The national and provincial departments of agriculture, land reform and rural development, together with Agricultural Research Council, hosted about 120 farmers for a Grain Sorghum Production Farmers’ Day in Clau-Clau village.

The event was held on Friday May 27. This event was hosted to promote a variety of grain cultivars that are drought-tolerant and to share best practices in climate smart agriculture.

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Department spokesperson Zanele Shabangu said since the trials started, farmers have attended workshops, training and demonstrations on grain sorghum production, and have always been encouraged to implement lessons learnt.

“Mpumalanga, North West, Limpopo and Free State were identified in 2015 for soybeans trials, and now again for the sorghum production trials.
“Two cultivars, Pannar (red seed) and Marsh (white seed) have been planted, using conservation agriculture in a hectare.

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“It has since been discovered that the Pannar seed is suitable for any type of soil. The Marsh cultivar is sensitive and not suitable in sandy soil, and also does not cope during drought, though it recovered after rainfall. The Marsh cultivar did not produce good results at all.”