Around Accra the planting calendar is set by two rainy seasons, not by spring. The major rains run from about April to July, the minor rains from August or September to October or November, and December to February is dry, with the harmattan. Rain-fed crops go in as the rains begin; anything grown in the dry season needs watering. Rainfall is about 800 mm a year on the coast and up to about 1,270 mm inland, so a garden in Dodowa gets more than one in Jamestown.
This guide is for anyone growing food around Accra, from a farm on the plains to a few pots in a compound.
— The rains, month by month, on the seasons page
The year at a glance
- March to April: plant the major-season crops as the rains begin - maize, sweet corn, and cassava from April.
- April to July: the major rains. Cassava planting runs to July; leafy greens grow fastest now; tomatoes struggle with disease.
- August to October: plant the minor-season crops - a second maize crop, cowpea, and onions from August.
- November to February: the dry season. The best time for irrigated vegetables - lettuce, cabbage, tomatoes - if you can water them.
Crop by crop
The planting and harvest windows below come from the same research as the seasons page. Where they are marked typical there, they follow from the rains and general Ghanaian crop calendars rather than Accra records - a starting point, not a rule.
| Crop | When to plant | When it is ready |
|---|---|---|
| Maize | Major season March to April, minor season August to September. | Major harvest July to August, minor November to December. |
| Cassava | April to July, in the rains. | November to January is the main harvest, but the roots can stay in the ground and be dug almost all year once they are nine to twelve months old. |
| Rice | In the rains, with a second crop on irrigated and lowland plots. | August to October, and again where the fields are irrigated. |
| Sweet corn | March to April. | August to September, 90 to 120 days after planting. |
| Cowpea (beans) | Major season April to August, minor September to October. | October to November, and November to December. |
| Tomato | All year where irrigated. The rainy-season crop gets more disease. | Best supply December to April, from dry-season irrigated plots. |
| Hot pepper | All year with irrigation. | All year. The sources disagree on when supply is highest - one says in the rains, another that dry-season irrigated pepper peaks from December to February - so no peak is shown. |
| Okra | All year. A quick crop, 70 to 80 days. | All year. |
| Garden egg | All year, 60 to 70 days. | All year. |
| Cabbage | The dry season and cooler months are preferred. | Two to three months after planting. |
| Carrot | All year with irrigation, 65 to 85 days. | All year. |
| Cucumber | All year with irrigation, 60 to 65 days. | All year. |
| Cauliflower | All year with irrigation. | All year. |
| Onion | August to November, by an aggregated crop calendar. | From September or October on, depending on planting. |
| Watermelon | The dry season and the early rains, 70 to 80 days. | Roughly January to April, and again August to October. |
| Lettuce | All year, 45 to 50 days. The dry season is the main planting time. | All year, six to seven weeks after planting. |
| Spring onion | All year with irrigation. | All year. |
| Ayoyo and kontomire | All year with irrigation, growing fastest in the rains. | Three to six weeks after sowing. |
| Mango | A perennial tree that flowers in the dry season. | Major season April to August, peaking in May and June. Minor season November to January. |
| Pineapple | Planted all year, with flowering staggered. | Two flushes a year. One exporter quotes November to April, another all year, so no peak is shown. |
| Pawpaw | A perennial, fruiting all year. | All year. |
| Banana | A perennial, fruiting all year. | All year. |
| Plantain | A perennial, fruiting all year. | Steady through the year. |
| Coconut | A perennial palm. | All year. |
| Orange | A perennial tree. | On sale all year, peaking around the major rains. |
| Avocado | A perennial tree. | Follows local flowering. No window for Accra was found. |
| Guava | A perennial tree. | Follows local flowering. No window for Accra was found. |
| Cashew apple | A perennial tree. | Follows local flowering. No window for Accra was found. |
Growing vegetables in a compound
Most Accra households that grow food grow a little of it, close to the kitchen. The crops that earn their space:
- Pepper - all year with irrigation. One or two plants keep a household in fresh pepper.
- Okra - all year. a quick crop, 70 to 80 days.
- Tomatoes - all year where irrigated. the rainy-season crop gets more disease. Grow them in the dry season and water them; the rainy-season crop is the one that rots.
- Ayoyo and kontomire - all year with irrigation, growing fastest in the rains. Ready three to six weeks after sowing.
- Lettuce and spring onions - all year, 45 to 50 days. the dry season is the main planting time.
A few things matter more in Accra than in a gardening book:
- Water with clean water. Much of the contamination found on the city’s vegetables comes from the drain and stream water they are watered with. Water from the tap or a stored tank, not the gutter. — Water in Accra
- Plan for the dry season. From December to February nothing grows without watering, and water can be short; a polytank filled when the supply is on is how many households garden through it.
- Raise the beds in the rains. Low ground floods in the major rains, and roots rot in standing water.
- Mind the harmattan. The dry wind and dust are hard on seedlings; shade and mulch help.
Farming on a larger scale
The Accra Plains, from Tema to Ada, and the districts to the north and east are where the region’s farming is done - cassava, maize, vegetables, mangoes and livestock. For advice on a particular field, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture’s district agriculture officers are the people to ask, and the research behind these pages says the same: check exact planting dates with them.
— Farming in Accra: where the city’s food is grown
— How to start a poultry farm near Accra
— Is your business viable in each district?
Where next
— A month-by-month food calendar
— Vegetables and leafy greens in Accra
— Weather and seasons in Accra
The planting and harvest windows come from the research behind the seasons page, compiled on 6 October 2026; its sources are listed in full there.