Dr Job Mthombeni has come a long way since his days as a farm labourer. Thanks partly to a successful construction business, he has been able to make his farming dreams come true. Hard work, planning and the ability to learn from his mistakes have also played a huge role in Job\u2019s path to commercial farming. He talks to Peter Mashala about lessons learnt, and the way forward.<\/em><\/p>\n On his farm Kromkrans in the Gert Sibande District, between Hendrina and Carolina in the south of Mpumalanga, Dr Job Mthombeni farms apples, grain and beef. Once a farmworker, he bought Kromkrans in 2000.<\/p>\n In 2011 he bought another farm of 1 000ha in Standerton \u2013 bringing his total hectarage to 1 217ha. He runs a mixed farming operation of 20ha of apples, 500ha maize and soya beans, 62ha blue\u00adgum trees, a breeding herd of 500 cows, a small flock of laying hens and some sheep.<\/p>\n A STEADY CLIMB<\/strong><\/p>\n Born on the farm Vlaklaagte near Bethal, Job grew up on the SIS Estate, where his parents were farmworkers. \u201cI helped out on the farm during school holidays before taking on seasonal work and then working full\u00adtime on another farm, Bosmanspoort, owned by Fanie Nel, also in Bethal,\u201d he recalls. He spent 16 years working for Fanie, much of it as a driver of tractors, and later trucks.<\/p>\n \u201cI delivered sand to township builders. For extra income I would market myself as a builder, as I had taught myself to build while still doing general work on the farm,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n On weekends Job built small two and three-\u00adroomed township houses, and when the demand for building grew he left his job to concentrate on construction. \u201cI still loved farming, but construction was paying better and I was working for myself,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n His construction business took off and soon he was getting bigger contracts. All that Job achieved, he did with no formal training or education. \u201cI was just passionate about building. I worked myself up the ranks and got a few awards in the process,\u201d he says. Among these were an international building award in Madrid, Spain, and an International Platinum Star award.<\/p>\n A respected person in the building industry, he was appointed as director to the boards of Eastern Transvaal Housing and Eastern Transvaal Township in 1996. Later he joined The Estate Agency Affairs Board and the board of Nu-Way Housing.<\/p>\n \u201cI was also a director of Mabele Chain Stores and I was a founding board member of the Motheo Group with Thandi Ndlovu,\u201d he says. Today Job is also the deputy chairman of the Deciduous Fruit Development Chamber.<\/p>\n In 2000 Job applied for and got Kromkrans farm through Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development. \u201cI had never lost my passion for farming, but I wanted to own my own farm and to produce on it,\u201d says Job.<\/p>\n When he took over Kromkrans, the farm was dilapidated and there was no machinery. \u201cI started by fixing a few things and I bought a second-hand John Deere tractor so that I could plough the fields,\u201d he recalls. He bought cattle and sheep and planted 50ha to maize, which he increased to 100ha within a few years.<\/p>\n Currently, he runs a crossbred herd of 100 breeding cows on Kromkrans and plants 300ha to maize and soya beans; he leases an additional 200ha of arable land.In 2009, with the help of a government grant, Job planted 5ha of apples. In 2011, he bought 1 000ha of farmland in Standerton, 110km from Kromkrans. Here he plants maize and soya beans on 400ha and uses the remaining land to graze his 400-cow Bonsmara breeding herd.<\/p>\n There is also a 62ha blue-gum plantation on this property, and Job has just received environmental impact assessment approval to put up a piggery.<\/p>\n DIVERSITY WITH APPLES<\/strong><\/p>\n Over the years Job has suffered crop losses, mainly caused by hail but also by other weather-related events, that have cost him a lot of money.<\/p>\n \u201cWith grain crops, if it isn\u2019t hail, it\u2019s too much rain that knocks production. Soya beans are especially sensitive,\u201d he explains. This season, rain held up planting and the fields that had been planted were waterlogged for weeks.<\/p>\n \u201cThe crop is now infested with weeds as we\u2019ve not been able to spray herbicides, and it\u2019s going to affect our yields. You can have one good year with grains and then you can have three bad years in a row.\u201d<\/p>\n While he was researching a crop with less risk, Job discovered that the Gert Sibande District is ideal for apple production. But, he says, because apples are a long-term investment the margins for error are smaller than they are in the case of cash crops like soya beans and maize.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are in a hail belt here, so we planted our apple trees under hail nets with the help of Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme funding,\u201d Job says. His first commercial apple harvest was sold to Spar shops in the area.<\/p>\n \u201cThe second year\u2026 I\u2019m not sure who put the word out because there were so many bakkies and lorries coming from Limpopo, and locally, in and out of the farm, taking apples,\u201d recalls Job. The customer base grew, and clients came from as far away as Swaziland and Thohoyandou in Limpopo.<\/p>\n \u201cThe informal market is great here because, besides the Free State, none of the inland provinces have apples. Even elsewhere in Mpumalanga there are no apples, only here. It\u2019s the closest place for people in Limpopo, Mpumalanga and Swaziland to get apples.\u201d<\/p>\n By 2015 Job had 11.5ha of orchards, which he had planted to Early Red, Royal Gala, Granny Smith, Royal Beaut and Cripps Pink varieties. But there were some challenges. The orchards are near a river; the soil is moist most of the time and the netting was showing signs of collapse.<\/p>\n \u201cI should have spoken to a soil scientist before I planted my apple orchards,\u201d Job admits. \u201cI would have known where was best for apple production and I could have sorted out soil imbalances and drainage problems before I planted. Fixing problems in mature orchards is more difficult and more expensive than doing it before you put the trees in.\u201d<\/p>\n He had planned to expand to 60ha of apples but did not have the necessary irrigation rights. \u201cAfter a lengthy process, I finally have 100ha of scheduled irrigation,\u201d says Job. \u201cNow I can increase my apple In 2020 work began on orchard expansion, this time after getting the advice of a soil scientist. \u201cLast year we planted 20 000 new trees on 10ha and we have started relocating the old trees to this portion as well,\u201d explains Job.<\/p>\n He adds that he was hit by a veld fire four years ago and fire-damaged trees in the old orchard had to be taken out. His current apple production is 20ha.<\/p>\n LOOKING AFTER TREES<\/strong><\/p>\n The new orchards are planted to Sundowner, Granny Smith, Big Bucks, Rosy Glow and Royal Beaut varieties. Job has introduced a training technique that involves bending the trees for optimal production. The main stem is bent horizontally when the tree is a year old. This technique encourages more shoots, which means more productive trees.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are aiming for at least seven branches per tree,\u201d says Job. \u201cBecause this was their first year in production, we only allowed four apples per tree and we have already started picking.\u201d<\/p>\n Job says the trees must be thinned when they start bearing fruit. \u201cBy thinning out some of the smaller apples from the cluster, the remaining fruit grow bigger because the tree puts all its energy into those apples. If this is not done, especially the first time the tree bears fruit, the apples tend to drop off the branch, resulting in fewer fruit or no fruit,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n Although this is the first fruit of the new trees, Job says the harvest looks beautiful and has been selling well on the informal market. At the end of the season they will see what the total yield has been. \u201cWe don\u2019t expect much, but next season we are looking at 40t\/ha, considering the condition of the trees. If we stick to a good spraying, fertilising and irrigating programme, we should get a good harvest,\u201d he explains.<\/p>\n \u201cWe could reach yields of between 80t\/ha and 100t\/ha when the trees are mature at 4 years of age.\u201d Right now, Job has his sights set on the local market but once he has expanded the orchards and the trees have matured, he plans to look at the export market.<\/p>\n \u201cThe deputy president, DD Mabuza, has secured a market for Mpumalanga apple growers with Oman in the Middle East. This is what I\u2019ll be targeting,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n MAIZE AND SOYA<\/strong><\/p>\n Job rotates soya beans and maize on 700ha. \u201cThe importance of crop rotation cannot be over-emphasised; monocropping destroys your soils,\u201d Job insists. Legumes such as soya beans work well in rotation with maize as He tests the soil every year to give him a guide as to which fertilisers and nutrients he needs that season. \u201cI share the soil test results with my chemical and seed suppliers, who advise me on which chemicals to use and the application rates, as well as suitable cultivars for the season,\u201d explains Job.<\/p>\n The planting season starts in October, but if the rains are early, he might begin in late September. \u201cWe prepare our soil just after the first rains, sometimes around 15 September, by ripping and disking.\u201d<\/p>\n Although most farmers prefer to rip once in two or three years, Job rips every year. \u201cOnly disking may result in planting in shallow soils. I like to say I don\u2019t farm dust because it\u2019s like putting your seed in the dust, which means your plants can\u2019t access the nutrients. He adds that, because the real soil and its nutrients are much deeper, he rips down to between 500mm and 600mm.<\/p>\n This, according to him, helps with water drainage and when there is a dry season, the roots can easily penetrate the soil to follow the moisture. Disking without ripping also raises the risk of compacted soil, which the roots cannot penetrate.<\/p>\n Job says the annual rainfall on both farms is between 400mm and 500mm. \u201cBut with this climate change, one is never too sure. The new conditions have brought challenges, like new pests we are not familiar with,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n They scout frequently, even after spraying. The scouts collect live insects to be sent to the lab for identification. \u201cFrom the lab, we\u2019ll get information on which chemicals to use.\u201d Climate change, according to Job, seems to cause more hailstorms and at times too much rain.<\/p>\n \u201cThis year we have had above-average rainfall, which had a negative effect on most of our soya-bean crop.\u201d<\/p>\n The average maize yields in Hendrina and Standerton are 7t\/ha, whereas soya-bean yields range between 2.5t\/ha and 3t\/ha. Patience and perseverance are qualities that have paid off for Job \u2013 a man who surely is a worthy role model for aspiring black farmers everywhere.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.africanfarming.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_3781-RS-2.jpg\")
\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.africanfarming.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_3956-RS.jpg\")
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.africanfarming.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_3854-RS.jpg\")
production to 100ha.\u201d <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.africanfarming.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_3884-RS.jpg\")
they fix nitrogen in the soil, which maize needs for good yields. He says his input suppliers advise him on cultivars, chemicals and equipment.<\/p>\n