WEATHEE AND CROPS.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14908, 23 February 1914, Page 3

WEATHEE AND CROPS.

ASHBI7RTON

Tho rain which" threatened at Ashburton on Friday passed over, and harvesting operations wero continued without a check on Saturday, when the weather conditions were all that could be desired.

It has been stated that the yields per aero in parts of the Wakanui district have been somewhat disappointing, but threshing-mill tallies, which 'are now daily coming to hand, are revealing particularly satisfactory results.

Mr H. F. Nicoll. who purchased a farm in the Wakanui district within tho past twelvo months, has just finished threshing an area of 68 acres solid straw wheat, which has yielded nn average of 01 bushels per acre. A 33-acre paddock of Garton oats averaged 82 bushels per aero, and from a total area of 86 acres the all-round average per acre was 73 bushels. On his Mitcfiara farm, some little distance up from Dromorc, and from what is known from medium to light plains land, tho return from, a 50-acre paddock of Garton oats was 53 bushels per acre.

Mr J. Bonnifant, whose well-known Wakanni farm is closely adjacent to Mr Nicoll's Wakanui property, ■ has some particularly good crops of bnth wheat and oats from which he is-ex-pecting big yields. Mr John Grigg, of Longbeach, had threshed out on Friday IiOOO bushels of oats, and the all-round average per acre was 90 bushels. It will be of interest to record that in the year 1901 there was a much larger-total area under white crop in the Ashburton district than is the- case this season. On the Longbeach estate alone there was 1982 acres under wheat, which yielded a total of 99,180 bushels, an all-round average of 50 bushels per acre, or, to be exact, 50.43. One paddock of 247 acres threshed out an average of 5S bushels per acre. There was a large area in oats, and tho avorage yield was from 50_ to 99 bushels per acre. An area, of 150 acres of Chevalier barley yielded 7136 bushels, or an average of 47.43 bushels per acre. The total area under white crop on Longbeach for the season 1899 was over 5000 acres, and the average for wheat was over 40 bushels per acre, oats 62, barley 77, and 78, and peas over 22 bushels per acre. The actual.figures for 1899 were:— Average per Acres. Bushels, acre. Wheat ... 3,194 14,791 45.61 Oats -. 1|348 83!652 62.9 Chevalier barley 198 15,706 Cape barley ~ 131 10.180 nM Wheat I 113 4,120 36.52 Barley ... 25 1.780 71 .o Oate - 179 8,167 45.12

Tho three bottom lines of figures refor to 317 acres of grain grown on what was then known as the Lowcliite farm, a strip of land on the south bank of the Hinds river. In addition to tho total of 273,549 bushels of grain threshed out on Longbeach that season, there were also 21,623 bushels of grass seed, making a grand total of %5,172 bushels in all. That same year the late Mr b.uican Cameron of Springfield, near Methven, also had considerably over 5000 acres under white crop, over 2000 acres of which was in wheat.