The December issue of Oilseeds Focus explores South Africa’s fertiliser use, smart cultivar choices for profitable sunflower production, and the rising challenge of herbicide resistance – plus emerging solutions that could change the game for crop protection.
Blackleg of canola is a disease of global importance and is also a major constraint on canola production in the Western Cape. Yield losses due to blackleg have been estimated at between 10 and 20% annually, but where severe epidemics occur, it can result in complete crop failure. Read more in this issue.
Maintaining high efficiency in sunflower production is essential for profitability, and selecting the right cultivar is one of the easiest and most effective strategies to achieve this. Thanks to ongoing research and cultivar trials, growers now have access to valuable data to assist in selecting a cultivar.
About chemicals and fertilizers
Since the advent of the Green Revolution in the 1960s, global crop production has thrived while increasingly relying on ‘chemical crutches’ in the form of synthetic or human-made pesticides and fertilisers. Yet the intense selection pressure exerted by herbicides has resulted in the widespread evolution of herbicide resistance in weeds. Dr Charlie Reinhardt elaborates on this issue.
Fertiliser use remains a critical component of South Africa’s agricultural productivity, particularly for field crops and expanding oilseed production. The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP), in collaboration with Stellenbosch University, conducted a study to assess South Africa’s total agricultural fertiliser use.
Read more about these important topics in the December issue of Oilseeds Focus. The magazine is available as an interactive flipbook at https://digimags.agriorbit.com/books/cusn/. To subscribe to the printed or PDF version, phone Beauty Mthombeni on 064 890 6941 or SMS ‘Subscribe’ and your phone number to 064 890 6941.
