Vegetables

When the soil contains sufficient organic material, farming becomes far easier and less risky. In contrast, in a chemically based system, the interaction between the minerals becomes critical and complex,...

Most farmers are aware that a healthy population of soil organisms is a good thing. What many don’t understand is that the number of soil organisms is directly related to...

Willem, Jaco and Kolver Mulke produce onions on a large scale near Douglas on the border between the Free State and the Northern Cape. Sabrina Dean visited their high-tech operation...

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.

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...

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

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

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!

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...

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

Cucurbits are a group of plants belonging to the gourd family (Cucurbitaceae). They include pumpkins and squashes (Cucurbita spp), melons (Cucumis melo), cucumbers (C. sativus) and watermelons (Citrullus lanatus).

Farmers often draw my attention to ‘weird signs’ on a plant, fearing them to be the start of a devastating virus. A closer examination often reveals the cause to be...

The African bollworm (Helicoverpa armigera) has many host crops. The caterpillar, which is spiny when young, has a light stripe on the sides and usually turns green to match the...

You can trick onions into providing an out-of-season crop ready for market when the price is just about at its peak by planting small bulbs called ‘sets’.

Louis and Nadine Kuys produce a range of colourful leaf vegetables in an urban aquaponics system in Vredenburg on the West Coast. Keri Harvey visited Forest Friends Aquaponics to learn...

To ensure successful fertilisation, you need to do more than simply carry out a soil analysis to determine the crop’s basic requirements. You also have to consider the needs of...

Producing tomatoes is expensive and can make or break a farmer. If you plan to grow this crop, first do your homework and investigate its economic viability.

Clement Tshuma believes his small-scale vegetable operation near Kempton Park in Gauteng, not only ensures the sustainability of his own future, but a similar model could be the answer to...

Readers frequently ask me for specific fertiliser programmes for their crops. I would happily oblige if all crops were the same!

The survival mechanisms that enabled the ancestors of modern crops to survive in the wild will influence the efficacy of the fertiliser we apply to these crops today.