Crops

Over the years, composting guru Redge Jelliman has produced thousands of tons of compost as organic fertiliser for his crop farming enterprise in the Free State. Now semi-retired from farming, and a soil health consultant, he shared his experiences with Lloyd Phillips.

Garlic is a member of the onion (Allium) genus. Garlic is good for you, but is generally used more for the flavour it imparts to food than for health reasons. It has been grown for 5 000 years.

Eric Mauwane of Oneo Farms in Gauteng says that a crucial lesson he has learnt about sweet pepper production is the need to understand market demand and manage production practices accordingly. Siyanda Sishuba visited him to find out more about his operation.

When the rains came too late to plant maize at the end of 2018, Bultfontein farmers Anton and Heinrich Botha joined other producers in the region in planting dryland winter wheat instead. Sabrina Dean visited this father-and-son team to find out why they are so enthusiastic about the renewed interest in wheat.

Many vegetable crops are susceptible to root knot eelworm (Meloidogyne spp, also known as nematodes or roundworm), and beans are no exception.

With a looming water crisis and an expanding macadamia industry, the obvious question arises: where will the water for the new orchards come from? A recent groundbreaking study shows that farmers have been grossly over-irrigating and that dryland macadamias in high-rainfall areas actually provide better yields. Lindi Botha spoke to Theunis and Armand Smit, specialists in irrigation and optimal water usage.

Humus contains approximately 10% nitrogen, and thus acts as a storage facility in the soil for this element.

Marilyn Siegels was recently named the Western Cape’s best female commercial farmer after just two years in the industry. Along with her father, Edward van Niekerk, and sister, Yolande van Niekerk, she is rejuvenating a land restitution fruit farm.

The Compañía de Variedades Vegetales Protegidas A.I.E. (CVVP) launched a new logo and slogan: ‘Join us. Grow with us’.

Lucerne under irrigation provides Free State farmer Boeboe Louw with an ideal alternative to grain. Annelie Coleman visited him on his farm in the Wesselsbron district to find out how he manages production to gain the most from this valuable export crop.

Butternuts are a reasonably easy crop to grow, with few in soluble problems. The real challenge is to match the cultivar with the market. Mpumalanga-based producer Francois Steyn spoke to Lindi Botha about how he solved this problem.

The owner of a small farm has to find innovative ways to remain financially viable. Natalie Turck of Wildebraam Berry Estate spoke to Glenneis Kriel about how she and her husband accomplish this.

Planting seed infected by a bacterial disease could lead to complete crop failure. Rather pay more for the seed, if necessary, to ensure that it is clean. Consider the extra cost as a form of insurance.

Hannelene Badenhorst, a PhD candidate in entomology at the University of the Free State, explains the value of differentiating beneficial insects and other arthropods from harmful ones before resorting to blanket chemical control.

Of all the elements, nitrogen has the most profound effect on a crop, and this is why you need to use it wisely.

With sugar cane being a perennial crop that is ploughed out and replanted only after a number of years, the soil in which it grows can suffer as a result of monocropping. KwaZulu-Natal sugar cane farmer Chloe Clegg has engaged earthworms to improve the health, productivity and sustainability of the soil on her family farm. Lloyd Phillips visited her operation near Harding.

In 1998, at the age of 45, Frans Vlok left his job as head of Kynoch fertiliser services in the Western Cape to pursue his lifelong dream of farming full-time. He was joined in the business eight years later by his daughter, Monique Vlok, who told Glenneis Kriel of their struggle to succeed.

Visual appeal plays a major role in the breeding of beans. Darker green, slender, straight beans have become more popular of late.

Farmers often ask for pest control programmes for their crops. They see them as a form of insurance. Is this justified? In a word, no!

South African wheat producers should guard against over-application of fungicide, according to Dr Tarekegn Terefe, senior researcher at ARC-Small Grain, Bethlehem. The unnecessary use of fungicides can harm the environment and result in the emergence of fungicide-resistant strains. Farmers should also rotate between fungicides from different chemical groups, he writes.