95 / 132
planted, she planted Gadra beans as a sole crop in order to compare
the difference in yield between intercropping the beans with maize
and planting them on their own (
Photo 8
).
Photo 9a
shows amadumbe, a tuber which is very popular in
Swayimane. They are normally grown for household consumption.
Apart from amadumbe, the farmers also grow butternut (
Photo 9b
)
for household consumption. It was inspiring to see that all of the
fields are cultivated and looked after by the family, and labourers are
employed during the busiest time of the season.
Mid-season maintenance and weeding are done manually by the
three women on all the fields. What fuels their passion for farming,
apart from enhanced food security, is that they have managed to
make farming an economically viable enterprise and are reaping the
benefits of their hard work.
A highlight is that the family managed to build a new house with
the proceeds from their farming activities, and even the younger
generation is starting to take an interest in farming because of their
resilience and hard work.
Conclusion
Farming, like any other business, involves taking risks and good
returns are not always guaranteed. The current shifts in seasonal
patterns and increase in erratic weather conditions have resulted in
a lot of uncertainty when it comes to food production.
Conventional farming methods, especially mechanical ploughing,
over the years have resulted in degraded and unstable soils with a
progressive decrease in crop yields. Although the Nxusa family is
doing well in terms of production, there was evidence of soil fertility
issues. The maize on some fields had purple and yellow leaves,
and was light green, which could mean that they have N and P
deficiencies.
This case study, as part of the bigger CA programme, has shown
that it is becoming essential to increase awareness and capacity in
sustainable agricultural practices if long term food security is to be
realised by all the smallholder categories.
CA shows great potential to address the primary issues related to soil
health and crop production. Furthermore, working with an innovative
group like Nxusa’s family, requires a higher level of innovation from
the team to successfully incorporate CA into an already functional
and successful semi-commercial farming system.
At this stage it certainly seems that CA does have the potential to
deliver the expected benefits.
8: Late beans (gadra) planted as a sole crop to compare yields between
the intercrop and sole crop as well as the effect of planting date on final
yield.
8
9a: Amadumbe is very popular in Swayimane.
9b: Butternut.
9a
9b
Silo Warehouse...
Your grain storage solution.
Top quality turnkey projects
Tel: 012 332 1469
www.silowarehouse.co.za
E-mail: info@silowarehouse.co.za
silowarehouse
Rustlandkraal, Hoopstad
OVK, Elliot
JD le Roux, Hoopstad
St Helena
Gawana