Regenerative Farming | Farm Venus

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Farm Venus

DESCRIPTION

Northern Thornveld.

ENTERPRISE

No-till maize production since 2009; cover cropping to build the soil as well as livestock production since 2019.

PROPERTY SIZE

1794 hectares

FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION OF AREA

Very aggressive bush growth; high-potential land; high rainfall.

AVERAGE ANNUAL RAINFALL AND VARIABILITY

(Over the past 10 years) Average: 511 mm; lowest: 183 mm; highest: 886 mm.

ELEVATION

1495 metres above sea level.

OWNED OR RENTED

Owned; full-time management.

MOTIVATION FOR CHANGE AND APPROACH

In 2003, Klaas began farming as a hobby on 200 ha. After deciding that there must be a better way, he started no-till planting in 2009. The collapse of the construction industry, which was his main source of income, pushed him to buy more land. In 2019, Klaas planted cover crops (using 8 species including legumes, radish and millet). For the last two years, the cover crop has been Baster Babala and sorghum. During this time, Klaas saw the real potential of what can be achieved with cover cropping.

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MAIN INNOVATION

No-till maize (13 years) cropping and cover cropping (4 years) for improved soil and livestock production.

It is difficult to visually distinguish between no-till and cover cropping and conventional practices. After 13 years of no-till and four years of cover cropping, the soil carbon has increased by 35%, compared with neighbouring farms under conventional management.

Key Results

After five years of no-till management, the structure and water-holding capacity of the farm’s soil improved, rendering it more drought resilient.
After 13 years of no-till management and four years of cover cropping, the soil carbon has increased by 35%, compared with neighbouring farms under conventional management. Maize yields doubled in 2022 (poor rainfall year), compared with conventional neighbouring farms.
In 2020, 60 hectares of cover cropping were planted and 212 weaners with an average weight of 105 kg were purchased. The weaners spent four months on the cover crop and 2 months on the maize stubble. By 20 July 2020, the average weight had increased to 187 kg, representing a 70% weight gain in six months.
In dry years, the large financial losses incurred through crop failure can be partially off set by no-till and cover cropping with livestock. In wet years, the maize yields are similar to conventional neighbouring farms, but the increased livestock component results in higher profits .
Although grain production has remained Hectares planted with cover crop (left axis) Cattle numbers (LSU) (right axis)more or less the same, their yields have improved during the drier years and livestock numbers have tripled, which has resulted in improved profitability.
After the fi rst year of cover cropping, the maize fields had less diseases. As spraying for fungal or insect infestation was not required, some savings on cost was achieved and the soil was spared the damaging eff ects of these sprays.
Biodiversity in the fields is increasing and the whole farm is more sustainable.
As the soil is covered for most of the year, the green growth remains in the fields for much longer.
The increased production and profitability can now aff ord their two sons an earning future on the farm.

Farm Agagia

Klaas Malan says that soil is not just dirt. Soil is home to millions of micro- organisms that want to work for you – to make you a more successful farmer. But you have to stop breaking down their house (soil structure), otherwise you will face trouble as a farmer. Changing to no-till and cover cropping has great potential for reviving the land, families and communities, but the transition must be done in a carefully-planned way.

Key Tips

The main principle of success is gaining a practical understanding of the principles and practices that are suitable to your conditions.
To achieve this, you need to do your own research, get advice from others, and conduct small trials of new approaches to see if they work. Careful planning, financial resources and discipline are required to properly apply any approach.
It is important to work with good livestock genetics of good market value. If your sustainable stocking rate is increasing and you have good animal performance and good animal fertility, then you are in the running to increase your profit per ha over time.
You must invest where and when it is needed. For example, in fertilizer (even if you supplement with manure), and in lick for animals. If you are building the soil, you will become less dependent on these inputs. However, it is still important to do what is needed each year to keep your profits up.
First, you need to get the perennial weeds under control (decide on a thorough weed- control plan), then focus on bringing the soil back to a healthy state (i.e. pH, nutrient status, compaction layers), and, lastly, adopt precision farming approaches (satellite navigation).
You need to reduce the amount of time you spend on the land with equipment and apply the following principles:
• Move to minimum tillage/limited disturbance of the soil.
• Integrate livestock and crop rotation with cover crops.
• Maintain living roots in the soil for as much of the year as possible.
• Use the least-damaging chemicals on the land.
• Build soil carbon and healthy soils.
The principles for livestock production in the veld in the dry season include:
• Use good genetics with a good market value.
• Thin the most aggressive invader bush species to increase the grass, herb and forb production and biodiversity, but keep the broad-leafed palatable shrubs as they provide good-quality forage for the livestock.
• Use high density, selective grazing methods to ensure veld improvement while achieving good animal perfor- mance and fertility.
• Ensure adequate rest and recovery in the growing season.

Approaches

RESILIENCE OF THE FARM

In 2022, with only 400 mm of rainfall, the no-till and cover cropping produced a doubling in maize production (3.1 tons per ha compared with 1.6 tons per ha in the area). The cattle numbers increased from 100 LSU without cover cropping in 2018 to 700 LSU with 155 ha of cover cropping in 2022.

CHOICE OF ANIMAL/S

Livestock with good genetics are used in order to realise the potential of the cover crops provided. The intention is to close the herd with 300 cows and to wean 240 calves per year, to slaughter 120 oxen per year by selling all excess heifers as weaners, and to keep all tollies to sell as oxen (36 months old).