Canola in the north? Yes, you read it right. Farmers in Limpopo and Mpumalanga are exploring canola as a rotation crop alongside maize and soybeans.
“In the vicinity of Lydenburg (Mashishing) and Ohrigstad, there’s a significant trend in this direction, as well as in Brits (in North West) and Nylstroom (Modimolle). Even farmers on the Springbok Flats are starting to look at it,” says Jaco Strauss of Strauss Seed & Co, who hosted a canola farmers’ day on 18 September at Klipfontein near Mashishing.
“There are about 1 500 hectares of canola planted in these regions, all under irrigation. Some farmers are planting it for the second year this year,” says Jaco. These farmers send their canola to the Klipfontein silo complex owned by Lieb Niemand. He also plants canola himself and hosted the farmers’ day.
“The consumption of the canola is only in December, and GrainVest and TWK market it to the processors.”
Attractive alternative
For farmers in this area who planted canola for the first time this year, it’s a cautious step towards an alternative crop.
“I planted about 30ha,” says Johan Malan of J&B Farming near Ohrigstad, who replaced a portion of his wheat plantings with canola. In summer he plants maize, soybeans and sugar beans on his farm, Rusplaas. He also farms with vegetables, pecans and peaches.
“We’re not making money with wheat any more. The price has remained the same for three years and the costs are just too high. I was looking for an alternative. My neighbour planted canola last year and he didn’t do too badly. He made mistakes, but he could identify them,” says Johan. He estimates eight to 12 farmers in his area planted canola this year.
“The signs are there that canola has potential – the input costs are not so high and we harvest it earlier than wheat,” he adds.
Piet Lombard from the Western Cape Department of Agriculture says rain plays a role in these farmers switching to canola. “The main reason why they want to plant something else is that the profitability of wheat is no longer so good. It’s also a crop that’s sensitive to summer rain. If it rains before you harvest, it affects your quality.
“These farmers are therefore looking at alternatives, and canola is a rotation crop that fits well into their system. Anywhere you can plant wheat, you can plant canola,” says Piet, who also shared his knowledge at the canola farmers’ day.
Rain is one of the reasons why Pieter Ahlers from the farm Welgedacht near Mashishing decided to plant 30ha of canola.
“The biggest problem with wheat is we harvest during the rainy season. Then the grade drops, and as soon as you harvest a lower grade it’s no longer as profitable. I’m not going to eliminate wheat completely – canola is just something else we can put in the package. The bigger your package, the lower your risk.”
Pieter says it’s also about improving his rotation system. “I plant maize and soybeans in summer, and wheat and oats for my cattle in winter. Now I’m bringing in another crop. The more rotation you apply, the more sustainably you farm.
“I believe you shouldn’t just farm for the next 10 years. What you leave for the next generation should be in a better condition than now.”
Pieter and Johan are cautiously optimistic about their canola harvest this year. “I planted the Diamond cultivar and have no complaints. It looks good, but I want to harvest first and then I’ll be able to tell you whether it worked or not. I think next time I’ll fertilise earlier. I fertilised certain lands earlier than others, and I can already see it makes a difference,” says Johan.
Pieter planted Diamond on 25 April and the Quartz cultivar on 10 May. “Both look good. After the season, I’ll be able to say which one did better. We don’t really have diseases, but I think after a few years the diseases might emerge.”
Jaco says there’s still work to be done when cultivar trials are planted in the area. “At this stage, these farmers are planting the old reliables. It worked last year, and it doesn’t look bad this year, but there were places where cold caused damage. Canola doesn’t like frost – something you get in the north. In the warmer areas, there will be more disease pressure. So we’ll have to look at faster growers, as well as triazine-resistant cultivars.
“The most important thing is that we have a concept that works. Now we just need to refine it under irrigation,” says Jaco.
Lessons learned
Planting canola was a learning curve for these farmers. “There were teething problems with planting because we’re not familiar with planting such fine seeds,” says Pieter.
“I practise no-till, and planting canola on untilled soybean fields was easy. However, on an untilled maize field that was harvested two weeks earlier it was more difficult because the stubble was still fresh. I had to work that field twice with a heavy disc implement and then once with a high-speed disc before we could plant.”
Johan also uses no-till planters, but he says good disc work is necessary. “Where heaps remained, there was no emergence. That’s just how it is: you have to clean up.”
Piet says this is part of the learning process. “It’s a small seed that needs to be managed correctly. Some farmers unfortunately had to plough in because germination was too poor, and others had an extremely high stand.”
Piet’s advice to farmers in the north who want to plant canola is to start small. “Phase it into your system gradually. Get to know the crop.”
Inquiries: Jaco Strauss, email: jaco@straussagri.co.za, 071 440 2167.
