Crops

When a farmer decides to buy a new tractor, does he choose the shiniest, most expensive model?

Last year, Gert Cilliers from Stella in North West decided to plant cotton for the first time since 1993. Gerhard Uys spoke to him about his decision.

Last week, I mentioned how humus formation depended on nitrogen (N). Even when a large quantity of organic matter is present, very little humus can be created if the nitrogen level is too low.

A highly experienced market man recently told me he reckoned fresh markets would be gone within 10 years. That comment got me thinking.

The nature of the soil in the southern parts of the Western Cape has up to now limited the full implementation of no-till. However, Human Landboudienste recently tested a disk planter near Riviersonderend that shows a lot of promise in addressing this problem. Glenneis Kriel investigates.

Chemical fertilisers came into their own after the Second World War. They were convenient to use and food production became much easier, relatively speaking.

An agent on the Durban Market recently made an interesting remark to me.

Major apple producers across the world are switching to high-density planting to reduce labour costs, improve fruit quality and increase production. Willie Kotze, research and development manager at Dutoit Group, spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the importance of a well-built trellis system when making such a change.

Usually, a soil analysis gives the percentage of each cation as a measure of the total cations in the soil.

Winter came late this year and the impact on the markets has been almost disastrous for many products.

Nieuwoudtville farmer Pierre Rossouw is conducting trials and implementing conservation farming practices to improve the soil health of his rooibos tea lands and counteract soil erosion due to wind action.

Continuing with our discussion of the soil analysis, we now come to phosphorous (P).

South Africa’s fresh produce commission markets have a number of unique features that set them apart from other markets around the world.

This article deals with interpreting a soil analysis.

In recent decades, crop scientists have increasingly come to recognise the importance of sulphur as a nutrient in crop production. Dr Elke Bloem, scientific director at the Institute for Crop and Soil Science at Germany’s Julius Kühn-Institut, was in South Africa recently as a guest of Omnia to share her experience with farmers and crop scientists.

As a soil’s fertility and condition improve, so the value of the soil increases dramatically. Generally, the price per hectare of farmland does not vary much across a region, but the land’s true value does vary according to its productivity.

Shortly after the Second World War, a ‘Banana War’ erupted between the small producer countries in the Caribbean and the supermarkets, which were starting to flex their buying muscle.

If you have a proper understanding of the soil on your farm, you will be able to farm more efficiently – and get more enjoyment from farming.

I recently visited Harare with Prof Charles Whitehead from the University of Johannesburg for a two-day Banana Ripening and Post-harvest Physiology workshop for the employees of a large Zimbabwe-based farming company.

It is essential that farmers understand the importance of mineral balance in their soils, says Graeme Sait, CEO of Nutri-Tech Solutions in Australia. He visited South Africa this year to explain this balance.