Land Systems Map of the Republic of
Botswana.
Source: Ministry of Agriculture.
| Land System | Colour Code | Basal Soil | Landscape Type | Major Agricultural Enterprises |
| Sandveld | Aeolian sand deposits | Flat to unulating plains, sometimes with sand dune systems and fossil river valleys and pans | Wildlife - mainly in reserves, but increasingly on
fenced game ranches, Livestock - both on common (tribal) land and in fenced farms and ranchees, Cropping - few, small and low output arable fileds - mainly producing sorghum, groundnuts and melons, particulary on the lower slopes of ridges and sand dunes, and along the bottoms of drainage lines where the soils are not too salty, Forest Reserves - on State Lands. |
|
| Superficial aeolian sand deposits on calcrete | Flat to almost flat plains | |||
| Superficial aeolian sand deposits on sandstone and other sedimentary rocks | Almost flat to undulating plains | |||
| Superficial aeolian sand deposits on basalt and other sedimentary rocks | Flat plains with minor valleys and ridges to low hills | |||
| Superficial aeolian sand deposits on dolomite and other sedimentary rocks | Almost flat to gently undulating plains | |||
| Partly submerged aeolian sand deposits | Almost flat to gently undulating, with parallel sand dunes and/or major pans | |||
| Hardveld | Amphibole-rich, meta-basic rocks | Undulating plain with occasional hill ranges | Livestock - Communal (tribal)
grazing areas and fenced freehold and leasehold ranches Wildlife - on game reserves and conservancies Forest Reserves - on State Lands Cropping - on fenced tribal land, and on leasehold farms, using lower lying areas with alluvial soils. Main crops are sorghum, melons, millet, dry beans/cow peas, groundnuts and sunflowers Also irrigated vegetables - mainly melons, maize, sorghum and millet, and dry beans |
|
| Basalt | Plateaux, escarpments and almost flat plains with associated alluvium/colluvium | |||
| Sandstone | Varied, from flat to undulating with infrequent hills and rock outcrops, through to hilly escarpments and fossil river valleys | |||
| Granitic gneiss | Gently undulating to undulating with eroded valleys, to rugged hilly areas, with flat areas incised by drainage lines | |||
| Dolerite | Hills with flat alluvium and almost flat to gently undulating pediments | |||
| Dolomite and sedimentary rocks | Hills with associated almost flat to gently undulating pediments | |||
| Acid volcanic lavas | Hills with undulating pediments | |||
| Granite | Almost flat to gently undulating plain with rock outcrops (kopjies) | |||
| Sedimentary rocks | Hilly dissected plateaux with pediments and associated alluvium | |||
| Lacustrine | Major lake and depression deposits | Flat to almost flat salt pans prone to flooding, plains with major pans, ancient lake beds with shorelines and plains, and fossil lagoons | Livestock - grazing on
common (tribal) land |
|
| Superficial lacustrine deposits on sandstone | Flat to almost flat plains | Livestock - grazing on common (tribal) land Wildlife in common lands areas |
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| Vlei (seasonal march) deposits | Flat plains | Wildlife on State Lands Intensive Cropping on leasehold farms - mainly sunflower, cotton, maize, millet and sorghum. |
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| Alluvium | Recent alluvial deposits | Flat to almost flat river floodplains to fans, fans with sand ridges, delta floodplains and perennial swamps | Cropping Small-scale village
fields - using flood recession agriculture, growing vegetables, melons, maize, sorghum and
millet, groundnuts and dry beans/cow peas Some commercial irrigation farming on freehold
farms e.g. in the Limpopo and other river valley systems - growing citrus, and mixed
vegetables Livestock - mainly common-land grazing on delta floodplain fringes Some dairying Commercial ostrich farming Some wildlife ranching Wildlife - on the delta floodplains |
|
| Fossil alluvial deposits | Flat to gently undulating river and delta floodplains |