Seasonal Farming Calendar: What to Do Each Month

A livestock farm is a calendar-driven business, not a whenever-you-feel-like-it business. Every month of the year has specific tasks that, if done on time, prevent disease outbreaks, lock in feed at the cheapest price, and time sales for the best market. This 12-month calendar is calibrated for tropical African conditions (wet season April-October, dry season November-March) but the principles apply anywhere in the tropics. Adapt the months to your local climate - the order of operations does not change, only the dates shift.

January: peak dry season - water and heat management

The dry season peaks in January across most of West and Central Africa. Daytime temperatures regularly exceed 32 degrees C with humidity below 40 percent. Priorities:

• Heat stress mitigation for broilers: activate electrolyte + vitamin C water program. Run fans 24/7. Feed at 5-7 AM and 8-10 PM only. Expect 2-4 percent higher mortality than usual - track and budget for it.
• Water system audit: storage tanks evaporate and leak faster in dry season. Check daily. Birds drink 2-3x normal water in heat - if your tank empties midday, birds die.
• Dust management: dry litter generates dust that causes respiratory disease. Lightly moisten litter with disinfectant solution every 3 days.
• Vaccination window: Newcastle (La Sota or clone) booster for all layers and breeders. Schedule for the coolest morning of the week.
• Market timing: broiler prices typically dip in January (oversupply from Christmas rush). Avoid having broilers ready for slaughter this month - schedule batches to be ready in February-March instead.

February: late dry season - prepare for the rains

February is the last full month of dry season. Use it to prepare infrastructure for the rains that begin in March-April.

• Roof and gutter repair: fix every leak now. A poultry house that leaks in March will cause coccidiosis outbreaks in April.
• Drainage ditches: dig or clear drainage channels around all animal houses. Standing water = mosquitoes = disease.
• Feed stockpile: maize prices typically rise 20-40 percent between February and August as the previous year's harvest runs out and the new harvest is not yet in. Buy 3-6 months of feed ingredient (maize, bran) now if you have storage. Lock in supplier contracts at the lower dry-season price.
• Breeding schedule for year-end market: if you want pigs or poultry ready for Christmas/New Year, plan breeding dates now. Pigs need 6 months from conception to slaughter; broilers need 6-8 weeks; layers need 5 months from chick to point-of-lay. Work backward from December.

March: transition month - the most dangerous time

March is when the rains begin sporadically but temperatures remain high. This combination creates the highest disease pressure of the year - humidity rises, pathogens multiply, and animals stressed by the long dry season have weakened immunity.

• Coccidiosis prevention: start anticoccidial program in feed or water for all young stock (under 12 weeks for poultry, under 4 months for pigs). Coccidiostats are far cheaper than treating an outbreak.
• Deworming: deworm all animals with a broad-spectrum product (levamisole or ivermectin for pigs, fenbendazole or piperazine for poultry). Worm burdens peak at the start of rains.
• Biosecurity tightening: as neighbors' flocks begin to experience outbreaks (Newcastle, Gumboro, swine fever), your risk rises. Tighten visitor restrictions, refresh footbaths, ensure no feed or water contamination from outside.
• Vaccination boosters: Gumboro (IBD) for poultry under 8 weeks. Swine erysipelas for pigs 4+ months.
• Plant fodder crops: if you integrate crops, plant maize, cassava, and legumes now for harvest in 4-6 months.

April-May: early rains - construction and growth season

April-May is peak rainfall in many regions. Disease pressure remains high, but it is also a season of opportunity: feed ingredients will become cheap in 3-4 months when the new harvest arrives, and construction materials (sand, gravel, wood) are easier to transport.

• Construction window: build new pens, expand housing, install new equipment now while roads are still passable. Once the heavy rains of June-August arrive, construction becomes much harder.
• Piglet care: piglets born in the rainy season need extra attention - dry bedding, supplemental heat for the first 2 weeks, iron injection at day 3. Cold piglets die.
• Poultry litter management: wet litter is the #1 cause of respiratory disease in this season. Add fresh litter weekly. Remove wet patches immediately. Use hydrated lime (1kg per 10m2) to dry wet spots.
• Vaccination: fowl pox (pox vaccine wing-web) for poultry 6+ weeks. This is also the time for annual rabies booster for any farm dogs.

June-July: peak rains - feed management and parasites

Peak rains bring two challenges: feed spoilage (mold) and peak parasite burdens.

• Feed storage: ensure all feed is in sealed metal bins or on pallets raised 30cm off the floor, 30cm away from walls. Inspect weekly for mold. Aflatoxin-contaminated feed kills birds slowly and irreversibly.
• Peak deworming: deworm all stock now. Worm eggs hatch in wet conditions and re-infect animals rapidly. Repeat deworming every 8 weeks during the rainy season.
• Ticks and lice: spray or dip pigs and poultry for external parasites. Use permethrin-based products for poultry, ivermectin pour-on for pigs. Repeat every 21 days.
• Market opportunity: road conditions make transport difficult, so supply to markets drops - prices typically rise 10-20 percent for poultry and pork in July-August. If you can get your product to market, you earn a premium.

August-September: late rains - harvest preparation

The new maize harvest begins in many regions in September-October. Prices will drop sharply. Prepare to take advantage.

• Empty and clean feed storage: use up the last of last year's feed before the new harvest arrives. Clean and disinfect all feed bins.
• Negotiate new feed contracts: as maize prices fall 25-40 percent in October, this is the time to lock in annual contracts at the lowest price. See the article on negotiating with feed suppliers for the exact script.
• Pig breeding for Christmas market: sows bred in September-October farrow in January-February, with piglets ready for the December market. Plan accordingly.
• End-of-season vaccination boosters: as rains taper off, give final deworming and vaccine boosters before the dry season stress begins.

October-November: harvest and dry season transition

The harvest is in, prices are low, and you should be stocking up on feed for the next 8 months.

• Buy and store maize/bran: if you have storage, buy 6-8 months of maize at harvest prices. Store properly (sealed, dry, raised). This single act can cut your feed cost by 25-35 percent over the year.
• Year-end batch planning: broilers hatched in October-November are ready for the Christmas market (peak prices). Layers hatched now will start laying in March-April (peak demand).
• Holiday market preparation: start advertising holiday turkeys, broilers, and pigs in October. Take deposits from customers. You will sell out faster than you can produce.
• Annual infrastructure review: walk the entire farm with a notebook. What needs repair, replacement, or upgrade before the next year? Budget for the major items now.

December: peak market and planning month

December is the single most profitable month for livestock farmers in Africa - holiday demand spikes prices 30-50 percent across poultry, pork, and even beef. But it is also a high-stress month for the animals (heat, transport, disease pressure from new animals moving through markets).

• Sell, sell, sell - but carefully: sell your Christmas-ready stock between December 15-30 at peak prices. Do NOT transport sick animals. Insist on cash on delivery.
• Biosecurity red alert: December is when Newcastle, African swine fever, and other diseases spread most rapidly through markets. Do NOT bring any new animal to your farm this month unless absolutely necessary, and quarantine strictly if you do.
• Year-end records review: close your annual books. Calculate: total revenue, total cost, profit per animal, profit per batch, profit per worker hour. Compare to last year. Identify your top-performing and bottom-performing batches. FarmWise generates these reports automatically.
• Plan next year: by December 31, you should have a written annual plan: how many birds/pigs you will raise, which months you will start batches, which months you will sell, capital investments planned, training for workers, and a feed budget. Without this plan, you are just reacting to whatever happens.

The 12-month summary at a glance

• Jan: heat stress + water management, low broiler prices
• Feb: infrastructure repair + feed stockpile
• Mar: disease prevention (coccidiosis, deworming), high disease pressure
• Apr-May: construction, piglet care, vaccination
• Jun-Jul: feed storage (mold prevention), peak parasite control
• Aug-Sep: harvest preparation, contract renegotiation
• Oct-Nov: feed buying (cheapest), year-end batch planning
• Dec: peak sales + biosecurity red alert + annual planning

Print this calendar. Tape it to the wall of your farm office. Refer to it monthly. The farmers who follow a written annual calendar consistently outperform those who fly by instinct - because they are never surprised by predictable seasonal patterns, and they capture seasonal opportunities (cheap feed at harvest, high prices at holidays) that the unprepared farmer misses.

Sources & References

• [1] Cameroon seasonal climate patterns: wet season April-October, dry season November-March, per Cameroon National Meteorological Service. Source: https://www.ins-cameroun.cm
• [2] Newcastle disease seasonality in tropical Africa documented by ILRI and FAO field studies. Source: https://www.ilri.org
• [3] Cameroon broiler retail prices: 4,000 FCFA (small) to 12,000 FCFA (large/reformé), per Cameroon Tribune June 2025. Source: https://www.cameroon-tribune.cm