How Dutoit Agri leverages technology to turn data into actionable information. By Anna Mouton. “Fruit cultivation is similar to a road trip,” said Johan Kotze, Head: Dutoit Agri Eastern Cape. “We need to know the road and the destination, but…
No new technology is fit for every situation. How can growers decide what to implement? By Anna Mouton. “I’m going to define technology as a tool or technique that increases efficiency or productivity, reduces uncertainty or helps manage risk, or…
Rest-breaking agents are indispensable in mild winter regions, but their limitations must be heeded. By Jenny Underhill. Deciduous fruit trees evolved in Northern-hemisphere regions with very cold winters. These trees naturally go dormant at the onset of cold weather as…
Philagro South Africa and industry bodies stand together to protect growers’ access to an essential rest-breaking chemical. By Anna Mouton. In 2025, the Women on Farms Project, a self-described feminist non-governmental organisation, started agitating for a ban on hydrogen cyanamide…
Technical advisers from the main production regions share their approaches to rest-breaking in apples and pears. By Anna Mouton. “I think there are very few places in the Western Cape where you don’t need to spray rest-breaking agents,” says Christo…
Effective strategies can boost orchard profitability, but rest-breaking isn’t a cure-all for poor adaptability. By Anna Mouton. “There are very few orchards in our group that don’t receive rest-breaking applications,” says Pierre Rossouw, technical director at Stems Fruit. “I think…
Understanding natural fruit drop is essential for successful chemical thinning. By Anna Mouton. Chemical thinning to remove surplus flowers and fruit is widely employed to improve fruit size and quality and reduce biennial bearing in pome fruit. New product registrations…
A recent expansion of the registration of s-abscisic acid unlocks new options for chemical thinning of pears. By Anna Mouton. The past season saw the first South African registration of s-abscisic acid (s-ABA) for thinning and increasing fruit mass in…
The newly registered 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) increases the scope for late thinning of apples. By Anna Mouton. “ACC became available during the past season for chemical thinning of apples in the 15–20-mm fruitlet-diameter window,” says Werner Truter, Product Manager at…
A photosynthesis inhibitor promotes fruitlet drop in apples and pears. By Anna Mouton. Metamitron is a triazinone herbicide originally developed in the 1970s for weed control in sugar beets. This may sound niche, but annual global sugar beet output is…