Plants in Botswana

Most plant life in Botswana is seasonally dependent. The entire landscape changes with the coming of the rainy season, transforming from landscape of Kalahari desert into one dotted by waterholes and new growth.

The vegetation of the Kalahari desert, described as a "thirstland", is unlike most deserts - it is more characteristic of dry steppe than desert. Savanna grasslands with thorny scrub cover most of Botswana's Kalahari sandsheet while in the eastern hardveld the rocky hills are covered in tree savanna. The north and eastern third of the country is covered in mopane woodland.

Certain areas of Botswana have their own unique vegetation. The Okavango Delta comprises floodplains, forests, islands, huge trees and dried-out watercourses with varied vegetation.

The Chobe consists of trees and bush lining the river banks, and thick bush further away from the water, while the Makgadikgadi Pans have no plant life and are surrounded by vast open grasslands interspersed with clusters of tall fan palms.

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