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Crops

Farmer’s Weekly brings you the latest crop farming news and updates from South Africa and the rest of the world.

Latest vegetable seeds

Peter Mashala highlights new vegetable cultivars now available.

Do it yourself

Some of us have a tendency to blame the government for many of our country’s woes and then, in the same breath, expect the government to fix almost every imaginable ailment in the country.

Removing the hazards from transplanting

We’ve covered the requirements for the most suitable seedlings in the past few articles. It doesn’t stop there, though, as all this good work can be undone during transplanting – and shortly thereafter.

Farming for the next generation

Diversification and crop rotation keep Petrus van der Walt busy 12 months of the year. But the bottom line has been worth the effort for this 2011 Limpopo Farmer of the Year. He tells Lindi van Rooyen about sustainable farming and handing over the business to his children.

Markets and jobs

There’s been a lot of hype in the media recently about creating employment opportunities in SA. However, seldom is anything said about the role of agriculture in creating jobs.

Why agents should attend farmers’ days

Most good market agents make sure they attend as many farmers’ days as possible.

Honeybush Tea: a taste of success

SA’s honeybush industry holds great potential. Thanks to careful selection, Van Zyl and Mona Joubert of Bredasdorp have good plant material, putting them ahead of the game.

Marketing milk

How to do more to promote the benefits of milk to the public – and thereby improve profits all round.

Communication is essential

The huge distances between producers and markets. Perishable products. Tough competition. The lack of understanding of markets and marketing by many producers.

Square versus round plugs

In addition to seedling hardness, there’s also the matter of seedling size, which, of course, depends on the size of the cell – or plug – in the seedling tray.

The liming miracle

The results speak for themselves and it’s not for nothing that lime can be called the soil’s ‘antacid’.

The finest grapes in the Hex River Valley

Edward Taylor, winner of this year’s Hex Valley Table Grape Association’s Block Competition, produced Red Flame seedless grapes with good colour and berry size by employing strict bunch management practices and using new spray application technology. Edward, a member of the ASV Boerdery group, tells Denene Erasmus how he did it.

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