Agricultural officials have cautioned farmers against planting now, saying the rains experienced are not adequate to sustain crop germination.
The advice follows reports that some farmers have started planting after their areas received rains this week.
In Mulanje, Thokozani Botomani, a farmer at Nande Village, Traditional Authority Mabuka, said she decided to plant because she believes the rains are enough for seeds to germinate.
However, Mulanje district agriculture services officer Osmund Chapotoka and his Blantyre counterpart Edward Katunga have advised farmers to wait.
Katunga said while they have observed that some farmers have begun planting, the rains received which usually precede main rains.
“The risk is that the seeds may not germinate and farmers will be forced to replant,” he said.
On his part, Chapotoka said the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services (MET) indicated in its seasonal forecast that planting rains in the district will start in the second week of November.
In a separate interview, MET deputy director of forecasting and observation Charles Vanya said rains have mainly fallen in the Southern Region districts such as Thyolo, Mulanje, Chikwawa, Blantyre, Zomba and Chiradzulu as well as Lilongwe and Salima in the Central Region.
He noted that in parts of Mulanje, Thyolo and Blantyre the rains were above 25 millimetres, which is normally enough for planting.
However, he warned that a break in rains is expected in the period between November and December.
Said Vanya: “What we have received are first rains because the weather system that brings rains is not yet established.”
He advised farmers in areas which have experienced heavy rains to consult agricultural extension workers before planting.
MET’s forecast for today indicates that rains will mainly fall over the central and northern areas of the country.
In the 2024/25 rainfall season, the country experienced false onset of rains in November followed by dry spells in December forcing farmers who planted early to replant their crops. In many parts of the country, reliable rains came towards the end of December.
