93 / 132
Cut losses with
PRECISION
Plant with
VISION
Process Monitor
for Air Seeders
• Area
• Speed
• Tacho up to 4 axles
• Alarm on each function
• Easy to install
• Bin / Tank full
• Bin / Tank empty
Proudly Made
in South Africa
Tel: 012 345 3193
Fax: 012 345 6763
Web: www.electrolee.co.za
Email: info@electrolee.co.za
Sales: sales@electrolee.co.za
Planter Monitor
• Seed per 100m per row, seed population
• Hectares worked and much more
• Easy to install and maintain
• Fertiliser and turning of axles
• Can be applied to most planters
• Real tough, rust and water resistant
children. She and her family survive primarily on farming and work
as a unit, with her as the custodian.
They own eight chickens, 14 cattle and grow amadumbe, sweet
potato, butternut, maize and beans in order to sell to the local
community and to traders who purchase their produce and sell it in
nearby Pietermaritzburg. They are also part of a family stokvel which
provides a supplementary source of income.
Nxusa is no stranger to CA, as she and her group have been exposed
to its principles through workshops conducted by the Department
of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. She started thinking more
critically about implementing it after meeting with Mahlathini
Development Foundation (MDF) and she and her sisters planted their
trial on one of their joint fields.
The trial was divided into eight plots of 10 m x 12 m. It had two plots
of maize and cowpeas and six plots of maize and beans and planting
was done using hand hoes (
Photo 2a
and
Photo 2b
). The maize
and beans were planted on the elevated part of the field where the
subsoil is exposed possibly due to years of erosion that removed
most of the topsoil.
The maize and cowpea were planted on the bottom part of the field,
and was greener as this seemed to be the point of accumulation of
soil and nutrients in the field. The cowpeas provided a much thicker
canopy compared to the beans.
The overall perfomance of the trial was good and the farmers were
pleased with their bean harvest as they had expected a low yield due
to recent rains which resulted in some of the beans going bad.
Problems
Moreover, they had problems with buck and rats eating their crops.
The total harvest for beans was 48,17 kg equating to a yield of
1,2 t/ha (
Photo 3a
). The farmers also planted Umzumbe beans for
the market (
Photo 3b
). The field is more difficult to manage as it is
further away from the household, and is only one of many fields that
they cultivate.
In their conventional fields or control plots, the main variety grown
for the market is SC 701, which the farmers planted in their
homestead and on three other fields outside the homestead.
2a and 2b: Nxusa's maize and beans/cowpea intercrop which was more
than 1 000 m
2
.
2a
2b
3a: Gadra beans, harvested by the Nxusa team from their CA trial.
3b: Umzumbe beans.
3a
3b