PRODUCER FOCUS
Piet believes that wind erosion, soil temperature and rainfall
are the most important aspects to consider when farming
COMPONENTS
They have adjusted the farming opera-
tions significantly since 2013. They initially
planted 95% maize and 5% wheat. In
2015 they started with 100 hectares of
sunflower and the year after, 40 hectares
of soybeans under irrigation. The farming
operations have changed so much that in
the 2018/2019 season they will be plant-
ing 37% maize, followed by 24% sunflow-
er, 19% soybeans, 7% small white beans,
7% wheat and 6% of the fields will be left
fallow. "This is because the maize sum by
itself is not sustainable", Pieter and Piet
said.
His son Pieter handles the crop farm-
ing and his son-in-law Cassie handles the
pecan nuts, which they started planting
five years ago.
Cassie loves the pecan nut farming,
10 500 trees to be specific. According
to him his hard work over a number of
years will start paying off in a few years'
time. He plants Wichita and Navaho trees,
12 by 6 metres on 75 hectares for more
sunlight, and to utilise the soil and water
more effectively. When the trees become
too big, they will be thinned out. He also
believes in an infield nursery and replaces
damaged trees with trees of a similar age.
He carefully prunes the trees and tells
us: The branches are the factory, but the
trunk transports nutrients. His advice to
producers is: “Rather buy a R300 plant
than a R200 one, and rather wait a year in
order to plant a grafted tree.”
PHILOSOPHY
Piet has a ‘n threefold philosophy about
farming. He was an agricultural extension
officer in Bophuthatswana in 2013 and
believes that wind erosion, soil temperature
and rainfall are the most important aspects
to consider. After 40 years they have a
winning recipe to address all three issues.
When you walk in the fields you don't sink
into loose soil - you walk on crop residue
between the rows of stubble from previous
Pecan nuts are
Cassie de Vries'
passion.
seasons. Thanks to their 8-series John
Deere tractors and implements they can
plant two rows 76 cm apart, with the next
two rows 1,5 metres further.
Wind erosion: The stubble stops wind
erosion in its tracks and the only dust
clouds I can see are next to the dirt roads
leading to the fields.
Soil temperature: We compared the
soil samples below the residue with soil
samples not covered and the difference
was very evident - definitely degrees
cooler.
Rainfall: The soil was damp a mere
10 cm below the residue by the middle of
September, which means that the 500 mm
of rain per annum is being utilised more
effectively - all three aspects addressed!
They use the minimum tillage principle
and plant on the rows of two seasons past.
Last year's stubble is still standing. This
brings a totally new perspective to the
bare, hot and sandy image of this part of
the Free State.
As one digs deeper, believe it or not,
organic material is found. Piet's dream is to
have a perfect system - so perfect that his
grandchildren have to go to other farms to
see what the sandy area looks like. Pieter,
who was part of the 2018 Syngenta Grain
Academy, adds that he hopes to see an
earthworm or two.
SENWES
John Deere tractors and a scale model
in the showcase tell us that they are John
Deere and Senwes customers. Pieter tells
us that the RTK is particularly critical for
them and that no system touches it - price,
service and precision are outstanding.
They also have a production loan at
Senwes and a portion of their grain is mar-
keted by Senwes. He makes special men-
tion of his branch manager Gerhard van
der Ryst, agri-business manager Vonnie
Haarhoff and silo manager Jurie Maree:
“When I have a problem, they will definite-
ly be able to solve it.”
BULTFONTEIN VIBE
They mention that there is a good vibe
amongst the producers who are part of
the Midde-In Study Group. They are cur-
rently planning an American tour.
MENTORS
He has 21 labourers and he believes
that knowledge has to be conveyed to
employees. They act as mentor for Ruben
Motlhabane, an emerging producer. “We
are his current mentors and we share all
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