HIGH COUNTRY PROBLEMS

Evening Star, Issue 23560, 26 April 1940, Page 2

HIGH COUNTRY PROBLEMS

SEARCH FOR NEW GRASSES IMPORTANT eXPEHIKNT ON CROWN NUN [Special to the ‘ Stab.’] WELLINGTON, April 26. Experiments are being made with a new grass known as crested wheat grass for use on the high pastora country ot the South Island, states th ® £°n. Langstone (Minister of Lands), nho has recently been in conference with tho Crown tenants who hold large areas of this class of country. . Tho problem, he explained, is to maintain a good nutritive growth on these lands, and the crested n heatgrass appears to have the right qua - ties for these special condemns. It is deep rooted, and is thus a g°?d binding agency, and it also has a high fodder value The Lands, Agriculture, and Forestry Departments and the Uepartment of Scientific end * dustrial Research have co-operated in this search for a suitable errass for high country, and experiments have led to the adoption of crested wheat-grass for planting out on a fairly large scale on the Molesworth run, owned by the Crown in Marlborough. . Returning from the high country, with ite limited carrying capacity of possibly a sheep to two or three acres, Mr Langstone had a vivid contrast when he inspected an area at Winchmore, which is included in the irrigation scheme being carried out in Canterbury. Hero he saw 400 sheep and :420 lambs obtaining ample pasture from 30 acres of irrigated land. “ Ir-

rigation,” declared the Minister, “is going to be the salvation of the dry, arid area in Mid-Canterbury. One of the additional advantages of the irrigation scheme from the. Rangitata and Rakaia is that there is a fall which enbles hydro-electricity to bo developed. It was at first intended to ■ raise the level of Lake Tekapo by 60ft, for water storage purposes, but the introduction of the Rangitata scheme enables the Tekapo level to be raised by only 12ft as a means of additional supply for Waitaki hydro station. In the summer, when there ,is less call for hydroelectric power, the waters of the Canterbury irrigation scheme will be fully available for land irrigation, but in the winter, with its ■ big demand for electric power, they will be turned to good account without the farmer of his water supply.. It is obvious that agricultural, and engineering science are making for more intense cultivation of the areas nearest to the railways, an immence increase in carrying capacity being noted as a result of these developments.”