December 2025 / January 2026

“As mens omsien na jou grond se welsyn dan is die natuurlike uitvloeisel dat die produktiwiteit van die grond sal verbeter,” het grondkundige dr. Pieter Raath by die 2025 SATI Table Talk in Paarl gesê. “En dit dra by tot ’n goeie omgewing vir ons en ons nageslag om in te lewe.”

Biological control – better known as biocontrol – leverages natural processes such as biostimulants and predation to manage pests and diseases. A recent talk by applied entomologist Dr Francois Bekker of the Department of Conservation Biology and Entomology at Stellenbosch University focused on biocontrol based on pathogens, parasitoids and predators.

Etileen is ’n planthormoon wat vrugrypwording, blomopening, en blaarval bevorder. In kern- en meeste steenvrugte dryf etileen die formasie van meer etileen. Selfs klein hoeveelhede etileen kan dus rypwording inisieer. Gevolglik is etileenonderdrukking een van die maniere waarmee naoeskwaliteit langer gehandhaaf kan word.

“Cherry production always happened in the colder areas of the world,” says Chad van Wyk. “But there are limited hectares in cold areas, and that space is full – where are we going to plant this high-value crop? For the past 20–30 years, we’ve been seeing expansion into warmer areas.”

The 15th International Symposium on Plant Bioregulators in Fruit Production was held in Chicago in June 2025. Although it featured research on a wide range of crops – from blueberries to pistachios – there was a strong focus on apples and several presentations on stone fruit.

Dit is vandag moeilik om veral kernvrugproduksie sonder plantgroeireguleerders voor te stel. Hierdie middels was egter nog in hulle kinderskoene toe em. prof. Karen Theron in die tagtigerjare haar loopbaan in die Departement Hortologie aan Universiteit Stellenbosch begin het.

Stink bugs (Pentatomidae), tip wilters (Coreidae) and seed bugs (Lygaeidae) belong to the order Hemiptera or sucking bugs. They are characterised by their piercing-sucking mouthparts, nymphs that look like miniature versions of the adults, winged adults, and the ability to produce noxious smells as a defence mechanism.

By Hannes Bester, MC Pretorius, Wayne Mommsen, Coenraad Fraenkel, André Combrink, Natasha Jackson, Jan Landman, Rudolph Strydom, Irma Raspel, and…

Star Ruby is a red grapefruit cultivar that originated in Texas by irradiating Hudson grapefruit seeds. By Werner Swiegers, Paul…