Latest articles
Mad about maize and working the soil
It takes major effort and progress to become a finalist in Grain SA’s Developing Grain Farmer of the Year competition. Lloyd Phillips visited Thabang Tsephe to find out how he made the cut.
Maize success in the Overberg
As maize is a summer crop that requires sufficient water and nutrients, most farmers won’t plant it in a winter rainfall area. But John Walker, a Western Cape farmer with access to irrigation water, produces maize to make quality silage for his Jersey cows.
Small but sustainable
Subsistence farming need not be a struggle. As Nto Mduli shows, if done right, it can be a valuable source of food and income.
Farmers undeterred by disabilities
A KZN vegetable co-op has given its disabled members a sense of purpose, while making a valuable contribution to the nutritional needs of their families.
Are you covered?
Producers send huge volumes of fresh produce to the markets – over three million tons a year at last count. A large proportion of this is either placed in cold storage or ripening chambers.
Know your leaf blight pathogens
When it comes to leaf blight, there are three species of Alternaria that carrot growers have to watch out for: A dauci, A radicina and A alternata.
New farmer moves ahead with skill & understanding
Warren Bam, winner of the deciduous fruit industry novice award and the Toyota New Harvest of the Year competition, spoke to Denene Erasmus about the journey that has led to his managing an organic, export table grape and blueberry farm and starting his own farming business.
Fresh produce markets – choose wisely
Last week, I wrote about how a group of visiting UK potato farmers said that we in South Africa needed to preserve our commission markets system.
Other carrot problems
Carrots are not attacked by many pests, apart from eelworm. Nonetheless, there are a few pests that can prove a problem.
Profit through precision farming
The father and son team of Pauciflora Farming in Arlington attribute their success to precision farming and reduced tillage. Dirk and Herman van Rensburg were finalists in the 2013 Grain SA Syngenta Grain Producer of the Year competition.
UK Marketing agents envy us
Along with several other fresh produce sector colleagues, I recently had the pleasure of addressing a group of visiting UK potato farmers and traders hosted by Potatoes SA.
Carrot suppliers success with Woolworths
Being a major supplier of carrots to Woolworths for more than a decade has not been easy. But Greenpak farm has reaped the rewards of being part of this retail chain’s Farming for the Future programme, which has reduced input costs while increasing yields. Lindi van Rooyen reports.
Carrot root diseases
Your carrot crop is looking good. You can almost hear the money cascading into your bank account. Then you harvest it – and all that profit vanishes.
Making SA’s best olive oil
At Andante Extra Virgin Olive Oil in Porterville, quality starts in the orchard with fine-tuned production practices.
Leading fruit farmer’s orchard renewal
Rossouw Cillié, Agri Writers’ SA Farmer of the Year, has a diversified enterprise with several production branches and a value-adding component. He told Denene Erasmus about his latest project – to replant and expand his fruit orchards.
Eelworms love carrots
By far the biggest carrot pest is the root knot eelworm (Melodogyne spp). In many other vegetable crops, these nematodes are not much of a problem, but in carrots they attack the very root that is marketed.
Fresh Produce global round-up
Occasionally, I like to break away from the norm and take a look at the bigger picture of fresh produce trading globally.
Here are some snippets gleaned from recent industry publications.
Sugarcane, with tomatoes on the side
Growing tomatoes in Pongola in summer is not for the faint- hearted. But the Terblanche family has fine-tuned its programme and picks tomatoes year-round, with many benefits for the sugarcane operation. Robyn Joubert reports.
Successful carrot fertilisation
Carrot fertilisation is very different to fertilisation in other vegetable crops. It’s crucial to understand this when evaluating a soil analysis prior to fertilising.
Markets need commitment
In last week’s column, I lamented the lack of formal training on markets. I was referring to market management and staff, not market agents, as they have a fully-fledged skills development programme.
