Rain at Last

It has been a trying time for farmers in the immediate area and the Easern Cape as a whole. The rainfall pattern has been sporadic and saw September with no rain and October with 16.5mm. November started off equally poorly, with a limited amount of patchy rainfall during the first two weeks. Things have now changed, with significant amounts of rainfall in the last 10 days 25mm then 41mm - bringing the November total to 91mm. December started well 34mm so far. The dams are filling nicely, the grass is greening up and we no longer have to provide supplementary feed for the livestock. Notwithstanding the miserable spring weather, the 10 year moving average rainfall of 542mm is the highest it has ever been in the 100 year history of rainfall records available. Assuming that December meets expectations, the average could well reach 550mm. This would mean that the average rainfall has improved by over 100mm in the last 10 years

We have been fortunate to escape any veld fires so far. The are serious hazards, as they are usually the result of lightening strikes, are unpredictable and difficult to control and put out. The main reason being is that fires are a natural part of the ecological cycle, and the vegetation has evolved to incorporate fire as part of its lifecycle. Controlled burning of the veld is therefore a part of good veld management, although it is usually done with fear and trepidation by most farmers as the weather conditions, specifically wind, are very unpredictable in the area.

There have been two fires on neighbouring farms; luckily they were put out quickly with minor damage.

Computer Problems

Having major difficulties with my computer!!!

Will be back on line - sometime?

The Great Karoo

Steynsburg lies to the far east of the eco-region known as the Great Karoo. The region is some 400 000 square kilometres in extent. It is classified as semi desert and the name derives from the Khoisan word of uncertain meaning. During its geological life, it has been glaciated, and later it had great inland deltas, lake and swamps. At times during its prehistory it was ravaged by massive volcanic activity. Reptiles and amphibians populated the area, in large numbers. Today their remains have made the region a paeleontological treasure trove.

The vast grassy plains were identified as being excellent sheep grazing country in the early 1800's and today it is the major sheep region of the country.

Anything Worse than a Lawyer

Soon after New Year, I flew to East London and met up with owner D. We went through many details of the operations, and technical issues regarding infrastructure, and then signed the final agreement.

I had an appointment with my attorneys set for 10am the following day. Guess what, the conveying attorney did not pitch, and his PA had no record of the appointment. I had met previously with O, my attorney and chairmen of the firm to finalise the incorporation of the farm and operating company into the family trust, and he had advised at the time that partner B would do the transfer.

B's PA did her best, but it was all most unsatisfactory. With the new FICA regulations everything would take about twice as long. B eventually pitched, but the damage was done; I really think he was incompetent. It later transpired that that chairman O and the three senior partners had resigned from the firm, to start their own. The junior partners and the hangers on seemingly would not be able to hold the 100 year old firm together, and it was merging with another. Guarantees were lodged with the attorneys, and the sale became irrevocable.

I phoned brother R and gave him the green light to proceed full speed ahead with emigration procedures. R and SiL G were scheduled to fly down to Johannesburg the following week. As per the agreement, we were to spend a full week on the farm learning the details of the operation prior to the handover. Conveniently it was the week that the farm sheep were to be sheared - a very important operation to be learned. SiL G had not seen the farm and was flying blind, having only seen photographs. Happily she was very happy with the house and garden. There would be a lot to do to get the place to meet our requirements, but it was a great start.

There was a lot to take in: windmills, transformers, pipelines, pumps, tractors and hundreds of other details. And a lot of keys!

....But No Rain

Dry Dry Dry

The rains are late this year. Although the total rainfall year to date matches the entire rainfall of last year, those rains started early, and ended in May. The high rainfall early in the year means that the grass cover is very thick. As dry as it is it is very susceptible to fire. We have already had one fire this year. Eskom has not lives up to its mandate as the monopoly supplier of electricity in this country. Behaving in a typically third world manner, it forgot to start building power stations about ten years ago, and now electricity supply is seriously lagging behind demand.

Notwithstanding its recent 37% price increase, it no longer does power line patrols, or any form of preventative maintenance. The upshot: transformers leak, powerlines fall over and transmission cables break. In our case the wood pylon stay broke, and the high voltage cable was touched by an inquisitive heifer. Result one very dead heifer, a fire and about 10ha of burned out veld. Luckily it was noticed quickly before it got out of control. The linesman visited and put in a temporary stay, which, at the time of writing (some 3 weeks after the incident) is still there.

Imagine the outrage if we were as disinterested in our payments as they are in fulfilling their service obligations to the consumers.

The long range weather service GRIB.US is predicting heave rain for the area on Sunday afternoon. Hopefully they have got it right! Will keep you posted.

Cats and Dogs....

One of the unexpected free benefits of the farm came in the form of four fluffy ginger farm cats, and a border collie cross sheep dog - James JMMWG (!) du Preez nicknamed 'Jimmy'. The problem with James is that he is scared of sheep. Not much value added there. He lives to ride on the back of the bakkie (pickup truck) and to eat. The cruelest thing a person can do to him is feed him and then go and start up the diesel bakkie near him. Instant crisis of indecision!

The cats are what is referred to as 'werf' katte; not house cats, but certainly not wild or feral either. The live in the barns and out building and do an amazing job of keeping down rats and mice. They are enormous friendly and fluffy and love being sociable with the family. According to neighbours, all the ginger cats in the district are related to these - a seriously dominant gene pool obviously.

White Christmas (Not)

Looking NW towards the homestead

The southern hemisphere winters are mild, relative to those experienced in Europe and America. This part of the Karoo is an exception. Most of South Africa seldom sees snow; on the farm, it is a fairly regular occurence. The average altitude of the farm is about 1600m (5250'). Snow is most likely to fall in July or August. It is an unusual winter that sees no snow at the homestead; snow capped mountains in the vicinity are a regular occurrence. The winter diurnal temperature range is between 16 to -8 Celsius. The lowest recorded temperature so far during our tenure -15 Celsius. A rude shock indeed for those from the African tropics.