUX AND MOUNTAIN BLOCKS: Mainly well drained, undulating to rolling plains and plateaux developed on gneissic rocks. A few well drained, undulating to rolling plains at lower atitude(150-500mm) developed on intermediate metamovic rocks. However, there are some poorly drain flat wide topographic deprations developed on young aluvial and strongly dissected upland and low hills transitional to mountain. sloppy areas are strongly dissected, often rocky and severely eroded. Dominant soils are well drained moderately deep to deep, dark redish brown, yellowish red or red sandy clay loams and sany clays. Their structures is weak or moderately with low natural fertility. Their moderaly well imperfectly drained, deep, brown, pale yellow, light gre or white mottled sands and loamy sands with poor structure with very low natural fertility. Altitude: 200-1500 masl. Few areas up 2,000 masl. Temperature: 15-31 C. Rainfall (mm/year): 400-2000.

Practices: Rainfal Regime: mainly One DGP per year (except in Tanga region-Korogwe, Muheza, Mkinga and Pangani). Bio-model areas: First season: March-April. Second season during October-November. On set of rains vary from 1-4 weeks with duration of 2 - 2½ months to 7 months. Carrying capacity 2 Livestock Unit per sq. km. Main crops: Maize, sorghum, rice, cassava sweet potatoes, sugar cane, cow pea, pigeon pea, hyacinth bean, citrus, mangoes, passion fruit, pine apple, cashew, coconut, ground nuts, soya bean, sunflower, sugar cane, tobacco, cotton, tea, coffee, sisal, jatropha, wheat, lablab, castor,simsim, finger millet, mangoes, sweet potato.Various tropical grasses and legumes for animal fodder. Main farming/croping system: Maize/legumes; maize/legume/horticulture; maize/legume/livestock or legume/sorghum/livestock; banana/coffee/horticulture; banana/coffee/horticulture/livestock. Irrigatio: mainly traditional but upscaled in vegetablesa and rice growing areas. Source of seed: Informal and Formal. Temperate seeds such as carrot. cabbages are imported. Notifiable pests: Insects: armyworms, locust; Birds-Quellea Quellea; Rodents

HIGH PLAINS AND PLATEAUX: Mainly flat and undulating to rolling plains and plateaux at high altitude, developed on granites and gneisses. In other areas there are strongly dissected hills,mountaineous topograph, volicanic land forms at high altitudes. Mojor soils are well drained deep brown, yellowish, sand loam, sand clays to clay with moderately to strong structure. The soils have moderately to high natural fetility. Altitude: 500-2400 masl. Rainfall (mm/year): 600-2400. Temperature: 19-25 C.

Practices: Rainfall regime: One DGP per year with duration of 5-6 months in few areas, up to 12 month or more from One DGP to the next without intermidiate dry period. Rains start in November/December and the onset is reliable. Main crops: Tea, coffee, mango, maize, sorghum, banana, wheat, cassava, irish potato, sweet-potato, pyrethrum, finger millet, common bean, pigeon pea, hyacinth bean, passion fruit, pineapple, macadamia, castor, simsim, sunflower, tomato, carrot,oil palm, rubber, cacao, sisal, eggplant, fruit trees. Irrigatio: mainly traditional but upscaled in rice growing areas. (Mbarali). Source of seed: Informal and Formal. Notifiable pests: Insects: armyworms, locust; Birds-Quellea Quellea; Rodents

RUKWA - RUAHA RIFT ZONE - ALLUVIAL FLATS: Flat to undulating plains, covered by riverine or lacustrine alluvium or alluvium fans, levees, piedmonts and by variable flooding conditions. Soil affected by salinity of varying colour, texture, structure, consistence and drainage. Its fertility and moisture storing characteristics adversely affected by presence of exchangeable sodium and soluble salts.In some areas high enough to interfere with growth of most crops.The soils are well drained, moderately deep to deep, reddish and yellowish sandy clay loams and sandy clays. Structure is weak with poor natural fertility. Other areas have poorly drained, deep, dark grey or grey brown often mottled clays.They have higher clay content than the young olluvial clays ( clay 40%-70%) and of also lower natural fertility. Few areas have soils of high natural fertility, imperfectly to poorly drained soils. Altitude: 800-1400 masl. Rainfall (mm/year): 800-2000. Temperature: 18C-30C

Practices: Rainfall regime: One DGP per year with a duratioon of 3-6 months.In Northwest (Karama depression) around lake Rukwa rains have a duration of 6-9 months. Rains start in October/ November up to March/ April. Main Crops: Sorghum pigeon peas, Hyacinth bean, Banana, Citrus, Passion fruit,Simsim, Cotton, Rice, Millets, Grapes, Groundnuts, Early and medium term maturing maize, Sweet potato, Sunflower, Castor. Farming /Cropping Systems: Wet Rice and irrigated system. Pastoralist and Agropastoralists, Sorghum/ Bulrush millet/ Livestock (or Maize, rice). Cotton/ Maize ( Other croops maize, sorghum, sweet potatoes and groundnuts). Irrigation schemes: Both traditional and modern are operating e.g. Mbarari Rice Irrigation sheme. Sources of seed: Own saved, from stockists and On farm produced. Farmers use both organic and artificial fertilizers but not up to the recommended rates. Local varieties. Maize, sorghum

No description available.

VOLCANOES AND RIFT DEPRESSIONS : Mainly rolling to hilly, dissected plateaux at high altitude developed on volcanic ash, lavas and on gneisses. In some areas there are volcanic mountain with gental to steep ash and lava slopes streching from medium(600-1600masl) to high altitude (2300 masl). At medium altitude on encounters locostrarine plains, extensive salt and soda flats. The soils are well drained, in some areas heterogenous soils types with propotion of fertile, deep yellowish, redish sand clay to moderate to strong structure. In some areas of the zone the soils are of varying coulor, texture and structure consistence and drainage. Their fertility stutus and moisture storage proparties are advesily affected by presence of exchangeble sodium salt or soluble salts at level that are high enough to enterfere with growth of most crops. Altitude: 900-2400 masl. Rainfall (mm/year): 400-1600. Temperature: 22C-30C

Practices: Rainfall regime: One DGP per year with duration of 3-5 months. Rain start from October/November and end in March/April. Main crops: Irish potatoes, apples, plums, peaches, grapes, apricots, pyrethrum, wattle,Tea, coffee, mango, maize, sorghum, banana, wheat, cassava, sweet-potato, finger millet, common bean, pigeon pea, hyacinth bean, passion fruit, pineapple, macadamia, castor, simsim, sunflower, tomato, carrot, eggplant, apples, plums, peaches, grapes, apricots, wheat, cassava, finger millet. Various tropical grasses and legumes for fodder. Rotation: Peas/beans; carrot/cabbage-tomatoes. beans/maize-cassava. Farming System: Banana/coffee/horticulture/livestock; Maize/legume/livestock. Pastoralist/agropastoralist. Irrigation: traditional and morden are available (Kilimanjaro Agricultural Training Centre-KATC). Source of seed: Informal and stockist.