NEW SHED FOR SMALL SEEDS

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31262, 7 January 1967, Page 8

NEW SHED FOR SMALL SEEDS

Mr A. H. Shields, of Lyalldale, South Canterbury, has built a 1665 sq. ft shed to store small seeds in bulk.

Last season Mr Shields be-, gan handling grain in bulk with three 27-ton silos. His wheat crop ranges from 45 to 60 acres, and is this season 60 acres. Now he is also planning to handle cocksfoot, perennial ryegrass, and chou moellier seed in bulk.

To that end he has had a 45ft by 37ft shed with a 14ft stud, sheathed in corrugated iron, built It has a portal

frame and the concrete floor has been damp-proofed—a damp-proofing preparation being painted on the concrete before the final layer of concrete was applied to the floor. The portal frame was put up and the concreting was done by farm staff, while two builders spent another 10 days on the job completing shed. s’Mr Shields proposes to hold In the shed produce from some 50 acres of cocksfoot, 20 acres of perennial ryegrass, and 19 acres of chou moellier. It is intended to hold the small seeds in four bins lined with flat galvanised iron. These will measure 15ft by 9ft and Will have about 9ft of storage space above a false floor made out of slats, covered with hessian, under

which air will be blown in to dry or cool the seed. The fan used for this purpose will be powered by a petrol motor and will be mounted on wheels to make it portable. Next year Mr Shields says that he may build another large bin in the shed into which small seeds will be fed initially for drying, where necessary, prior to being augered up into the bins for storage. This bin will probably be collapsible. The small seeds will be machine dressed on the nearby property of his father-in-law, Mr J. L. Gray, and will then be stored again in the shed in sacks awaiting disposal. On this property a metal bulk bin, with an auger in the V bottom, mounted on a four-wheel trailer, will be used to move the seed from the field to the store, but eventually a tip truck with bin on the tray may be used.