About Antonius

I studied agriculture at the University of Stellenbosch in South Africa in 1984 and completing my M.Sc Agric. in 1998. . My love for "Controlled Environmental Agriculture" (CEA), started in my third year when I was exposed to the Welgevallen Research Station. There Prof. P.C.Maree showed us what hydroponics and vegetable farming consisted of. It was awesome. There were no large tractors involved, no dusty fields, no uncontrollable storms to destroy your crop (well that is what I thought). Since then I put hydroponics and other aspects of horticulture to much better use, not just farming. We solved pollution problems by cleaning mines effluent with hydroponics and permaculture. They were used to remove toxic metals to produce clean water (which we sold and make more money of than the produce). What I learned from 1987 I tried to compile in this website and I hope it is from some value to the serious commercial farmer that wants to take the journey into Commercial Farming.

Soil compaction – tips on prevention

By |2024-12-18T13:37:05+00:00August 4, 2018|Soil|

Soil compactionFeatured Image obtained from: Photos Public Domain; Dirt is a problem that all growers face. There are a huge variety of equipment for soil preparation, but the primary tillage implements are mouldboard ploughs, large discs and chisel ploughs. The mouldboard and large disc ploughs tend to produce a [...]

Nutritional value of pigeon peas

By |2018-07-30T07:19:55+00:00July 30, 2018|Pigeon peas|

Nutritional value of pigeon peas can vary considerably, as with any crop. Climate, growth stage, plant part, fertilizer application are but a few variables that can affect the nutrient content of a pigeon pea analysis. The table below should just be used as a general guideline. The total protein, fat [...]

Tomato fertilizer application tables according to soil types

By |2024-12-18T13:39:46+00:00June 2, 2018|Tomatoes|

Tomato fertilizer requirements can be calculated if you know your soil type and have a good idea of the yield potential of your land and climate. These are basic norms and your specific microclimate and variety can have an influence on the total amount applied. These norms do not take [...]

Pigeon pea growth, harvesting and yields

By |2018-05-21T11:56:42+00:00May 21, 2018|Pigeon peas|

Pigeon pea growth period and harvesting The growth period of the pigeon pea varies considerably. Depending on variety pigeon peas will grow 100-300 days. Location, thus local micro climate and sowing date have a significant influence on growth season length. In India most late-maturing varieties take about 240-280 days to [...]

Pigeon peas – An alternative commercial crop

By |2024-12-19T15:29:40+00:00May 18, 2018|Pigeon peas|

Pigeon peasFeatured image: Steve Hurst, USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database. Pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) seeds. Wikimedia Commons or Cajanus Cajan is an alternative crop to the current line of commercial available crops. The big advantage is that it can become a major part of peoples diet, unlike many other commercial crops [...]

How to plant Pigeon Peas – Cajanus Cajan

By |2024-12-20T10:17:26+00:00May 14, 2018|Crops, Pigeon peas|

Planting pigeon peas is easy as they are strong growers. If they receive enough water and nutrients, the crop will grow. Make sure you use healthy seed and that they are inoculated with Rhizobium strains that are tested. Inoculated seed will provide higher yieldsFeatured image from Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File%3ACajanus_cajan.jpg . Planting [...]

Green bean fertilizer application tables according to soil types

By |2024-12-18T12:51:45+00:00May 13, 2018|Green beans|

Green bean fertilizer requirements can be calculated if you know your soil type and have a good idea of the yield potential of your land and climate. These are basic norms and your specific microclimate and variety can have an influence on the total amount applied. These norms do not [...]

Pest and diseases of pigeon peas

By |2024-12-18T13:41:43+00:00May 12, 2018|Pigeon peas|

Pest and diseases of pigeon peas Pests The biggest threat to pigeon peas are gram caterpillar, the red gram plume moth and the gram pod fly. There are no effective control methods against these pests. Thrips cause premature flower drop but there are chemicals that can control them. The caterpillar [...]

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