Soil Testing Can Mitigate La Nina
The auction tobacco marketing season came to a close on Friday August 5 2016 after 90 days of marketing the flue-cured tobacco. A total of 194,5 million kilograms were sold at an average price of $2,94 with farmers benefiting $572 million dollars. The 2015/ 2016 season was characterised by the El Nino weather phenomena which required farmers to practise water conservation techniques and to use drip irrigation.
The weather forecasts for the 2016/ 2017 season are predicting the opposite of the El Nino, known as the La Nina which is characterised by heavy rains.
La Nina is a phenomenon that usually follows the El Nino and is characterised by heavy rains.
This means those with irrigated crops can plant early such that by the time heavy rains come, they will be reaping and will not feel the full effect of the La Nina.
For the rain fed crop, however, there are ways to mitigate the effects of the La Nina.
Farmers should understand their soil, and this can be done through soil testing, a process in which soil nutrient levels and compositions are determined as well as the soil pH is measured.
Kevin Dooley