Yesterday there were several light showers, never causing
the roads to be wet, but today we are waking to plenty of sunshine and another
very pleasant day in the Free State of South Africa. This is our last full day in Africa as we fly
back to the U.S. Sunday evening.
We have not said much about the farm where we are
staying. The farmers are currently
waiting for the rainy season to begin, at which time they will be going full
speed ahead working the fields and planting.
The farming on this area is dry-land farming with very little
irrigation. Our host raises Maize (Corn)
and sunflowers. The soil is the type that
corn cannot be planted as thick as we normally see in Iowa. He plants in six-foot row with a total
population of around 7000 plants per acre (15,000 per hectare). His total yield averages 4 metric ton per
hectare (65-70 bushels/acre). The
current price for the corn is around $7.00 per bushel. He rotates his fields
through a 5-year rotation. This rotation
is one year laying fallow, then corn, followed by sunflowers then corn followed
by sunflowers again then laying fallow to start the next 5-year rotation. The farm has five major fields of between 60
and 100 hectares (150-240 acres). They
are in the early stages of adapting to no-till farming. This farm is around 680 hectares (1600+
acres). Our host is very detailed in
soil analysis, only planting crops where the soil is good enough to support the
crop and only planting the crop in a plant population that the soil can
support. He showed us maps of his fields
that shows exactly what type of soil is present in the different regions of the
fields along with the grain production that goes along with the soil type. His
corn planter is a three rowed planter with 6 feet between the rows. His combine also has a three row head on it
that he has modified for his use. The
sunflowers are planted in three foot rows and with a modified combine head that
he has adapted to his sunflower operation. As far as livestock on the farm, he has some cattle
and some sheep.
Six full time employees work with the farmer. This farmer treats his employees with dignity
and respect. Every day is begun with a devotional time which then includes a
discussion of the day’s work, explaining to the employees what task needs to be
done, when and why. This approach is well received by the employees as they are
part of the team. The employees are provided housing within walking distance of
the farm homestead. Each employee is given one butchered sheep every four
months, and a beef is butchered each year for the hired help to share. There is a butchering area on the farm
adjoining the shop where the sheep and cattle are butchered. They only save enough lambs and calves each
year to maintain their herd/flock. In
chatting with our host you know he is a responsible farmer. They live in a very nice ranch style home with
a nice sized machine shed/shop area.
They have their own bore-hole (well) which seems to provide adequate
water. This is fortunate in lite of the
fact that South Africa is currently experiencing a fairly severe drought. The rainy season should be starting right now
but everything continues to be very dry with no rain. As you can imagine the farmers are getting
quite nervous.
Today began in a very relaxed fashion with those who wanted
to sleep in doing so. We planned to have a breakfast brunch between 10 and
11:00 in the morning. Brunch was a
breakfast braai prepared on the grill.
The grill has a solid top with six compartments that were used to
prepare onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, sausages and eggs. Brunch was prepared and eaten under a big
tree in the back yard. The food was all
masterfully prepared and enjoyed by each of us.
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| Preparing Brunch on the Grill |
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| Enjoying a Delicious Brunch under the Tree |
After brunch we went on a ride in their pickup around the
farm where we saw his fields and livestock.
When we returned Cal and our host spent some time looking at his
equipment. He is very ingenious adapting
things to his use and fixing things when they quit functioning.
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| Cattle on the Farm |
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| Their 4 Wheel Drive Tractor |
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| Three Row Planter - 6 Feet between Rows |
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| Field Cultivator |
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| Combine Head for Sunflowers |
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| Another View |
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| Three Row Corn (Maize) Head |
The afternoon was spent relaxing and preparing for the party
this evening. We will be transitioning
back to Klerksdorp so everything has to be packed again for this move.
The Party – This is the 50th birthday party, 6
years late, for the lady who was Cal’s Rotary DG classmate in 2009-10. She and her husband were our first hosts
while we have been here in Klerksdorp earlier in the week. The party was held at a Guesthouse venue,
which has the outdoor space to host a party.
A large tent was in the yard which accommodated 110 guests. When you enter the facility you receive a
welcome drink then you migrate past the wine, beer and champagne tables. After selecting your beverage, you went around
the guesthouse to where the tent is located - with a stage/dancefloor/DJ area and
all of the tables.
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| The Food Area |
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| Welcome Drinks |
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| Champagne |
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| Your Choice of Wine |
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| The Tent before the Guests Arrived |
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| Rachel with the Birthday Girl |
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| Bagging the Popcorn |
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| Rachel with Her Own Wine |
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| Sushi |
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| Paella |
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The Birthday Girl with our Hosts
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The party began with a welcome given by their daughter
followed by the food. We first ate
sushi, then Paella a seafood dish, then hamburgers finishing with crepes and
toppings with ice cream. The crowd was a
mix of Rotarians and friends. Everyone
seemed to have a great time and the facilities were amazing. The guesthouse is also a personal residence
of an obvious upscale antique collector of furniture, paintings, and antiques
in general. Everything was tastefully
arranged, but the house was full!! There appeared to be 3 rooms for guests. The
outdoor veranda was arranged so there could be 3 areas of conversation, each
decorated with antiques and shabby chic furniture. The gardens around the house
were also decorated with antiques. I enjoyed
roaming through and around the house noting the antiques and how it was
arranged. By 10:00 we were ready to
return to our guesthouse down the street for the night.
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| The House where the Party was Held |
