Page 9 - 12 Cotton SA August 2017

Mashiane Samuel Moloele believes
that the love and passion for farming
that he has, is the key to success for THE KEY TO SUCCESSFUL SMALL-
everyone who wants to farm.
HOLDER COTTON FARMING

am was raised by his mother, a rural obtained his P.T.C. (Primary Teachers Farming is also about encouraging,
Shousewife in Senotlelo (Bloedfontein) Certificate) in 1975. In 1990 he took over training and teaching aspiring farmers.
while his father worked in Pretoria. He the farm again and started with 2 ha. This is where Frans Malela comes in,
had 3 sisters older Slowly he esca- acting as mentor and example for all
than himself and a lated with maize aspiring cotton farmers in the area. The
younger brother. A and sorghum from greatest encouragement Frans provided
single row plough 2 ha then 4 ha and was the example of his own success
and 8 donkeys eventually 9 ha. with excellent yields over the past few
were what he years.
started his farming In 2014 Frans
experience with. Malela, a very
The crops he successful dryland
planted as a cotton farmer
youngster included acting as a
maize and mentor, encour-
sorghum, mainly Frans (left) with Samuel inspecting the latter’s cotton aged Samuel to
to help support his grow cotton. De-
family. When they had excess they sold it spite little rain, cotton gave him an income
to neighbours and bartered it for patata, where maize failed. He started with 3½ ha
beans (dinawa) and maraka (indigenous of cotton, expanded to 9½ ha in 2015 as
cucurbit). He loved school and attended well as in 2016 and he plans to grow 19
Khamane High School before starting ha of cotton in the coming season at
work as a shutter carpenter with Stocks & Senotlelo (about 50km from Marble Hall).
Stocks Construction. This is where he Sam's dryland yield this year was a
learned about another pillar for success: brilliant 1250kg seed cotton per ha. Well Frans Malela’s 2016/17 dryland cotton yielding
"discipline". Back to school he went and done Sam! an excellent 2200kg seed cotton per ha
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