CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE FARMERS' DAYS AT VREDE AND REITZHendrik Smith, Conservation Agriculture Facilitator, Grain SA
» On 18 February a Conservation Agriculture (CA) farmers' day was held at the Ascent Silo in Vrede followed by one in the Reitz area, on 17 March, hosted on the Van Rooyenswoning of Danie Slabbert. These two farmer's days, part of a Maize Trust funded CA project, is coordinated by the Grain SA CA programme and implemented in collaboration with producers from the Ascent (Vrede) and Riemland (Reitz) study groups, as well as other technical co-workers, such as the Agricultural Research Council. The project also serves as a platform for the Grain SA/Argentina agreement whereby the Valtrac and FarmQuip companies provide equipment for use in trials.
The aim of the farmer's days were to provide new and relevant information on CA practices to producers and other interested parties. Various on-farm trials, forming part of the project, serve as demonstrations during these farmers' days. These trials investigate plant density (plant population and row width), crop rotation, cover crops, soil health, etc.
Several speakers addressed producers and Egon Zunckel, CA farmer in Bergville and Warden, acted as keynote speaker. Furthermore, Peter Greeff, part of a Western Cape group who attended the event, addressed the Reitz event. A group from Grain SA's smallholder CA project in KwaZulu-Natal also attended the event. These two very successful events, saw 77 people attending the day Ascent, and 150 who gathered at Reitz.
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Visitors discuss cover crop trials on the farm Skulpspruit at Ascent, Vrede |
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Visitors are transported on trucks between trials on the farm Van Rooyenswoning, Reitz |
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Robert Steynberg of VKB discuss trials at the farmers' day on Ascent, Vrede |
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Hendrik Smith of Grain SA show the difference between a conservation agriculture trial (maize left on photo) and conventional (maize right on photo) in Reitz |
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