09/08/2026
COMPOST PRODUCTION AND UTILIZATION
• TURNING FARM WASTE INTO VALUABLE PLANT NUTRIENTS
In Botswana, fertilizer prices go up every season. But farm waste is free. Compost turns that "waste" — crop residues, manure, leaves, kitchen scraps — into black gold for your soil.
It’s one of the most affordable and sustainable ways to feed your crops and rebuild your soil without depending only on chemicals.
• WHY COMPOST IS IMPORTANT FOR BOTSWANA SOILS
• FEED THE SOIL, NOT JUST THE PLANT
Most of our soils are sandy, low in organic matter, and wash away easily in heavy rains. Continuous cropping without replacing organic matter leads to: poor fertility, low water retention, and lower yields.
Compost fixes this by adding organic matter that:
1. Holds water in dry months
2. Feeds beneficial soil microbes
3. Makes nutrients available to plants slowly
4. Restores soil health for sustainable crop production
°》A healthy soil grows healthy crops — even in a drought year.
• BENEFITS OF COMPOST
• WHAT COMPOST DOES FOR SOIL AND CROPS
When you use compost, you get multiple benefits at once:
1. IMPROVES SOIL STRUCTURE
Sandy soils hold together better
2. INCREASES ORGANIC MATTER
The "sponge" in your soil
3. IMPROVES WATER INFILTRATION AND WATER-HOLDING
Critical for June-October
4. SUPPLIES ESSENTIAL PLANT NUTRIENTS
N, P, K + trace elements
5. STIMULATES BENEFICIAL SOIL MICROORGANISMS
They unlock nutrients
6. IMPROVES ROOT DEVELOPMENT
Roots go deeper and stronger
7. REDUCES SOIL EROSION
Organic matter stops soil washing away
8. REDUCES DEPENDENCE ON CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS
Cuts your costs
9. INCREASES CROP YIELDS AND PRODUCE QUALITY
Bigger, healthier vegetables and grains
• MATERIALS NEEDED FOR COMPOST MAKING
• Use what you already have on the farm*
Good compost needs a mix of greens, browns, water, and air.
~GREEN MATERIALS-WET, HIGH NITROGEN
Fresh grass, green leaves, vegetable waste, fresh weeds before seeds, legume residues, fresh animal manure
~BROWN MATERIALS-DRY, HIGH CARBON
Dry leaves, maize stalks, rice straw, dry grass, small twigs, sawdust in small amounts
• OTHER USEFUL MATERIALS
Wood ash in small amounts, topsoil, water
• AVOID
Plastic, glass, metal, diseased plants, meat/dairy, human/pet waste, weeds with mature seeds
• HOW TO MAKE COMPOST: 10 SIMPLE STEPS
• BUILD IT ONCE, USE IT FOR YEARS
~STEP 1
Select a well-drained, shaded area close to a water source
~STEP 2
Loosen the ground to improve drainage
~STEP 3
Lay a layer of dry brown materials 15–20 cm thick
~STEP 4
Add a layer of green materials
~STEP 5
Add a thin layer of animal manure for microbes
~STEP 6
Sprinkle a small amount of topsoil
~STEP 7
Moisten each layer. Damp like a wrung cloth, not wet
~STEP 8
Repeat layers until pile is 1–1.5 metres high
~STEP 9
Cover with grass, sacks, or black plastic to keep heat and moisture
~STEP 10
Turn the pile every 2 to 3 weeks for oxygen
• WHEN IS COMPOST READY?
• 2 TO 4 MONTHS IN BOTSWANA HEAT
Well-made compost is ready when it:
- COLOR
Dark brown or black
- TEXTURE
Crumbly, like soil
- SMELL
Smells like fresh earth, not rotten
- LOOK
No recognizable plant materials
- FEEL
Cool to the touch
Hot season composts faster. Cold/dry season takes longer.
• HOW TO USE COMPOST
• APPLICATION GUIDELINES FOR BOTSWANA
1. FIELD CROPS
Apply 2–5 tonnes per hectare and mix into soil before planting
2. VEGETABLES AND FRUIT TREES
Place 1–2 kg of compost in each planting hole. Mix well with topsoil
3. HOME GARDENS
Spread 2–5 cm layer over the soil and incorporate before planting
4. OTHER USES
Mulch around crops, mix with topsoil for seedlings, apply around fruit trees
°》BEST PRACTICES
Use only well-decomposed compost. Keep pile moist but not waterlogged. Turn regularly. Protect from heavy rainfall. You can combine compost with small amounts of fertilizer for best results.
°》Compost is the simplest and most cost-effective way to improve soil fertility in Botswana.
~You reduce production costs.
~You improve soil health.
~You conserve the environment.
~You produce healthier crops for many years.
Stop burning crop residues. Start composting them.
☆ Convert farm waste into nutrient-rich organic matter. Your soil will pay you back.
2026 I Black Gold for Your Soil
