Do your homework before buying seeds August 2024 JOHAN TEESSEN, AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIST INTERN, GRAIN SA Among all the expenses incurred by a farmer, the cost of seeds often goes unnoticed on the production budget. Depending on the plant population, the cost of seeds can range from 10% to 17% of the total input cost
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GRAIN MARKETING: PLAN AHEAD TO ENSURE A PROFIT July 2024 PIETMAN BOTHA, INDEPENDENT AGRICULTURAL CONSULTANT AND JOHAN TEESSEN, AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIST INTERN, GRAIN SA Making a profit starts with financial planning. Financial planning will help with the decision of what to plant and how to plant it – and most importantly, how to do price management.
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The Corner Post July 2024 Jacob Tshabalala (34) believes his success as a farmer is built on three cornerstones – passion, good planning and learning through engagement with others. This young farmer was one the finalists in the 2023 PGP/Absa/John Deere Financial New Era Commercial Farmer of the Year category. The people who played the
How to control winter weeds for better grain yields June 2024 PIETMAN BOTHA, INDEPENDENT AGRI- CULTURAL CONSULTANT The 2023/2024 production year’s drought again emphasises the importance of stored moisture in the soil. Having enough moisture will increase a farmer’s chances of realising a relatively good yield. It is the farmer’s responsibility to conserve the
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CONGRESS 2024: Making plans to thrive amid challenges June 2024 Grain SA’s 2024 congress asked the following question on 13 and 14 March: ‘what keep farmers up at night?’ and the overall focus was that farmers can make plans. Congress served as an excellent platform for Grain SA members, stakeholders, policy makers, researchers and
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The Corner Post June 2024 After completing his school career, Kopano Lentswetshipi (35) joined his father, Ezekiel, on the farm in North West. Kopano has great admiration for Ezekiel, who introduced him to farming when he was just a young boy. ‘He taught me the basics of farming as I worked alongside him on the
Have a BENCHMARK to measure success May 2024 RICHARD MCPHERSON, AGRIBUSINESS AND PROJECT MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT The only way to know whether or not you are improving as a farmer is to have a benchmark to measure your success. To develop in farming, you need consistent progress over the years. This can be done by
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Severe drought and heat affect grain production May 2024 South Africa is facing a severe drought crisis, which is exacerbated by extreme heat waves, leaving the nation’s grain farmers reeling under immense pressure. The scorching temperatures and prolonged dry spells have ravaged agricultural lands, severely impacting both developing and commercial farmers. With financial strains mounting
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Planting date and fertilisation can ensure an optimal sunflower yield April 2024 DR SAFIAH MA’ALI, SENIOR RESEARCHER: ARC-GRAIN CROPS, POTCHEFSTROOM. FIRST PUBLISHED IN SA GRAAN/GRAIN, SEPTEMBER 2023. Sunflower oil is one of the major vegetable oils used in the food industry. Moreover, with its high quality, edibility and high protein content, it is often
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Minimise losses when harvesting sunflower and soybeans April 2024 PIETMAN BOTHA, INDEPENDENT AGRI- CULTURAL CONSULTANT Although there will always be harvest losses, one should try to minimise it. To achieve zero losses, the combine harvester would have to move at such a slow pace that you will never finish harvesting in time. The key
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