2021

Get the most out of sprayers October 2021 PIETMAN BOTHA,  INDEPENDENT AGRI- CULTURAL CONSULTANT   No matter what piece of equipment you buy, it comes with a manual or user’s guide which should be read before using the equipment. Understanding how your sprayer works and brushing up on the electronics is important, so review the

Input availability and prices October 2021 IKAGENG MALULEKE,  AGRICULTURAL  ECONOMIST AT GRAIN SA   South Africa (SA) relies on imports to meet the local input needs, which places the local agricultural industry at risk regarding availability and prices from the source countries. SA’s input industries have always managed to avoid critical input shortages failing which

Good record-keeping is essential October 2021 RICHARD MCPHERSON,  AGRIBUSINESS AND PROJECT  MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT   The basis for starting and developing any successful business, including farming, is a well organised set of records and accounts. Relying on memory alone can lead to misleading assumptions in future planning. Most farmers remember the good years and not the

Inoculation can enhance groundnut production October 2021 PIETMAN BOTHA,  INDEPENDENT AGRI- CULTURAL CONSULTANT   Groundnuts is a high value crop where the yield and quality of the yield must be protected at all costs. It is also a crop that can produce its own nitrogen if the seed is inoculated with the correct inoculant. Weed

Budget; plan ahead and ensure success October 2021 RICHARD MCPHERSON,  AGRIBUSINESS AND PROJECT  MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT   Another season is upon us and finalisation of the planning for the planting of the coming crops and budgets for the 2021/2022 sunflower and soybean production season should be completed this month. The recently harvested crops would have been

Control weeds early to maximise sunflower yields October 2021 With the increase in sunflower yields, the sunflower price increase and the need to apply crop rotation in especially maize monoculture, sunflower cultivation has become more appealing. It is also a good method to improve soil health. A problem with the cultivation of the sunflower crop

THE CORNER POST October 2021 LOUISE KUNZ, PULA IMVULA CONTRIBUTOR   Like so many South Africans, Fanelwa Bangani Siphoko (43) from Johannesburg found the initial three-week lockdown period in 2020 overwhelming, but it was during this time that her passion for agriculture was ignited. LOCKDOWN FRUSTRATION PRODUCES A FARMER Fanelwa, who is an accountant at

A programme that is changing lives October 2021 Telling our own story first-hand The man recognised as the ‘father of India’s green revolution’, Mankombu Sambasivan Swaminathan, said if agriculture goes wrong, nothing else will go right. Farmers’ well-being must be at the centre of all programmes and policies. Grain SA strives to contribute to the