Business
Farmer's Weekly
Indigenous Livestock Perfect For Small-scale Farmers
Ross Rayner and his father, Roger, farm 40 Nguni cows and 35 Bosvelder-type ewes on 250ha in the Mankazana Valley near Adelaide in the Eastern Cape. Their operation is an example of what value indigenous livestock holds for small-scale farmers. Mike Burgess reports.
4 min |
Farmer's Weekly 7 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Water Hyacinth - The Solutions
Since 1974, SA has released more biocontrol agents on water hyacinth than any other country.
3 min |
Farmer's Weekly 7 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
No-Till: Increasing Soil Organic Content
With no-till farming, you need to try to gradually increase the organic content of the soil.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 7 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
How To Buy A Used Vehicle
There are four ways to buy the model you want, but none is foolproof. Find out if the vehicle is paid up and make sure it wasn’t stolen. Jake Venter reports.
3 min |
Farmer's Weekly 7 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Time For Africa To Treat Agriculture As A Business
Rural economies in Africa have become zones of economic misery. According to Dr Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, stimulating economic growth in these areas through agriculture and the food industry should be at the top of the development agenda.
4 min |
Farmer's Weekly 14 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
African Agriculture: When Will It Realise Its True Potential?
Agriculture employs 70% of the workforce in Africa and constitutes 30% of total GDP. Yet the continent relies heavily on imports and food aid. Lindi Botha spoke to three leaders | in the African agriculture sector to explain this anomaly.
4 min |
Farmer's Weekly 14 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Prepare For A Further Drop In Milk Prices
Producers should expect the consolidation of buying power in the domestic market to weigh on dairy prices.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 14 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Working Together Yields Profits For Keimoes Farmers
The gravel road between Keimoes and Upington unfolds onto the lush, green oasis of Eksteenskuil in the Northern Cape. Here, a group of small-scale farmers have created a vibrant agricultural community through hard work and planning. Annelie Coleman reports.
5 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
SA Almonds Ready To Take On The World
The establishment of an almond-processing facility in Robertson has the potential to turn South Africa into a leading exporter of these nuts. Stephan and Hans le Roux of Amanteco Almonds spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the opportunities and pitfalls associated with this crop.
6 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Farmers' Day At Koppies
The annual farmers’ day at Koppies in the Free State was organised by Northmec and the Cairo Group, the leading supplier of Case IH equipment in South Africa.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
The 500 000th Ford Ranger!
Ford recently produced the half-millionth unit of its Ford Ranger range of bakkies in South Africa. The vehicle has enjoyed consistent popularity in South Africa, as well as in export markets supplied by the company’s assembly plant in Pretoria.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Politics & Agri Machinery Pricing
Tractor sales in South Africa recovered well in 2017 after a slump in 2016 due to the widespread drought. However, the current political and economic climate, and its effect on the value of the rand, could affect sales during the latter part of 2018. Denene Erasmus reports.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
SA's 'Little Ships' Go To War
In 1939, South Africa effectively had no navy at all. But that did not stop the brave volunteers of the South African Naval Forces from taking on the enemy.
5 min |
Farmer's Weekly 21 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
How To Win The Fight Against The Eldana Sugar Cane Pest
Eldana has a major negative effect on the yield and quality of sugar cane crops. Dr Des Conlong, senior entomologist at the SA Sugarcane Research Institute, says that only modern integrated pest management can reduce the impact of this pest.
6 min |
Farmer's Weekly 28 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Taking Nature Conservation Into The Future
Data from species and environmental monitoring is often hard to translate into real-world management solutions. Conservationists Dr Pieter Olivier, Andrew Purdon and Michael Mole are solving this challenge with practical software.
4 min |
Farmer's Weekly 28 September 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Your Personal Lab!
Compac has launched a new mobile field research unit for the citrus industry.
2 min |
September 28, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Chicken With Onions And Emmentaler Cheese
My brother recently returned from a business trip to France, where he had what he called the best chicken meal of his life. This recipe, reconstructed from memory, is the happy outcome.
1 min |
September 28, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Pasture-Based Dairy: Lower Cost And More Lactations
In an area where feeding total mixed rations is the norm for dairy production, Jurie and John Hartley milk 1 200 cows off pasture with impressive results. Gerhard Uys reports.
5 min |
Farmer's Weekly 12 October 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Southern Kwazulu-Natal: Set For A Boom In Avo Production
South Africas avocado industry is soaring on the back of national and international demand. It aims to capitalise further on this by substantially increasing southern KwaZulu-Natals avocado production. Lloyd Phillips spoke to Athol Currie of The Fruit Farm Group South Africa.
5 min |
Farmer's Weekly 12 October 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Produce Your Own Seedlings
Indigenous leaf crops such as African spinach (amaranthus, morogo or imfino) are rarely found in the commercial market but they can easily be grown in your nursery. Here are tips on how to do this.
1 min |
Farmer's Weekly 12 October 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Adaptability And Efficiency Help Tunnel Nursery Thrive
Ezigro Seedlings in Mpumalanga grows a wide range of seedlings all year round, thanks to resource-efficient tunnel production in an ideal climate. The tunnels provide another advantage: they allow for rapid adaptation to a changing market. Lindi Botha spoke to CEO Anthony Baird.
5 min |
October 19, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Public-Private Partnerships Transform The Sugar Industry
Numerous sugar cane fields in South Africa have been claimed through land restitution. Were this land to go fallow or be used for other agricultural purposes, the potential loss of sugar production would hold dire consequences for the sugar value chain. Lindi Botha spoke to Dawie van Rooy, director for agriculture at RCL Foods, about his companys response to this risk.
5 min |
October 19, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Cover Crop Breakthrough Promises To Revolutionise Production In Dry Areas
The introduction of a no-till planter that can plant cover crops in vine and tree rows is enabling farmers in the Olifants River Valley to take the benefits of cover cropping to an entirely new level. Glenneis Kriel reports on the planter’s development and the value of cover cropping in general.
5 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Crop Diversity A Pillar Of Sustainable Production
Including more than three crops in a cash crop system may not only help increase yield, but significantly enhance the long-term sustainability of a farm. Dr Johann Strauss of the Western Cape Department of Agriculture spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the benefits of crop diversity.
4 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
No Slowing Down For This Commercial Cattle Woman
Alwene Ford may be nearing what many would consider normal retirement age, but the 63-year-old commercial cattle farmer has no plans to slow down. Sabrina Dean visited her on her farm near Barkly West in the Northern Cape.
6 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Why Nitrogen Is So Important
Simply put, nitrogen controls the performance of the crop just as the throttle pedal controls the speed of a car.
2 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Assessing Grazing Capacity
The number of grazing camps on a farm should be weighed against the escalating cost of fencing material,
3 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
The American Quarter Horse
This breed is not only fast, but is also versatile, and can thus compete in English or Western riding disciplines,
2 min |
August 9, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
New Report Expresses Support
Farmers unhappy with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) location differential system have suffered a setback, with grain expert Prof Matthew Roberts, founder of the Kernmantle Group, recommending that the system be maintained for wheat and maize and, if the JSE deemed it necessary, introduced for soya bean as well.
1 min |
June 14, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Seed-eating Birds Survive In The Desert
52years ago A study conducted at the Transvaal Museum investigated the water economy of seedeating birds, and the remarkable ability of certain finches to live in the desert without water for long periods of time.
2 min |