Senwes Scenario Desember - Februarie 2020 | Page 23

AGRICULTURAL | LANDBOUKUNDIG
proper growing environment. This allows
for the rapid detection of any problems
that may arise and creates the opportu-
nity for a quick response. In the field, the
plants are arranged neatly in horizontal
rows a fair distance from the ground,
which allows for him and his farmworkers
to tend to them without bending.
This system is designed in such a way
that water runs through the tables and is
absorbed by the plants. Water that is not
absorbed then gets collected, cleaned up
and recycled back through to the plants
from the pump room, which is built atop
a dam.
One of the main pitfalls of hydroponic
farming is high input costs. To set up pro-
duction as remarkable as the one Johan
has built up in the seven years since he
started with hydroponics, requires high
costs.
He advises that starting small and
building it up is the best approach to this
type of endeavour, but also conceded
that production costs will remain consis-
tently high.
“If you think about it, you are cutting
out about 95 percent of intensive labour
and also cutting your production time
quite a lot. To do that successfully, you
have to be prepared to pour money into
making sure that your systems run effi-
ciently.”
Johan also spoke about the importance
of including marketing into your farming
strategy. “It is important to have a market
for the vegetables you are producing. We
cannot afford not to sell, so a solid mar-
keting strategy is essential for the sustain-
ability of the business.”
Johan also teaches farmers who are
interested in getting started with hydro-
ponics. He conducts monthly workshops
from his farm where he shares his journey,
gives farmers tools and strategies on how
to get started and sustain a hydroponic
farming practice. In these sessions, he
showcases how it is possible to increase
production up to three times through this
simple, yet powerful farming system.
SENWES SCENARIO | SOMER • SUMMER 2020
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