An A-Maizing 2018/19 Season

The 2018/19 maize season was not quite what farmers expected after the bumper 2017/18 crop. This past season, many producers were faced with difficult weather conditions – the rain came almost too late for some to finish planting while soaring temperatures and very little to no rain early in the year were also unfavourable. The maize yield for the 2018/2019 season is still not final but there’ll be at least a 13% decrease in production from the previous season.

While tough conditions are not ideal for producers, especially maize farmers who are ensuring that many South Africans have staple food (white maize) and that there’s enough animal feed (yellow maize), they are ideal to test Manvert’s products that are formulated for such conditions. This past season, one of our clients in the Free State, Pierre van Eeden used the Manvert products as recommended by his Remitto consultant. Pierre farms in the Edenville district near Kroonstad and has a mixed farming operation. This is his report back:

What were the conditions of the 2018/19 season like for you in Edenville?

It was a challenging season. I experienced excessive heat during the pollination period which caused a decrease in the number of kernels per cob. Then, of course, there was the rain I needed earlier in the year that only fell in April. The late rain meant it was too late to make a meaningful yield increase even though the total rain at the end of the season came in at an average.

What Manvert products did you use and how did you apply them?

Because this was my first season using Manvert’s products, I really wanted to see how they measured up to my previous protocol. I planted three different types of cultivar maize to seven blocks (total of 180ha planted). One block was left completely untreated, while the other six blocks were treated with Manvert Foliplus. Two of these six blocks also received an additional treatment of Manvert Foliplus and Silikon.

What were your findings?

The treated block delivered a much higher yield. Even the single treated blocks showed a better yield and the twice treated blocks delivered even higher yields. After the yield differences regarding the cultivars were standardised, I calculated a respective 340kg and 600kg per hectare yield increase. I additionally noted that there were no grain problems, as was sometimes the case in the past, and the plants also showed fewer signs of chemical shock after herbicide was sprayed.

Will you be using Manvert’s products again this season?

Yes, and I plan to include more products from the range to address micro and macro element shortages early on. The goal will be to strengthen the plants when they’re still young to increase their chances of success, in spite of the weather. It also helped that Remitto’s consultants constantly evaluated my crop. They gave me peace of mind even when conditions were difficult and it’s because of this that I look forward to working with them again this coming season. 

Want to learn more about Manvert’s crop protection products? Speak to one of our consultants today for a quote and find out how we can help you grow better this season.