27 Oct 2015

Adoption of conservation agriculture in Kgalagadi South  is moving at a slow pace.  

Farmers in Kgalagadi South have been urged to adopt and test conservation agriculture in order to gauge its effectiveness in a district plagued by harsh climatic conditions.

Conservation agriculture is an eco-friendly farming approach that aims at improving food productivity and security, and at the same time help preserve soil structure through minimum tillage and conserve moisture content.

Kgalagadi South Sub-district crop production officer, Mr Suberee Kapeko said the Department of Crop Production once experimented with the technology on two farmers in Makopong and Omaweneno respectively and that results were pleasing.

Mr Kapeko said the government has upon realising the potential of conservation agriculture adopted it.

He said unlike other methods which require huge chunks of land to produce good yields, conservation agriculture could yield more produce even in a small piece of land. The system, he said, required correct spacing of crops to produce output. 

Meanwhile, Mr Kapeko stressed that the department has devised interventions geared at promoting the adoption of conservation agriculture by training extension officers in the whole of Kgalagadi South on the technology. Ends