New Podcast Episode – Cane in Pain

In this episode of ‘We’ve bean around the block’, host Antony Jarvie revisits the topic of dry beans in rotation with sugarcane. This episode follows a previous podcast (Episode 5 of 21) with advanced thinking on how to incorporate beans into a rotation with sugarcane.

Antony discusses rotation ideas and practicalities with a forward-thinking cane farmer, Deon Schröder. The problem with incorporating dry beans into a sugarcane rotation will always be the herbicide residues from the cane component. The shrinking crushing capacity in the industry is forcing a reduction in sugarcane output, which for the first time, provides an incentive for a multi-year and or a multi-crop rotation strategy.

The idea to bring in glyphosate-tolerant hybrid maize as a first rotation crop, and then to follow this with beans in the second season as a way to avoid the effects of sugarcane herbicide residues, is discussed at length. The practical aspects of turning a sugarcane operation into a more diverse farming unit are also discussed.

The podcast was recorded with Deon Schröder, but it followed a workshop discussion that included input from Dave Wilkinson, Shaun Carroll, Marcel Ortmann and Andrew Braithwaite.

Listen to this informative episode for free in your favourite podcast app, or click here to listen to it in your browser.