Leaning on Pannar during the journey towards farming independence

Five years ago – after nine years of working for other farmers – Jeff Hlela took the brave step of becoming a farmer himself. He opted to spread his risk by growing fresh produce on 30 ha of leased land in KZN’s Albert Falls and Mooi River areas, and maize and soybeans on 50 ha of leased dryland in the Ixopo district.

Jeff’s Hangala Farming may not yet have farmlands of its own, but until it does, Jeff is building his experience and honing his production skills, and he’s not too proud to ask for support. Two of his key advisers are Eric Wiggle of Grain SA’s farmer development programme and Andrew du Plessis, Pannar Seed’s representative in southern KZN.

“I listen to what Jeff wants to achieve with his commercial grains production, and to what resources he has available for this. Then I help him select the maize hybrids or soybean varieties best suited for his goals, production conditions and resources,” says Andrew.

Partnerships to success

Jeff leases the 50 ha of dryland croplands (average annual rainfall 800mm) from Jonathan Biggs, a fellow farmer in Ixopo. The arrangement includes Jeff hiring Jonathan’s equipment to plant and harvest maize and soybeans. Jeff handles the interim crop management and markets his harvests with Jonathan’s to animal feed manufacturers.

“I continually have to adapt my grains production to different conditions. Andrew is one of the people I ask for guidance on what maize hybrids and soybean varieties will likely perform best under these conditions. “For example, due to unexpected circumstances I could only plant in mid-December last year. This was a month later than planned. Because of this, Andrew advised me not to plant soybeans and he also recommended that I grow Pannar’s PAN 4R-528R yellow maize hybrid for the 2023/24 season.” Andrew says this hybrid performed well for experienced farmers in the Ixopo district, so he was comfortable recommending it to Jeff.

“At his current stage of development towards becoming a fully independent farmer, Jeff still has constraints with aspects like his finances and access to all the necessary crop-management equipment. “I have to keep this in mind when making recommendations to him,” says Andrew.

“He can’t be expected to buy the most expensive high-performance seed that requires intensive management to achieve its yield potential. At the same time, though, Jeff needs recommendations that will still generate him an optimal return on investment to keep him moving sustainably forward.”

Jeff says key challenges with his yellow maize production are fungal diseases because of the area’s lower heat units in combination with its higher humidity. Then there are weeds, such as morning glory (Convolvulus sp.), that threaten to compete with the maize.

Matching seed to circumstances

During the 2023/24 summer, PAN 4R-528R seemed the best choice, says Jeff. It needs only approximately 114 days to reach relative maturity, its glyphosate tolerance helps with weed control, it has good standability, and it handles high plant populations comfortably. Jeff planted 54 000 seeds per hectare in a 76cm row spacing, for 50 000 plants/ha. His average yield was 8 t/ha, despite late planting and a five-week midsummer drought.

“I appreciate being able to lean on Andrew and Pannar for support, and the fact that they are there for crop farmers of all sizes and resources,” he says. “Andrew is only a phone call away, and he also lives quite close. I can send photos and questions to him, and he gets the problems identified and gives possible solutions for them.

“I’m even able to share what I’ve learned so far from Andrew and Pannar with the other small-scale farmers in my area. Sometimes they come to visit my croplands to learn what I’ve learned.”

Jeff would like to see Pannar connecting and sharing information with the deep-rural farmers who are often forgotten about, so that they, too, can learn and benefit.

“One of the important personal lessons that I’ve learned is that this journey must not be rushed,” Jeff says.

“It’s a long-term thing that needs patience and hard work.