Choosing quality agricultural equipment and a reputable supplier offers many valuable benefits for your farming operation.

Du Preez Landgoed is a family farming operation located in the Northwest Province of South Africa, between Lichtenburg and Koster. André du Preez (junior) is the third-generation farmer and he has always been passionate about farming. He and his brother, Waldo, run the farm, and one can see that their vast amount of dedication, patience and effort to achieve success over the years has paid off.

Passion makes dreams a reality

“At the end of 2015, I joined my father on the farm,” André says. “Farming has always been my passion, and taking forward what my father and grandfather have built up over the years, is an incredible honour.”

André and Waldo, his younger brother, work together like a well-oiled machine, to ensure that they get the best out of every planting season. They mainly grow soya beans, sunflowers, sorghum, sugar beans, and maize, some on dryland and some under irrigation.

André explains: “Waldo is responsible for the planting process, ensuring that the seeds are in the soil, whereafter I do the crop care, ensuring that the crops grow well.”

“Every aspect of our farm is planned carefully, before, during and after every season. The agriculture industry has radically transformed over the past 50 years. When I think back to how my grandfather farmed, compared to how we do things today, there is a huge transformation. Agriculture is a con­stantly growing industry, offering so many opportunities, and tackling these opportunities requires that the next generation brings fresh thinking and innovative solutions,” André adds.

André du Preez, farmer, and Blackie Swart, LEMKEN Representative, with the 9,5-metre Rubin 12 that made a meaningful difference to the production of Du Preez Landgoed.

LEMKEN, the best investment by far

“All the years we ploughed our lands, until we realised that the process of ploughing is not the most effective way of going forward,” André admits.

“Our journey with LEMKEN started in 2015, with a 6-metre Rubin 12. I still remember it like yesterday. It was dur­ing wheat harvesting season, and we desperately needed a soil cultivator,” says André.

“Our need was to do one cultivation and plant as soon as possible there-after, and as we all know, wheat residue management is a big headache for most farmers. Many farmers burn it; however we believe in building up our soil, therefore, we try to work everything that we can back into our soil to build up the organic content of our soil.

“Our answer was LEMKEN. Blackie from LEMKEN suggested and demon­strated the 6-metre Rubin 12 to us on the farm, and since the machine start­ed working on our fields, we haven’t looked back to anything else.”

After the 6-metre Rubin 12 proved itself on the Du Preez farm, it was like love at first sight. Over the years, as their farming operation expanded, they traded the 6-metre Rubin 12 in for a 9,5-metre. Now even more hectares can be cultivated per day in less time.

“Not only did the need arise for better soil cultivation, but to improve our wheat planting methods as well. Back in the day, we always planted our wheat with a spreader, which wasn’t effective enough compared to the price of seed and the number of hectares we planted. Not only were the seeds placed unequally in the soil, but we also wasted approximately 30% of the seed with the spreading method, which had a ripple effect on the growth of our yields as well as the tonnes harvested,” André adds.

André elaborates: “At that time, it was crucial for us to make some changes to our wheat planting method. Our need was to plant more precisely and effectively. In 2016, we were in the market for a precision air seeder, and once again Blackie came up with the perfect solution when he recommended the LEMKEN Solitair 12 planter. The planter was demonstrated at a farmer nearby, and when we saw with our own eyes what it could do, we knew that this was the answer to our challenges.”

LEMKEN results: Perfect and solid-standing maize.

A place for the whole LEMKEN fleet

After LEMKEN has proved itself on the Du Preez farm, they were introduced to the Karat 9 at NAMPO. Since they also plant a fair amount of maize, they faced the challenge of managing maize residue after harvesting season year after year.

“The need for one stubble cultivation and reconsolidating our soil after maize harvesting arose once again. After we saw the LEMKEN Karat 9 at NAMPO, it was demonstrated at a farmer’s day in the area, which made our decision much easier. We realised that this is the next step in taking our farming operation forward, getting more done with less. After the Rubin 12 and Karat 9 have done their bit, our fields are ready for the next season, creating an even and perfect seedbed.”

The Karat 9 replaced the work of ploughing and ripping on the Du Preez farm, with much less power require­ment on the tractors. “So, we save fuel and time, and when the Karat has done the job, there is a firm and perfect seedbed,” André states.

A proud father and son moment when ProAgri visited the Du Preez family in 2018: André du Preez, senior and junior with their LEMKEN Solitair 12 precision planter, before the Du Preez brothers took over from their father.

André highlights the biggest ad­vantages of LEMKEN on their farm:

  • Service and support from the LEM­KEN team (including the availabil­ity of spare parts)
  • Minimal maintenance and break­ages on the machines
  • Minimal soil cultivation, resulting in less soil compaction
  • Saving time and fuel
  • Better management of weeds
  • Reconsolidation of soil
  • Conservation of soil moisture, and improved water infiltration
  • Better seed germination resulting in better yields and more tonnes harvested
  • Uniformity in fields for better lime and fertiliser applicationLess waiting time before planting

André adds: “LEMKEN is 100% behind the farmer. You can always rely on them and if there are any problems or queries, they will sort it out immediately. For us, service which includes the performance and value adding of the equipment as well as after-sale service is of utmost importance, and LEMKEN ticks all those boxes.”

To cultivate and prepare more than 3 000 hectares of land, you cannot mess around with something that does not do the job correctly, effectively and timely.

André concludes: “There is no need for us to consider any other implements than LEMKEN. We realised that investing in high-quality farm equip­ment helped us produce better crops, get better yields and ultimately con­serve our soil for future production. All the LEMKEN equipment work in perfect harmony on our farm. I would highly recommend LEMKEN to any farmer, because with LEMKEN you are mak­ing an investment for the long term. I invite any farmer interested in LEMKEN equipment to our farm, to see with their own eyes what difference LEMKEN can make.”

For more information on LEMKEN’s implements, contact Karel Munnik on (+27)82-412-2577 or k.munnik@lemken.com; or Blackie Swart on (+27)82-404-9651, or b.swart@lem­ken.com, or visit www.lemken.com.