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Farming is not for the faint-hearted. In addition to adverse climatic conditions, farmers have to cope with rising costs and stagnant product prices.

Pests are an ongoing threat to vegetables, and need to be controlled effectively and timeously to prevent damage to the crop.

Any person who has endured tragedy will know that bewildering feeling that settles in soon after the traumatic event when you realise that for other people, and the world around you, life simply moves on, and this only amplifies the tragedy for those who are touched by it.

The present genetic stock of these dairy goats in South Africa originated from animals imported from Switzerland in 1951. Their milk is used to produce a variety of hard and soft cheeses.

The 2018 Toyota South Africa New Harvest competition winner, Whernit Dirks, formerly worked as a general labourer on a farm in Piketberg. Today he farms wheat, barley, oats, rooibos and a flock of 900 Meatmasters on 1 700ha. He spoke to Jeandré van der Walt about his farming journey.

The message is clear: in terms of both quantity and quality, water is a declining resource, and dedicated management is required to make the most out of every drop. Dr Heinz Meissner and Hylton Cruse outlined the advantages of efficient water storage to Lindi Botha.

The Agribusiness Africa Conference will be hosted by Farmer’s Weekly for the third time this year in Johannesburg on 10 July.

Instead of competing with the giant wine brands, Jacques and Saretha Conradie take advantage of the location of Vogelsang farm to put their wines and estate on the map.

Christopher Sparks can be counted as one of the top cattle stud producers in South Africa after having claimed two prestigious national titles last year. Sabrina Dean visited him at his Mount Olive Brangus Stud in the Free State to find out what it is he is doing right.

The Anthia beetle squirts a highly irritant fluid into the eyes of animals. This substance can cause redness, inflammation and swelling. Dr Mac explains how to manage these insects on your farm.

Fall armyworm has caused significant damage to croplands in South Africa since first detected in early 2017. However, Dr Annemie Erasmus, a senior researcher of entomology at the Agricultural Research Council’s Grain Crops Institute, writes that an integrated pest management strategy has been shown to be an effective weapon against infestation.

Many aquaponics operations focus only on plant yield and ignore fish production. These are merely hydroponic systems that use expensive means to fertilise their plants.