“Soil that has the texture of a chocolate sponge cake. That’s what I am working towards!” says Hendrik Odendaal, cradling a handful of freshly dug soil on his maize land near Standerton in Mpumalanga. He certainly seems to have made progress; plant roots of various sizes from a diversity of cover crops drill down into the soil, creating aeration and pathways for water, and loosening up what would otherwise have been dense clay.
Earthworms and a host of other beneficial insects wriggle and crawl their way through the clumps, transporting nutrients and organic matter deeper into the soil profile.
Odendaal switched from conventional tillage to a no-till, regenerative agriculture system 16 years ago. Focusing on soil health, he has reduced herbicide and insecticide usage, and increased the carbon in his soils while still achieving industryaverage yields on his maize and soya crops.
“The primary aim of converting from conventional tillage to no-till is to prevent disruption of the soil’s natural, delicate ecosystem, and moisture loss from upending the soil into the sunlight,” explains Odendaal as he
