Crops

There’s always a market for baby vegetables, and carrots are no exception. In the past, top-shaped baby carrots were the most popular in the frozen range.

Sabrina Dean visited maize farmer AC van Wyk on his farm in the Free State, to gain some insight into how an award-winning farmer tackles a difficult planting season.

Bernie van den Heever and Danie Smit are proving that mango production can become a thriving enterprise in the Western Cape.

Long-term conservation trials conducted on rotated grain crops in the Swartland and Southern Cape during the drought have produced promising results. Dr Johann Strauss, agronomist at the Western Cape Department of Agriculture, spoke to Glenneis Kriel.

Christo Smit, a former researcher at the Agricultural Research Council, is working on developing a sustainable biofuel industry from the diesel tree.

Hot weather is unfavourable for carrot germination. Depending on the soil’s condition and structure, it also promotes the growth of soil fungus diseases, especially when heavy rain falls, as is common in the summer rainfall areas.

Carrots have a very deep root system and a mass of fine feeder roots.

Andri Visser, a doctoral student at the Unit for Environmental Sciences and Management at North-West University, explores how assumptions about the behaviour of the African stem borer affect the resistance management strategy and sustainability of Bt-maize.

Chris and Dewald Bothma of North West have converted from conventional maize production to a combination of precision and conservation agriculture methods. But the change did not come easily, and many lessons had to be learnt along the way.

Lucerne is one of the most important hay crops in South Africa, but differences in quality can have a marked effect on livestock performance and profitability, especially in the dairy industry.

Pumpkin flies, which are slightly larger than houseflies, are similar to the fruit flies so well-known to fruit farmers.

Although Wayne Mansfield made useful connections in the fruit industry as a hawker, he knew little about farming.

It is also important to control aphids as these are the primary vectors of viruses. Apart from spreading viruses, they are up to no good anyway!

With competition fierce in South Africa’s vegetable production arena, finding clients and then adapting to their requirements are essential for success. Award-winning vegetable farmer Zama Buthelezi tells Lloyd Phillips how she does it.

Syngenta Potato Farmer of the Year 2017, Nico Wagner of Wilnick Boerdery, employs various efficiency measures to ensure profitability, and the quality of his produce ensures a stable demand from market agents and consumers.

Witlof, also known as Belgian endive, is a notoriously difficult vegetable to grow, but Koue Bokkeveld grower Fanie van der Merwe has mastered the art, producing 1t of witlof a week. Jeandré du Preez visited him on his family farm, Bronaar, to discover how he does it.

There is no one-size-fits-all recipe for growing pumpkins. This is especially true of spacing, where many factors have to be considered.

South Africa’s irrigated sugar cane farming region was hard hit by the recent drought. This prompted Dr Abraham Singels, principal agronomist at the SA Sugarcane Research Institute, and his colleagues to begin researching options aimed at maximising water-use efficiencies in sugar cane irrigation.

Demand for litchis and avocados has soared and encouraged producers to embrace precision farming methods. Stephan Schoeman, owner of Soetkalmoes Consultation in Nelspruit, an advisory service for the tree crops industry, tells Gerhard Uys how these practices are improving yield and crop quality.

Sunflower’s consistent yield and drought-tolerance make it an attractive crop for SA’s dryland regions. It also has a relatively long planting window. Nonetheless, care should be taken to plant at the optimal time, cautions Dr Safiah Ma’Ali, senior researcher at ARC-Grain Crops Institute.