MAINSTREAMING CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION IN AGRICULTURAL EXTENSION
Slide 7 End of growing Season
• The end of the growing season is a time when all the water in the soil
has evapotranspired and there is no more water available to the plants.
• End of growing season goes beyond end of the rains and time to
evapotranspire stored water is added to end of rains to give the end of
growing season.
• It is when the available moisture in the soil has reached zero provided
that there are no effective rains before 20 days of zero available
moisture. Just like start of season is soil dependant
• For the purpose of the manual we 1st calculate end of the rains which
is defined as:
• “Any last day before end of April when an area receives 15mm of
rain provided there are no rains of 2.95mm or above in the next 20
days.”
• SaWhnaearltyehseiwsn ictohmtphuetementhdeofggrraopwhinsg sgeiavseonn ffroormstehleercetseudltssoiftethse above
Length of the Season
This can be calculated by subtracting end of the season from start of season.
This is an important guide on the choice of crops and choice of cultivar to grow.
Share with them the graphs given for selected sites
A Training Manual on Use of Climate Information and Vulnerability and Capacity Assessment for
Agricultural Extension Staff in Zimbabwe
Page 49