Strict selection sees Beefmaster stud thrive

Dawie du Plessis of the Magmar Beefmaster stud in KwaZulu-Natal implements strict selection criteria based on Beefmaster founder Tom Lasater’s six essential traits.

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Dawie du Plessis runs the Magmar Beefmaster stud on the farm Riverdale, near the town of Swartberg. The farm is situated between Kokstad and Underberg in KwaZulu-Natal.

“My family moved here in 1973 from the Du Plessis family farm in Colesberg near the Gariep Dam,” he says. “My cousins still farm there today.

“I still remember my father explaining to other people that the reason he moved was that he had six children, so he had to move to an area with better rainfall.” Du Plessis, the youngest of the six siblings, grows maize and has a flock of Dohne Merino sheep in addition to running the Beefmaster stud.

“In summer, we generally get good rain. The cattle graze every part of the farm, even on top of the mountain. It has been years of hard work to build dams, tanks and pipes to take the water from the springs to the troughs, and make sure every paddock is supplied with good drinking water.”

BREEDING

The stud’s breeding season runs from 10 April to 30 June. For the first four weeks, Du Plessis uses artificial insemination; thereafter, the cows are put to the bulls.

“Mating at this time of the year has two major advantages. The first is that early or late spring rains don’t influence the breeding season. Along with good management and grazing, this is why we’ve achieved exceptional conception rates.