Seeds For Exhibits And Gifts In North America

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28888, 7 May 1959, Page 5

Seeds For Exhibits And Gifts In North America

The world president of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers, Mr J. G. Patton, who is also president of the National Farmers’ Union of America, will be sent samples of New Zealand perennial ryegrass and white clover to grow on his 750-acre, irrigated property near Denver, Colorado. Mr Patton, who visited New Zealand recently, showed considerable interest in small seeds and pastures, the chairman of the Dominion agricultural produce section council of Federated Farmers (Mr F. M. Henshaw) said at yesterday’s quarterly meeting of the council in Christchurch.

Mr Henshaw described the gift as good advertising for New Zealand small seeds and said that with the discontinuing of the Washington Fair, the seeds committee was investigating other places to exhibit small seeds in the United States and Canada. It was hoped to have an exhibit at the Toronto Fair.

Boys’ Town, an organisation for the rehabilitation of maladjusted boys, which has established a ranch in British Columbia, may also receive New Zealand small seeds from the council. A letter from the organisation to the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Skinner) suggested that New Zealand might be prepared to give sufficient seed to sow about 10 acres of pasture. An inquiry is being made as to suitable species by the Minister’s department and if conditions are favourable finance will be made available from the council’s “Seeds for America” fund to buy the seed. Certified Peas A letter from the Vegetable and Produce Growers’ Federation about the certification of pea seed, which was withdrawn by leave of the meeting, provoked some comment.

Careless use of seed had resulted in three distinct strains of Victory Freezer peas in Hawke’s Bay, one member said. By-passings by quick-freezing processors and the subsequent harvesting of the peas for sowing the next year had meant the carrying on of lines of variable quality. Considerable feeling had

been aroused among Nelson growers who had said the seed was “pretty crook,” a second member said.

If peas were grown under contract to a merchant the merchant took care that the seed was good because it was for the next year’s sowing but some of these by-passed lines had been bought cheaply and then dressed before selling at a considerable profit. Legislation is being planned to allow for regulations to control the dusting of hormone chemicals by aerial application. This information was contained in a letter - from the Minister of Agriculture (Mr Skinner) to the council, the secretary said. The Mini-

ster had felt that there was insufficient reason to ban aerial dusting of hormones at present but emphasised a need for operators and farmers to understand fully their use.