Plant Pulse

When to plant Chilli pepper in Colombo

When to plant Chilli pepper in Colombo. A grower note is on file. Official planting windows are not stored for this pair.

Unverified — based on Field Crops – Chilli – Sinhala, Department of Agriculture Sri Lanka, Sinhala page, accessed 2026-10-20: https://doa.gov.lk/field-crops-chilli-si/; confirm for your microclimate.

Stored planting windows

Official planting windows: coming soon.

From farmer field experience

Based on hands-on growing experience from Sri Lankan farmers. Not yet verified against official sources.

  • Year round

    Direct sow or transplant

    Using 70–80 stored days. First harvest is about 70–80 days after planting. Calculated from the stored day count and the planting month. It is not a separate harvest calendar. Farmer field experience. Using 75–90 stored days. First harvest is about 75–90 days after planting. Calculated from the stored day count and the planting month. It is not a separate harvest calendar.

    Farmer field notenoted Oct 2026

    Grower note for Colombo and the Sri Lankan wet zone: chilli can be planted in any month. Most farmers time planting so the harvest lands when these vegetables are scarce in the market, to get higher prices. Direct sow versus transplant was not stated. This is not an official Department of Agriculture window.

    Unverified — based on Farmer field experience, noted 2026-10-20; confirm for your microclimate.

Season ranges

Two or more season ranges are stored. They are not joined. A month is marked only when it falls inside a stored range.

  • Yala is stored from more than one source, and the months do not match. Yala (FAO) is Mar–Aug. Yala (National Drought Plan) is Apr–Sep. Both ranges are shown. They are not averaged.
  • Maha is stored from more than one source, and the months do not match. Maha (FAO) is Sep–Feb. Maha (National Drought Plan) is Oct–Mar. Both ranges are shown. They are not averaged.

Rainfall seasons

  1. First inter-monsoon: Mar–Apr (Rainfall)

    Climate of Sri Lanka, Department of Meteorology, accessed 2026-10-20: https://meteo.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=94&Itemid=310&lang=en

  2. Southwest monsoon: May–Sep (Rainfall)

    Climate of Sri Lanka, Department of Meteorology, accessed 2026-10-20: https://meteo.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=94&Itemid=310&lang=en

  3. Second inter-monsoon: Oct–Nov (Rainfall)

    Climate of Sri Lanka, Department of Meteorology, accessed 2026-10-20: https://meteo.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=94&Itemid=310&lang=en

  4. Northeast monsoon: Dec–Feb (Rainfall)

    Climate of Sri Lanka, Department of Meteorology, accessed 2026-10-20: https://meteo.gov.lk/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=94&Itemid=310&lang=en

Agricultural seasons

  1. Yala (FAO): Mar–Aug (Agricultural)

    Improvement of plant nutrient management for better farmer livelihood, food security and environment in Sri Lanka, J.D.H. Wijewardena, Department of Agriculture, hosted by FAO, accessed 2026-10-20: https://www.fao.org/4/ag120e/AG120E12.htm

  2. Maha (FAO): Sep–Feb (Agricultural)

    Improvement of plant nutrient management for better farmer livelihood, food security and environment in Sri Lanka, J.D.H. Wijewardena, Department of Agriculture, hosted by FAO, accessed 2026-10-20: https://www.fao.org/4/ag120e/AG120E12.htm

  3. Yala (National Drought Plan): Apr–Sep (Agricultural)

    National Drought Plan for Sri Lanka, Ministry of Environment, September 2020, accessed 2026-10-20: https://www.unccd.int/sites/default/files/country_profile_documents/NDP%20of%20Sri%20Lanka-Final%20Report-Sept%202020.pdf

  4. Maha (National Drought Plan): Oct–Mar (Agricultural)

    National Drought Plan for Sri Lanka, Ministry of Environment, September 2020, accessed 2026-10-20: https://www.unccd.int/sites/default/files/country_profile_documents/NDP%20of%20Sri%20Lanka-Final%20Report-Sept%202020.pdf

Methodology

Where do these planting months come from?
Each range is a stored planting window for this crop and climate. A month that is not listed has no stored window. It is not a recommendation to skip planting.
Why can the same season appear more than once?
When two sources give different months for the same season, both ranges are listed. They are not averaged, and the gap between them is not filled in.
How are grower notes different from official windows?
Farmer field notes are labelled Farmer field experience, with the month they were noted. They are not official department windows, and they are not yet verified against official sources.

Chilli pepper crop page · Planting calendar for Chilli pepper in Colombo