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Edition 30

👋 Hey TropicalBytes family, welcome to this week’s edition of Q.U.I.P.S.!

As the fastest-growing subtropical farming community out there, we're thrilled to be your BFF (Best Farming Friend), saving you hundreds of hours by unearthing hidden gems like:

• Actionable tips 💡

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• And so much more 🌟

All with the end goal of equipping you for excellence and success. ✅ 

As always, we’d love to hear your ideas, questions and feedback.

You share. We listen.

Let's dive right in! 🚀

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In Today’s Email:

• What’s the Latest on Nutrition in Sugar? 🤔

• Wisdom from a Phenomenally Successful Sugar Farmer 🧠

• Sugarcane Nutrient Deficiency Poster 📌

• Introducing Our Refreshed Newsletter Sign-Off: Share Your Feedback! 💌

Question❓

What’s the Latest on Nutrition in Sugar?

We took this question to SASRI (South African Sugarcane Research Institute), to get the latest gen on the industry.

Their response? Well, there is no recent groundbreaking revelations in nourishing sugar cane.

But they did share the "4 Rs" concept.

Basically, the 4 Rs all stand for 'Right' and, to emphasise the importance of each factor being 'right', we’ve adapted it into the acronym 'PATS', for easy recall.

If we pay attention to getting the PATS of our nutrition programme down PAT, then we’re going to maximise the returns on the investment into Nutrition.

Imagine the plant talking to you. What would it say about its needs? Keep this in mind for all 4 factors. eg: When placing the fertiliser, consider where the root zone is and place the fert where it will be most effectively used. When considering the amount, understand the plants needs, its growth stage and yield expectations.

For some reason, this advice triggered the analogy of a car journey; we want to get from A (planting) to B (harvesting) and we need nutrition (fuel) to get there.

See how this plays out under each factor:

Placement (If you put your fuel in the radiator 🫣 , it’ll be a waste):

• Root vs leaves: Which is better, based on the requirement?

• Equipment options: What are your options? What’ll give the best result?

Amount (Too little, you won’t get there. Overfill your tank; it’ll be a waste):

Understanding your baseline is crucial here; what you already have vs what you need to get where you’re going. You may already have a ¾ tank of fuel…

• Test. Test. Test. Test the soil so you know what’s already available.

• Know what’s coming in from other sources eg: compost, CMS etc.

Timing (This one didn’t want to play analogy games. Crops are far more time-sensitive than cars):

• Weather considerations: Time this wrong and you could be flushing your money away.

• Is the crop in the right growth cycle to fully utilise what you’re applying?

• Interaction with other applications: Minimise counter-activity, maximise symbiosis.

• Nutrient construct and potential losses. eg: putting urea down just before rain is wise.

Source (Don’t use petrol in a diesel motor):

• The right combination: Make sure blends make sense in YOUR environment.

• Watch out for imbalances: pH imbalances, nutrient availability, and toxicity risks.

• Junk content: What else is in the fertiliser? Non-nutritive components, fillers or toxins?

The Bottom Line: Run your fertiliser programme through the PATS test to optimize your return on investment. Remember, It's not just about adding nutrients; it's about adding them efficiently and effectively. As simple as it may be, each step in PATS is a step towards healthier crops and better yields.

Upskill 📚

Wisdom from a Phenomenally Successful Sugar Farmer 🧠

Information ℹ️

Sugarcane Nutrient Deficiency Poster 📌

Here’s a tasty chunk of information for you – all in one place: The Sugarcane Nutrient Deficiency poster, a great resource for any farm who needs a quick visual guide of the typical symptoms associated with nutrient deficiencies in sugar cane.

• 📥 Download the PDF → here or

• 💌 Drop us an email to order a printed A2 size poster for just R195 each (exc. delivery)

That’s a wrap folks!

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Until next week,

Happy farming, deep learning, and warm smiles! 🌱

What’s our objective? We're driven by a mission: to enrich agricultural productivity and sustainability through the power of shared knowledge. Each edition delivers unmatched value to farmers and industry professionals, marking our dedication to transforming the access to knowledge and expertise within the subtropical farming industry.