Yam · Bitlis, Bitlis, Turkey
When to plant yams in Bitlis
Main outdoor window
16 Jun - 14 Jul
A climate estimate. Check your soil, forecast and cultivar.
Timed from last spring frost
24 April
In Bitlis, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
1 Oct - 31 Dec
If you plant at the start of the window.
The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.
Step by step in Bitlis
Download these planting dates (.ics)
Import into Apple Calendar, Google Calendar or Outlook. Dates use the selected risk level and are planning estimates, not frost alerts.
Each window is a planning range. Check the forecast, soil and cultivar before planting; a later date is not automatically safer in hot or wet conditions.
Plant tubers
16 Jun - 14 Jul
Delayed by a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. The frost-only date would be 8 May. Measure your soil before planting.
Harvest
1 Oct - 31 Dec
Yams through the year
Against the frost risk in Bitlis
Seasonal context
Rainfall and the growing season in Bitlis
April has the highest average precipitation (88 mm); August has the lowest (3 mm). Compare this pattern with the planting windows and your water supply.
During wetter months, check that beds and containers drain after heavy rain. During drier months, plan how you will keep seeds and new transplants watered. Monthly averages can hide long dry spells and intense storms; they do not show soil moisture, humidity or this week's weather.
Source: NASA POWER, corrected MERRA-2 precipitation, 2001–2020. Values are approximate monthly totals, including the water equivalent of snow, from the nearest 0.5° × 0.625° grid cell. This reference period differs from the temperature record. Rainfall provides context and does not change the calculated planting dates. Method and limitations.
Monthly growing conditions in Bitlis
Compare the planting window with the local temperature pattern. These are historical monthly averages, not this year's forecast or measured soil temperatures. Average frost days do not tell you whether a particular night will freeze.
| Month | Average low | Average high | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | -9.1°C (15.6°F)15.6°F (-9.1°C) | -0.5°C (31.2°F)31.2°F (-0.5°C) | 30.7 |
| February | -7.5°C (18.5°F)18.5°F (-7.5°C) | 1.1°C (33.9°F)33.9°F (1.1°C) | 27.3 |
| March | -2.3°C (27.8°F)27.8°F (-2.3°C) | 6.1°C (43°F)43°F (6.1°C) | 22.7 |
| April | 2.4°C (36.3°F)36.3°F (2.4°C) | 12.4°C (54.4°F)54.4°F (12.4°C) | 6.9 |
| May | 7°C (44.6°F)44.6°F (7°C) | 18.2°C (64.8°F)64.8°F (18.2°C) | 0.2 |
| June | 11.9°C (53.4°F)53.4°F (11.9°C) | 26.2°C (79.2°F)79.2°F (26.2°C) | 0.0 |
| July | 16.1°C (61°F)61°F (16.1°C) | 32.3°C (90.1°F)90.1°F (32.3°C) | 0.0 |
| August | 16.7°C (62.1°F)62.1°F (16.7°C) | 32.3°C (90.2°F)90.2°F (32.3°C) | 0.0 |
| September | 12.1°C (53.7°F)53.7°F (12.1°C) | 26.3°C (79.4°F)79.4°F (26.3°C) | 0.0 |
| October | 6.4°C (43.4°F)43.4°F (6.4°C) | 18.1°C (64.6°F)64.6°F (18.1°C) | 1.7 |
| November | -0.4°C (31.3°F)31.3°F (-0.4°C) | 9.6°C (49.2°F)49.2°F (9.6°C) | 15.6 |
| December | -5.6°C (22°F)22°F (-5.6°C) | 2.8°C (37°F)37°F (2.8°C) | 28.2 |
For yams, also check drainage, sunlight and cultivar requirements. See the rainfall context above; humidity, irrigation and local pest pressure are not calculated.
Local growing check
Before choosing yams for Bitlis
- This is Dioscorea alata. Day length can affect tuber formation, which the temperature calendar does not model. Confirm a known food cultivar and its local growing cycle before committing a bed.
- April is the wettest month in the rainfall grid, averaging about 88 mm. Check how your own bed drains and plan watering around actual soil moisture; monthly rain totals are not an irrigation schedule.
The temperature and rainfall tables on this page show the underlying climate estimates. How these suitability checks work · Record what happens in your garden.
Before you plant yams
Use the calendar to plan ahead, then check the conditions in your own garden.
- Measure the soil at sowing depth. Aim for at least 20°C (68°F); the calendar estimates soil warmth from air temperatures and cannot measure your bed.
- Check the local overnight forecast before planting out. Delay planting or keep protection ready if frost is forecast, even after the historical last-frost date.
- Harden off plants raised indoors: gradually expose them to outdoor light, wind and temperature before their final move into the bed.
- Use the maturity range on your seed packet when choosing a variety. Cold, short days and transplant stress can make harvest later than the calendar estimate.
Use a known edible yam and account for day-length response
Provide a long warm season, deep drained soil and support for the climbing vine. Day length can influence tuber development, so a temperature window alone does not establish when a useful underground crop will form.
Allow the crop to mature and lift carefully to avoid damaging large tubers. Use proper cooking and preparation for the named cultivar; raw yam can be unsafe. Save suitable planting material separately from roots intended for food.
What to record this season
Did the cultivar form substantial tubers under your local day length and season length? Add the cultivar, sowing date and conditions to your growing record so you can compare next season.
Further reading: Plants For A Future: Dioscorea alata . General crop guidance; local dates on this site are calculated separately. Source checked 19 September 2026 by Safe to Plant; this is not an expert review.
Plants For A Future compiles botanical and cultivation references. This is general species guidance, not a local field trial or evidence that every cultivar will crop in your climate.
How the dates are calculated and their limits · Keep a growing record · Report a local discrepancy
Why these dates
Provide a long warm season, deep drained soil and support for the climbing vine. Day length can influence tuber development, so a temperature window alone does not establish when a useful underground crop will form.
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.
This calendar uses frost-relative offsets as a starting point. Yams are timed with planting out 2 weeks after it, and this page simply resolves those offsets against the frost date computed for Bitlis.
The calendar also applies a soil-warming estimate derived from historical air temperatures. Where that estimate is later than the frost-based date, it delays the window. Soil in your own garden can warm earlier or later; a thermometer at sowing depth is a better final check. Cold, wet conditions can slow germination and increase decay risk.
Bitlis sits in zone 6a, which is colder than the catalog range. Check a locally proven cultivar and a realistic protection plan before planting. The calculated dates do not confirm that this crop is suitable here. Check cultivar requirements and local growing experience before planting.
The median frost-free season here is 191 days, against 240 to 300 days to maturity for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in Bitlis
Other vegetables to time
Growing yams in Bitlis
Can I grow yams in Bitlis?
The calendar estimates a planting window, not a guarantee of success. This is Dioscorea alata. Day length can affect tuber formation, which the temperature calendar does not model. Confirm a known food cultivar and its local growing cycle before committing a bed.
When should I plant yams in Bitlis?
Aim for 16 Jun - 14 Jul in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 16 Jun - 14 Jul - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
Can I plant yams earlier in Bitlis?
The historical frost estimate is 8 May. For Yams, an air-temperature model estimates soil warmth of about 20°C (68°F) around 16 Jun. This is not a soil measurement or a forecast. Check your bed at sowing depth; cold, wet conditions can slow growth and increase decay risk.
When might yams be ready to harvest in Bitlis?
The estimated period is 1 Oct - 31 Dec, based on 240 to 300 days from the modeled planting date. Cultivar, planting material and growing conditions can change this interval; check the plant as well as the calendar.
How much frost will yams tolerate?
Check the named variety and local forecast before exposing young growth. The catalog cold-damage figure is a reference, not a guarantee: plant age, acclimatisation, wind and the duration of a freeze affect damage.