Bark Borers and their Kin in Macadamias
by Schalk Schoeman, Rersearch Extension Manager, SAMAC The polyphagous shot hole borer was positively identified on macadamias in the South Coast during March this year. Various bark borer species were observed on macadamias since 2014 and their incidence has been increasing every year since then. This situation is not unique and other countries with subtropical […]
Suid-Afrikaanse wetenskaplikes op pandemie se frontlinie (Financial Times. Londen, 15 Februarie 2021).
Decision to halt AstraZeneca roll-out highlights vital role played by country’s experts. Scientists are concerned the South Africa coronavirus strain could be far more widespread in the UK than test results show, threatening plans to start lifting lockdown once vaccines have been deployed. South Africa’s pause of its rollout of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine in response […]
Die oprig van ‘n boord vir sukses – Deel 2: Grondvoorbereiding
In the first part one of this series of articles we have focused on the identification and selection of good quality trees, which in my opinion is one of the most critical steps in macadamia farming. Placing an order for tree should, in all cases, precede the land preparation phase of setting up a new […]
Om grond met biokool te laai, stel boere in staat om baie besproeiing te besnoei. Deur Emma Bryce, vir Anthropocene Magazine, 23 Oktober 2020
DAILY SCIENCE Loading soil with biochar allows farmers to cut way back on irrigationAt high applications levels, researchers found that biochar can not only soak up a lot of carbon, but also reduce the need for irrigation by almost 40%. Biochar – the charcoal product used to enrich agricultural soil and trap carbon—may have a […]
Byeboerdery en die uitdagings wat die bedryf in die gesig staar: Deel twee
The Effect of Pesticide and Fungicide Application on Apis mellifera (honey bees) In the previous article we looked at one of the challenges that face beekeepers in South Africa which is theft and vandalism of their bee hives. The second and very serious challenge that beekeepers face is directly related to the farming practices of […]
Bloesemroes op Macadamia
The summer rains came early this season but the rain also brought a reason for great concern for the macadamia growers in the form of possible flower diseases. Flowering this season was extremely good, but the rain came at a time when many flowers were only a few days (5-10 days) past the full bloom […]
Die opstel van ‘n boord vir sukses – Deel 1: Seleksie van goeie kwaliteit bome
We often get asked the question “how old will my macadamia trees get”? Well, no one is really sure, but what we do know is that they will be around to feed our grandchildren when taken care of. The real question that we need to ask ourselves is will our trees be able to produce […]
Die gebruik van benattingsfrontdetektors (WFD) as ‘n goedkoop en maklike manier om water en voedingstowwe in makadamias te bestuur
When it comes to managing water and nutrients in macadamias, we are often left with two options. We either have to spend a fortune on high-end equipment to help us manage our resources or we simply neglect to monitor water and nutrient use. Fortunately, some basic and inexpensive tools are available to help growers manage […]
Sorg vir jou rypbeskadigde bome
With the rapid expansion of the macadamia industry into sometimes more marginal areas, this year’s winter has proven to be rather challenging for most macadamia growers. Not only have growers reported a large number of small trees dying but there have also been some reports on the death of mature macadamia trees. Macadamias, being subtropical […]
Besproeiing en waterbestuur tydens blom
Macadamias, and many other fruit trees tend to flower in spring, a season which is characterized by moderate temperatures, varying degrees of wind and more often than not a significant lack in rainfall. Not only is rain scarce during spring, it is also the driest part of the year considering that rain during winter is […]