ANIMAL TRACTION
Eco-friendly option of value on plots
The use of animal traction over mechanised traction by smallholders holds many advantages . Animal traction
SNAKES
From page 29 information call 083 448- 8854 . There are measures that you can take to discourage snakes from taking up residence on your smallholding . Start by removing anything that might provide shelter or food for snakes . Keep the grass around your house well mown , aslonggrassisa favoured habitat of snakes . Also keep shrubs trimmed round their base and ensure that tree branches do not overhang your house or seating areas in your garden . Make sure that there are no holes in your roof that snakes refers to the use of animals to carry out a variety of tasks , such as : ❑ Ploughing , harrowing , planting , ridging , weeding ,
can get through - particularly if trees overhang your house . Ensure skirting boards do not have gaps under or behind them . Seal all holes where wiring , plumbing or gas enters your home . Cover gutters and drain pipes with fine gauge mesh . Regularly sweep up leaves and other garden debris . Fill gaps , cracks and crevices in brick and stone walls . Wooden decking in seating areas should be solid , rather than slatted , to prevent snakes climbing through it . Be aware that play areas such as wendy houses , tree houses , sand pits etc might be mowing and harvesting , ❑ Pulling carts and carrying loads , ❑ Driving water-pumps and pulling water from wells ,
appealing to snakes . Stack your wood on a suitable platform – such as a pallet – off the ground . Try to avoid piles of building rubble near your house or sheds . Compost heaps could potentially attract many different species of wildlife which , in turn , may become the prey of a snake , so make you heap far from the house or enclose it with a wall . There are commercially marketed repellents for snakes . There is no confirmation that any effective product exists to repel snakes humanely . Some people suggest using moth balls ,
❑ Carrying building materials , earth moving , and , ❑ Mixing materials and providing power for threshing
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which do not harm the snakes but still deter them from coming inside . However , moth balls can also be hazardous to children , pets and domestic animals . Johan Marais of African Snakebite Institute maintains that the only effective solution to keep snakes off your property is to cordon off the entire property with fine shade cloth . It has to be about a metre high and dug into the ground ( about 30 cm deep ), although given the average length of a plot boundary this could prove expensive .
30 www . sasmallholder . co . za