Poor weed management is perhaps the single most important factor leading to greatly reduced yields from the fields of the small-scale farmer. Here’s how to manage weeds in your fields. Following conventional tillage practices can lead to on-going depletion of your soil’s fertility, and this, along with poor plant populations,…
Eliminating herbicide resistance is extremely difficult once it has gained a foothold on your farm, but with the correct management practices it is possible to eradicate the problem in a few years. “The best solution is to avoid getting it in the first place,” says Hestia Nienaber from South Africa’s…
Herbicide-resistant weeds are a major concern for crop producers. Farmers fear that, in an extreme case of resistance, they might lose the chemical tools that had previously been effective. Weed species that can survive and reproduce following exposure to a dose of herbicide that is usually lethal to its wild…
Weed management is an important part of crop production, but how does the no-till farmer keep weeds under control without conventional farming methods at his disposal? Richard Findlay from the No-till Club of KwaZulu-Natal says no-till farming requires a complete mind shift. The challenge is to overcome the first years…
Here’s some expert advice on weed and pest control for your bell peppers. APHIDS Aphids (mainly Myzus persicae or green peach aphids) are small, soft bodied insects that can be green, black, yellow or pink. They are found on the terminal growth ends or underneath the leaf of the plant.…
It was while visiting an organic vegetable farm in Switzerland that he heard about the practise of burning weeds out with a gas burner, says Mr. Skye Fehlmann. To win the fight against weeds, he and his partner, Mr. Dawie Badenhorst, use this method on fields where seeds have been…
