10 Mt. Data radish: R1M gross from half hectare!
LARRY CONSEBIDO, 39, is one farmer who really loves radish for a number of good reasons. No.1 reason: In early August 2018, he planted half a hectare to the newly introduced Mt. Data radish variety distributed by Ramgo Seeds. To his great surprise and amazement, he harvested 25,000 kilos of very good roots that a trader paid R40 per kilo.
That means a gross of R1 million from half a hectare in a growing period of just 40 to 45 days. The timing was perfect, according to Larry, because he was the only farmer who had radish for sale at that time. The right variety and right timing were the reasons for Larry’s good fortune. Compared to other crops, say tomato, radish has its own advantages. The cost of seeds and other inputs are minimal compared to tomato production. Although tomato can be highly profitable at the right timing, it requires big investment in bamboo poles and trellis materials, seeds, fertilizers and pesticides.
In the case of Larry’s Mt. Data radish, his cost of seeds was only R5,100 for the half hectare. He used 30 cans of 100-gram seeds at a cost of R170 per can. There was no need for trellis. And the seeds were simply broadcast over the well-prepared field. An expert in broadcasting seeds can make the distribution of the seeds more or less uniform.
The field is thoroughly plowed and harrowed. Larry applied 60 sacks of well-decomposed chicken manure over the prepared field. Two days before broadcasting the seeds, the field was sprayed with herbicide to control weed growth. Several days later, before roots