Growing Butternut Squash in Lamu

Soil suitability analysis based on Lamu's nutrient profile

Lamu County is well suited to Butternut Squash, scoring 83/100 on ShambaIQ's soil-match model. Local soils average pH 6.31 — slightly acidic to near-neutral and inside the 5.5–7.5 band Butternut Squash prefers, so no lime is usually required. The main gap is nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium — measured at N 0.74 g/kg, P 9.6 mg/kg, K 117 mg/kg against this crop's medium/medium/high demand — so the fertilizer plan below prioritises closing those deficits. The county's predominantly sandy soils suit Butternut Squash, which favours sandy loam. At current prices (about KES 40/kg) and a typical 8,000 kg/acre yield, a well-managed Butternut Squash crop here can gross roughly KES 320,000 per acre.