South Africa: Follow-on rain badly needed in parts of North West

Good rainfall in some areas of the North West has been welcomed by many farmers this season, but follow-up rains are now badly needed for good crops. Boeta du Toit, executive general manager of Agri North West, says follow-up rain is now critical for sown that was planted late. He says that at this stage of the season, rainfall decreases somewhat from the eastern to the western parts of the province, but producers remain hopeful and trust that the traditional mid-summer rain patterns will not decrease drastically. Weiveld has also responded well to rainfall so far, but the drier western areas could benefit from follow-on rain. Corn plantings Du Toit says that at the beginning of the rainy season, some good rain showers occurred in the eastern (Rustenburg in the direction of Potchefstroom) and the central area (Lichtenburg, Mahikeng, Ottosdal). However, in the western area (Delareyville in the direction of Vryburg) this was not the case. Maize was planted in these areas despite the ...