RIVAL WHEATS

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 124, 29 May 1933, Page 9

RIVAL WHEATS

IS "YEO3IAF' A SUCCESS ?

ONLY ON HEAVY GROUND

"Yeoman" wheat was made by Sir Rowland Biffcu at Cambridge, England, with the avowed purpose of improving the quality of Eaglisli wheat, while -at the same time maintaining its yield. "Yeoman" was made. by a cross between "Browicki" a high yielding poor quality English, wheat, and "Rod Fife," a low yielding high quality Canadian, that maintained its quality even under English climatic conditions. After some years "Yeoman" was in 1923 superseded by "Yeoman II," which was purer, more even in quality, and had a shorter and stronger straw. Noiy one of the-objeets of the Wheat Beaeareh Instituto in Now Zealand is to find a wheat-with the qualities of " Yeoman" suitable for growing in the Dominion, and in a recent memorandum it asks whether "Yeoman".is a success in England and whether it is likely to be a success in the Dominion. "Yeoman" is a success in. the class of country for which it was selected, the memorandum, remarks. In. the Fens of England it yields as well or better than the old varieties, and its milling and baking quality are far superior. A miller in Cambridge told the writer that before the .introduction of "Yeoman" all the Eastern counties' wheat was used for biscuits, but since every farmer was now growing "Yeoman" such, wheat entered into competition with imported varieties for • bread making. No further testimony is required regarding both yield and quality of "Yeoman" in that special district. It is true that "Yeoman" has not been a success in England as a whole, nor in New Zealand. But then "Tuscan" is not a success in Australia or America. All that can. be asked of any selection is. that it be a, success in the country for which, it was designed,' and this demand ''Yeoman" has met. s- grown in New Zealand, "Yeoman" is a winter wheat that does the better the earlier it is sown, that tillers more profusely than any other variety we grow, that has a straw as long as "Hunter's," but probably even more resistant to lodging, that has a square! denso head with loose chaff so that it easily thrashes in high winds, and that has a long red grain which usually shows a high proportion of the kernels "mottled,** that is, with starchy andfiorny areas on the same kernel. > Under fen conditions in England "Yeoman" easily yields 70 bushels per lucre, and the straw is strong enpn^h to carry that yield of grain. In Now Zealand no trial has been made on tho raally heavy ground on which alone "Yeoman" can bo expected to excel. Om the fairly strong ground available for: the trials the yield has been five bushels per acre below "Tuscan," on the average of .trials ranging over six years in eight localities. Thia is enough to condemn "Yeoman" for general use, and it is unlikely to be tried again except under very exceptional circumstances in particularly heavy land. A special locality inviting- the nse of "Yeoman" was the tarry soils underlining the limestone in North Otago, and trials were made there in the season just passed. The yields are not yet published, but from the look of the plots just before harvest it was obvious tltat even there " Yeoman " was not going to outyieia the sta7idarVl '' Yeoman»'; tillers, extraordinarily. In a trial at Lincoln in 1931, the average "Tuscan" plant produced 5 tillers Hunter's-" 7, and "Yeoman" 13 Tho number of tillers that produce ears is, however, actually less in "Yeoman" than in "Tuscan." Thus it is obvious that "Yeomaai' 1 produces a great deal of green grovrth that is never used by the plant, and an accidental experiment near Oamaru suggests that this may be fed off with great benefit to the stock and no harm to the plant. A trial on the point was dlesigncd for last season,! but the growth of all feed was so profuse that there was no stock to spare for grazing the irheat.. The point may be worth a further trial. The average milling extraction from 23 trials has bean 75.2 per cent., as compared with Jees\ than 70 per cent, from "Tuscan," and 73 per cent, from "Hunter's." Thi* is a most valuable feature. Further, the baking score of 21 trials has averaged 32.5 points as compared with "Tuscan's?* 29.5 and 32.4 for "Hunter's.'' The 1933 results are much less favourable than this, but the figures how that "Yeoman" has valuablo qualities to both miller ami baker, being equal to "Hunter's" in baking score and 2 or 3 per cent, better in milling extraction. J , Summarising its conclusions about "Yeoman," the^memoranduni says:— "Yeoman" from the quality point of' view is a little better than' "Hunter's" and decidedly better than "Tuscan." It is quite unsuited to lightf land, where it would give a low yield atid be shaken by the wind. Even on good wheat land' its yield has .been 5 bushels below "Tuscan." The only placel it would have a chance is' on rich dairy land really too strong for wheat, -when its j great strength of straw woi»l<f be an advantage. Where soil, conditions make grazing possible it would give a large amount of green feed.