By Michelle van der Spuy
Farmers have been on a wild weather roller-coaster ride lately, and now the first frost of the year has arrived in the Free State – a reminder that winter is nearly here, right when it’s supposed to be, whether they’re ready or not.
Danie Bester, who farms with maize and soya on Rietbult in die Balfour district, says it’s not unusual to experience what he calls a “sneaky frost” at this time of year. “It’s just a little reminder from winter that it’s on its way.”
In 2023, the first frost arrived in mid-April, but last year it arrived later than usual due to dry conditions.
The 2024 winter was relatively mild compared to previous years, Danie says. “This year, we’ve had a lot of rain, so I’m expecting a colder winter.”
He says frost is not unexpected at this time of year and is usually moderate, but the growing season is becoming shorter because planting is happening later in the season.
“The weather has been all over the place this season. We planted late because the dry spell lasted longer than expected. Then it finally rained and, thinking the drought had been broken, we started planting. But then we got hit by another terrible drought that lasted until about 16 December. After that, the rain came down – almost too much of it. Then it was dry again.
“Right now, it is unusually wet for this time of year. It feels like we’re farming in England – you hardly ever see the sun, and our heat units are definitely lower than in previous years. I can see the maize is taking longer to reach maturity.
“The weather is like Liquorice Allsorts this year.”
Normally, Danie starts planting at the end of October, but last year he could only start three weeks later. The dry weather meant they had ample heat units – actually too many, which led to stress and inhibited growth. He estimates that his maize’s growth is about a week behind in the current grain-fill stage.
He says he’ll be busy harvesting soya beans for the next three to four weeks, and hopes to wrap it up just before this year’s Nampo Harvest Day. After that, he’ll likely be harvesting maize until the end of July.
“Everything’s okay as long as you can keep harvesting and remain busy. But when it rains and the weather patterns are out of whack, it affects your mood.”
Johan van den Berg, an independent agricultural meteorologist, told African Farming that the risk of frost remains low until the end of April due to the unusually wet conditions. Cold weather and frost are only expected from mid-May onwards.
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