Torrential rain a blow for farmers in the Overberg

The torrential rain, flooding and washing away of roads in the Overberg area has dealt a major blow to farmers in one of South Africa’s most important wheat and canola producing areas.

“The biggest worry for us is that is the time we spray herbicide for weeds and spread fertiliser and our fields are far too wet,” Napier Farmers Association chair Wynand Wessels told TimesLIVE on Wednesday.

“We can’t get into the fields with our tractors and equipment for at least the next two weeks.”

Wessels said constant rain over the past three days was disastrous for wheat seedlings coming up because they needed sunlight to grow.

“They are struggling, they’re in stress. It’s almost the same as a terrible drought. The plants are standing in pools of water.”

He said livestock farmers, whose sheep were lambing, , were also badly affected, and some farmers were using rubber ducks and boats to rescue their animals.

“It’s a headache when the cold and wet continue for so long. Lots of lambs will die. We can’t get to where the sheep are in our bakkies to check on them.”

Wessels said low-lying areas around Bredasdorp were badly flooded.

“It’s difficult to get your animals to a safe area and some are likely to drown.”

Floods have made roads out of Arniston/Waenhuiskraal and Struisbaai impassable and the Cape Agulhas municipality said on Wednesday many gravel roads in the area had been washed away and would take a long time to repair.

It said 200mm of rain had been measured and urged motorists to use “extreme caution”.

Wessels said the destruction of roads and bridges, specially around Elim and Baardskeerdersbos, was disrupting the operations of fynbos flower farmers.

“Their trucks have to get the flowers to the airport in Cape Town for export and they must take detours.”

He said the rain had also washed away much of the fertile top soil crop farmers needed and caused extensive erosion and dongas.

“The deep dongas have to be filled using heavy equipment such as excavators and dump trucks, which we can’t do at this time of year. The dongas make access difficult to our fields.”

Wessels said he had measured 122mm of rain on his farm near Napier.

The sun came out over the Overberg on Wednesday but more rain is forecast for Thursday.

TimesLIVE