Dr John Robinson, Technical Director, Du Roi Laboratory at Mr Monteiro's plantation in Angola
An Angolan business entrepreneur successfully established a 32 ha block of commercial bananas at Benguela, on the Southern coast of Angola. Mr Manuel Antonio Monteiro planted 32 ha's of mixed Cavendish varieties (Williams, Grand nain and Chinese Cavendish) from November 2002 to January 2003. Flowering was from May to July and the first harvest of bunches started in September (10 months from planting) and will continue until December 2003.
It is important to understand that biological farming is not new. Generations of farmers have successfully followed this farming method. They knew how to work the land and understood the process of harnessing nature. Biological farming today is a system that uses nature and science to build the quality of the soil with the understanding that healthy soil will be able to support healthy crops and livestock. It takes advantage of natural processes, which promote good soil, healthy crops, and healthy animals.
History books are full of stories about the decline and fall of many great nations. Soil decline was always the start of the fall. Poor soils result in failure of the economy and then the defence system. But if history were closely studied and the truth were known, you would find it was really decline of the mind that made the difference – and the mind begins to decline as soon as the soil begins to produce food that is empty of nutrients.
a Clean development mechanism for nutrient dense food production, agricultural land reform and production of biofuel and nutriceuticals in Africa.
An interview by Liza van der Merwe with Johan Bruwer
Johan Bruwer is a resource and agricultural economist based in Nelspruit, Mpumalanga for the last 15 years.During this time he has grappled with issues regarding sustainability of modern agricultural practices, or the lack thereof.Not perturbed by his less successful attempt to persuade the Mpumalanga Provincial Government to adopt an agricultural clean development mechanism (agCDM) as a central theme in their 2006 sector development strategy, he decided to initiate a biological farming trial at the Nelspruit-based Timbali Technology Incubator.
Sedert die installasie van die Oorhoofse Floppy sisteem op op sy plaas Kingsdale naby Oos London, was Mickey Meintjies nog nooit ‘n enkele sekonde spyt nie. Meintjies het na deeglike ondersoek besluit om die Floppy sisteem op ‘n area van 8 hektaar te installer weens die alsydigheid van die stelsel, die sisteem se groot waterbesparingsvermoë asook die voordeel dat die Floppy Sprinkler van nil en gener waarde vir diewe is omdat dit gemaak word van plastiek en silikoon.
The plant is the most important part in crop production. The roots of the plants spread through soil, absorb water and minerals which are transported to the stem, branches and leaves. They also give firm anchorage to the plant and in addition accumulate nutrients. As important as this may seem it is surprising that the roots are the least known about, the least understood and the least appreciated part of a plant. This is undoubtedly true to the fact that they are “out of sight and out of mind”.
Seventy percent of the world’s water supply is used for agricultural purposes. With the growing demand for water and the rapidly diminishing world water supply, the development of water efficient technologies have become crucial.
What makes the Floppy Sprinkler System more efficient than conventional irrigation systems?
The Floppy Sprinkler is the only sprinkler in the world with a built-in flow controller. This ensures accurate and even water application even on slopes. The Floppy Sprinkler produces uniform medium sized droplets. This means no water loss through mist evaporating before reaching the ground.
South Africa is a water scarce country and the agricultural sector utilizes more than 50% of the available water resources in the country. The irrigation fraterninty is constantly being challenged to manage water demand and implement more effective irrigation methods.
Ben van Rensburg, head of the Small Grain Institute at Jan Kempdorp is an expert on farming and he talks with the highest respect of the Floppy Sprinklersystem. In 2000, Ben completed a Fertigation course at the Fertigation Academy in Rustenburg where he first noticed the Floppy Sprinkler Overhead Cable system.
Ben immediately recognised the potential of the system and subsequently installed 6 Ha’s at Vaalharts for wheat trails. According to Ben, the installation of the system was very easy. The idea is simple yet effective. Sprinklers and poly pipe are suspended from a cable - high enough to allow tractors and implements to move freely underneath the system.
After attending a fertigation workshop presented at the Agrofert Academy near Kroondal a few years ago, Ben van Rensburg, head of the Small Grain Institute at Jan Kemp Dorp was so impressed with the Floppy Sprinkler System that he immediately set out to test the system on a variety of crops in that area.
Water is a precious commodity. With the growing demand for water and the rapidly diminishing world water supply, the development of efficient irrigation technologies that enhances the sustainability and productivity of agricultural system is key to the conservation of our natural resources.
In order to schedule your irrigation properly you need to know the water requirements of your plants and how much water is in the soil profile. Once this has been determined you can:
ensure maximum crop production by maintaining soil water content,
control water distribution at deep and shallow levels using tensiometers,
vary water content of soil to allow for the influence of weather conditions i.e. rain,
manage optimal crop production through a process called regulated deficit irrigation
Water is critical for growth and production of all crops. Urban growth, intensive agricultural production and environmental concerns exert increasing demands for available water.
Therefore there is increasing awareness of the need to manage irrigation correctly in order to optimize the quality and yield of the produce, minimize costs of production and avoid adverse environmental impacts. Getting the most from an irrigation system requires accurate scheduling of water applications and efficient use of equipment.
Urban growth, intensive agricultural production and environmental concerns exert increased demand for available water. Therefore there is an increasing awareness of the need to manage irrigation correctly in order to optimize the quality and yield of the produce, minimize input costs and avoid adverse environmental impacts.
Getting the most from an irrigation system requires accurate scheduling of water application and a sound understanding of a plant’s soil-water relationship.
Seventy percent of the world’s water supply is used for agricultural purposes. With the growing demand for water and the rapidly diminishing world water supply, the development of water efficient technologies have become crucial.
The key pillars underlying a successful farming operation are the Farmer, the crop and the method of irrigation. It is therefore imperative that a farmer understands the basic relationship surrounding these three entities.
Since the installation of the Floppy Sprinkler system on an area of 8 hectares on his Kingsdale farm in East London, Mickey Meintjies has never looked back. Meintjies decided to install the Floppy Sprinkler Overhead Cable system due to the versitility of the system, its water saving capabilities and the fact that the system is made of material with no scrap value.
Working underneath the suspended Floppy system is a pleasure. Tractor operators cannot not drive over and damage any pipes or hydrants, as the system has no infrastructure on the ground. In the past the occurrence of theft was common but since the installation of the Floppy Sprinkler system, Meintjies have had no instances of theft.
CHRIS BARNARD – Well-known farmer from Rustenburg is literally reaping the rewards of what he has sown.
Barnard who has been involved with intensive farming for the last 20-years is confident that correct irrigation scheduling forms a fundamental part to obtaining optimum yields.
Farmers from all over the country and even outside the borders of South Africa as far as Tanzania and Egypt are flocking to his farm to view his Floppy Irrigation System.
Sustainable agricultural practices are an effort to make farming activities compatible to Mother Nature’s eco system. Making a shift from conventional farming to biological farming is a serious decision.Biological farming harnesses science and nature to create superior farming practices through a systemic approach. Biological farmers use natural systems to improve soil structure, control weeds, pests, and diseases whilst improving crop quality.
A dense bush of sugar cane wherever you look!That was the picture; we got during a recent visit to a farm run by the Umtombo Wemphilo Farmers Association in Swaziland.
Swaziland is one of the biggest sugar exporters in Africa. More than 50% of its agricultural exports consist of sugar cane.Sugar projects in Swaziland range from small subsistence farmers to large commercial estates. The major estates are Mhlume, Simunye, and Ubombo Sugar. Other key operations include Tambankulu, Crookes Brothers and Big Bend.
In an effort to promote growth, the Government of Swaziland has allocated several hectares of arable land to numerous small-scale farmers as an effort to promote a climate of self-sufficiency and alleviate poverty simultaneously creating more job opportunities. These groups of farmers form part of different registered growers associations. The Ekuvinjelweni Farmers Association chaired by Nhlangano Malundusa cultivates an area of 194 hectares of sugar cane in the Maguga Host area in the Kingdom of Swaziland.
During 1992, a bi-national treaty on Development and Utilization of Water Resources of the Komati River Basin was signed between the Kingdom of Swaziland and the Republic of South Africa.
The aim of the project was to improve the management of water resources in the Komati River Basin. To do this the Governments of both countries embarked on a long-term plan of building a total of nine dams that will supply the area of water. The Driekoppies Dam in South Africa and the Maguga Dam in Swaziland was built during the first phase of the project.
Floppy Sprinkler advocates comparing quotations to keep pricing competitive. However, one must compare “apples with apples”, or ensure an “equal measuring stick”. By the same token a full irrigation design with detailed specifications and priced item list takes time and expertise and is valuable!
The points below provide enough information for a client to compare irrigation system quotations on an equal footing, without designers giving away their detailed design or item list until a firm order, deposit, or design fee is confirmed.
Floppy Sprinkler (Pty) Ltd. aims to ensure best possible service to clients at all times. Each and every irrigation system is uniquely designed for each individual field.
All the water in the Orange River is of no use if you cannot get it on your lucerne efficiently and profitably, says Willem van Zyl of Orania.
Until a year or two ago Willem was a dry-land farmer in the Standerton district. When he bade the dry-lands farewell to be an irrigation farmer at Orania he was determined to do it right. He thoroughly investigated all options before deciding on an irrigation system.
Industrious Egyptians are currently busy building the largest irrigation project in the world. Christo Theron, technical director of Floppy Sprinkler has visited the Toshka construction site in Egypt numerous times. Toshka is a large scale project of irrigation and spatial planning, covering areas not on the banks of the Nile but utilizing areas deeper into the desert that will be irrigated by pumped water from the Nile. This is an effort by the Egyptians to move away from the over-populated area around the Nile river and Nile Delta and opening nearly half a million hectares of Sahara Desert for agricultural use in the first phase of the project.
Egyptian history might have started in the Paleolithic era but the fact remains that modern day Egyptians are still making history with the building of the largest irrigation project in the world!
Mark Gunter, owner of Zig Enterprises Inc. - Canada
Zig Enterprises Inc. - Distributor to the commercial agricultural market in the USA and Canada for the range of Floppy Sprinkler products is based in North Vancouver, British Columbia and owned by Mark & Deborah Gunter. The company was established in 2000, providing irrigation consultancy services to the residential, golf and commercial/municipality market in Canada.
'n Suid-Afrikaanse maatskappy, Floppy Sprinkler van Nelspruit, het 'n groot slag geslaan met 'n kontrak by die grootste besproeiingsprojek ter wêreld wat tans in Egipte ontwikkel word. Die floppy-sprinkelaar is 'n eg Suid-Afrikaanse produk wat plaaslik ontwikkel is.
Water is scarce! Seventy percent of the world’s water supply is used for agricultural purposes. With the growing demand for water and the rapidly diminishing world water supply, the development of efficient irrigation technologies have become crucial.
Floppy Sprinkler(EDMS) Bpk. is toonaangewer in die besproeiingsbedryf en ligjare voor sy kompetisie! Jare gelede het Prof. Lourens Hiemstra van die Universiteit Stellenbosh met dié briljante idee vorendag gekom wat tot groot besparings in water, energie, arbeid, onderhoud en kunmis sou lei.
Floppy Sprinkler‘s (Pty) Ltd. personnel are a most valuable and important asset to the company. It is company policy to build individual skills and technological knowledge levels to their fullest potential. This enables our team to provide world-class products and services to clients.
Every time you watch TV or read a newspaper you see articles about drought and floods across the world. Seven of the world’s largest rivers do not flow into the ocean anymore. Here we think of the Yellow River in China, the Colorado river in America and this month the Po River in India has also run dry! Worldwide, farmers and governments are looking for technologies for the sustainable utilization of water.
Frutos Lebombos is currently the leading banana grower in Mozambique. After intensive research the company decided to install the Floppy Sprinkler permanent riser system on its plantations situated in the southern part picturesque Mozambique.
South Africa is a country subjected to an erratic rainfall pattern and subsequent serious sporadic droughts with a detrimental effect on harvests. The only sensible way to combat these conditions is to cultivate crops under irrigation. Even in years of good precipitation irrigation is still a prerequisite to optimal production.
Floppy Sprinkler, known by many farmers has recently won another award. The competition for best Innovative Ideas and Technologies endorsed by the World Bank and hosted by The Irrigation Association was held in Louisiana, USA during their annual International Irrigation Show at the end of last year. The competition focused on finding the best irrigation technology that is aimed at the world’s small agricultural holders in developing countries.
“Winning a TT100 Award is undoubtedly a great honour – all the more so because of the rigour of the competition’s adjudication process.” (Sunday Times, 30 November 2003)
The winners of the annual Technology Top 100 Awards were announced at a prestigious gala event at Gallagher Estate in Gauteng on 27 November last year.
FLOPPY SPRINKLER recently won a SABI Award at the prestigious 13th bi-annual South African Irrigation Institute Congress that was held in Worcester during May this year.
The SABI Congress forms a vital platform for new developments and approaches to solving the intricate challenges faced by the irrigation fraternity daily. The focus of this year’s Congress was on the sustainable utilization of water.
Knowing when crops need water and how much they need are the key elements to effective irrigation management. With basic knowledge of the soil-moisture crop relationship, an irrigator can easily schedule more scientifically and anticipate irrigation requirements.
