ਖਾਦ

What does khaad mean in Punjabi?

Khaad (ਖਾਦ) means fertilizer or manure in Punjabi: any material spread on a field to feed the soil and help a crop grow well. The word covers farmyard manure made from cattle dung, rotted compost, and factory made fertilizers bought in sacks. When a farmer says a field needs khaad, he means the soil itself needs feeding.

How khaad is used on a Punjab farm

On a village farm, khaad is part of the rhythm of every crop. Desi khaad, the manure collected from cattle sheds and left to rot in a pit or heap, is carted to the field and spread before ploughing. It makes the soil softer, darker and better at holding water, and its effect builds up season after season.

Alongside it, farmers use chemical khaad from sacks, such as urea, measured out for a particular crop and stage of growth. Wheat, paddy and cotton all get their share at set times. Too little khaad leaves a crop pale and weak, while too much is money wasted and can harm the soil, so the farmer judges the amount by the look of the field and the crop.

Khaad and the soil

Punjabis often speak of khaad as food for the mitti, the soil. Just as a person cannot work without eating, a field that is cropped year after year without khaad slowly loses its strength. Elders remind the young that the land gives back what it is given: feed the soil first, and the crop will follow. That is why the manure heap behind a farmhouse is treated as wealth, not waste.

Is khaad the same as manure?

Mostly, yes. Manure from cattle dung is one kind of khaad, called desi or gohe di khaad, while khaad is the wider word that also covers compost and factory made fertilizers.

How do you say fertilizer in Punjabi?

Fertilizer in Punjabi is khaad (ਖਾਦ). The same word is used at the khaad shop, in the field, and in everyday village talk about crops.

How is khaad used in a sentence?

You can say: ਕਿਸਾਨ ਨੇ ਖੇਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਖਾਦ ਪਾਈ, which means the farmer put fertilizer in the field. More examples are given below on this page.