Search

Most of rural South Africa is semi arid, experiencing a variable climate with extreme weather events such as droughts and floods. Communal farmers experience problems of getting reliable weather information. Datasets used to describe climate change and variability rely on spatially interpolated gridded data from a few weather stations. The ability of gridded climate data to describe climate variability at the local level has been widely questioned. Communal farmers have developed indigenous strategies to cope with these extremes in order to sustain agricultural production. The objective of this study was to document indigenous strategies that smallholder farmers in Bergville and Msinga, in KwaZulu Natal Province, use to predict weather, conserve soil and water, and manage climate extremes events. Data were gathered through key informant interviews, focus group discussions, and questionnaire. Results showed that more farmers in Msinga than Bergville observed reduced rainfalls and increased temperatures as an indicator of climate variability (p