Browsing by Author "Raitt, Lincoln M."

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    Native legume species from the Northern Cape province of South Africa and their potential use as forage crops.
    (University of Western Cape, 2021) Müller, Francuois L.; Boatwright, Stephen; Raitt, Lincoln M.; Samuels, M. Igshaan; Chimpango, Samson
    The lack of bioclimatically suitable forage species for livestock production in the water-limited agro-ecological areas of South Africa has resulted in significant feed shortages within these areas during the ongoing drought experienced within the country. This, in turn, has resulted in significant livestock mortalities leading to financial difficulties for the farmers and farming communities within these areas. Thus, many of the water-limited agro-ecological areas in South Africa have been declared disaster areas. These cyclic long-term droughts, as well as more common short-term droughts are expected to increase in frequency, duration and intensity under the predicted future bioclimatic conditions. Although there has been significant investment into the development of improved, better-adapted forage crops for these bioclimatically marginal agro-ecosystems, these efforts, to date, have largely been unsuccessful. Therefore, in this study, we propose to identify and evaluate species that are native to the water-limited South African agro-ecosystems and that can potentially be implemented in alternative fodder flow programs within these water-limited agro-ecological areas.
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    Seaweed extract effects on potato (Solanum Tuberosum 'BP1') and grape (Vitis Vinifera Var. Sultana) Production
    (University of the Western Cape, 2017) October, John Reginald Vernon; Raitt, Lincoln M.
    Field trials were conducted to determine the effects of a locally produced seaweed extract product (Afrikelp LG-1), on the growth parameters and yield of Solanum tuberosum 'BP1'potato crop and Vitis vinifera var. sultana grapes. The extrapolation of these results will assist local potato and grape farmers to produce quality crops with improved yields. Field experiments were conducted at the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) Nietvoorbij site in Stellenbosch, South Africa. The experimental layout consisted of four randomised blocks, and four replicates were used per treatment. Various concentrations of seaweed extracts (0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 l/ha) was applied as soil drench and foliar sprays over two cropping seasons, namely 2010 and 2011 (potato), and 2011 and 2012 (sultana grapes).