Farm & Station

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 13092, 13 February 1937, Page 12

Farm & Station

COCKSFOOT PEST

SERIOUS DAMAGE TO CROPS

INVESTIGATION' IN PROGRESS

Cocksfoot growers are very', much concerned this season at the appear unco of an unidentified disease in their crops. The trouble is reported t) be worse .on. the Plains, than on the Peninsula, but if is general-, and estimates have placed the reduction in the seed output as a result of. it at 50 per cent, reports the “Press." In seme cases, indeed, the loss is expected to he much larger. Ka.hu’ally, the severity of the trouble has set afoot investigations as to the cause of the disease, and Messrs. J. W. .Colder (field husbandry officer at Lincoln College), and his assistant, Mr. T.' I). Blair, have been working on the problem. Mr. Blair supplies the following as a. result so far of his investigations:

With regard to the symptoms of the disease it seems that there arc two conditions: First, the seed heads, though normal in size, usually contain small or shrivelled seeds and exhibit varying degrees of sterility. Second, there is a stem. blight characterised by the presence oi small, circular brown lesions on the upper .part of the stem and branchlets of the seed head. These latter signs of the disease are not present when the crop is comirjjg into car, but appear and increase in severity as the crop matures and ripens.

PRESENCE OF INSECTS

A. number of growers have noticed small insects in seed samples harvested from affected crops. They suspect these, as being responsible. It is known that a. number of insects, including the grass thrip. may lie found on the seed heads of most grasses. They suck the sap from the plant in the region of the developing seed hut it is only when present in • very large numbers that they cause damage to seed crops by preventing the seed from developing. At an earlier stage they may. actually prevent the seed from setting by destroying the flowers'. An inquiry made, with the authorities of the Imperial Bureau of Plant Gent'tics at Aberystwyth, Wales, produced the information tha.t the only insects which w leva known toi cause significant damage to cocksfoot seed were three species of gall midges (quite different from thrips). An examination of several local lines of affected cocksfoot. has failed to reveal these gall midges. Thrips have been found, hut, unless they are present in very large numbers they are not likely to cause appreciable damage. All the thrips in New Zealand are introduced—-there are no native species. If these species are not destructive to cocksfoot in England, they are not likely to cause damage here. A more likely cause may he found associated with the diseased stems described above. During an investiga

t-ion of this stem blight condition at the college a number of fungus cr- - ganistns have been isolated. At least

two of those are known to belong.to families which are parasitic on plants. Further work is being conducted to find which ones are actually responsible.

Tho infection of the stems is cxter nal in origin. The diseased areas are found only on exposed portions such as the upper stem. There is no sign of it where the stem is protected by the enfoldin.o; leaf sheaf. Afso microscopic examination show that the infection first- of all causes death it the outer green calls of the stem. Tt may affect the inner conducting tissue later, thus blocking the passage to tlie seed heads and causing the light seed yields which arc being reported. !f tin’s supposition of infection by wind-borne fungi is tenable it- is possible that spraying or dusting may protect the plant- fiom infect! on.-

SPRAYING RESULTS. One grower is so convinced of tho severity of the disease that he n.;,s sprayed his crops this year with a lime sulphur mixture. He is of the opinion that this treatment although not strikingly effective, has been worth while. The spraying was performed well after the heads had appeared, and he intends to spray earlier, next year. The effect of spraying at different times will be examined for there seems to be a- definite period of susceptibility. Preliminary trials in spraying at d’ffereiit times were carried out at the college this year, but tho results were not conclusive. A more extensive trial is being planner!, based on the experience already gained.

GRADING OF BACONER PIGS The question of placing the New. Zealand bacon or trade in a better position from the Home point of view bias- been under investigation for some time by the London .manager of the New Zealand Meat Producers Board. There has been a general and insistent demand for a better grading of our baconers from any bacon ourers at Ilonra ,and in some instances they have complained that'they cannot: rely upon the selection when purchasing a percol of New Zealand bn eon or pigs. It has been clearly demonstrated to the Meat Board’s London ■manager that there is a practically unanimous desire amongst the trade for standardised grading. Dr. Riddet, -of Massey Agricultural College, who has been looking closely into tho 'position, at Home recently prepared a. most exhaustive report, in collaboration with the, board’s Loudon manager on the whole question of grading bacoiiers, and also, the need for a, standard cut and trim for sides, and pork logs. Tho matter is now under consideration by the Meat Board in conjunction with tho Department of Agriculture, and it is likely that new standards- of

(By "RUSTICUS.”)

grading will be brought into operation commencing with the 1937-3 S season, whereby all baeoners exported from the Dominion will be graded more in conformity with the standards required by the trade at Home as to length of side, thickness, of back fat, etc. ' ; ' ' * ’ .’ ‘

With' this object'in view it is the intention of the. board and the department to consult experts and representative® of all interested parties on. this important question. At the same time it is also intended to take up the matter of introducing a standard out, and trim for sides and pork legs. The export of New Zealand pork has increased in a striking way in recent years as the following figures will show:—

Killings for export. Season Porkers Baeoners

This development has berm aided by the special reduction in shipping freight rates secured by the Meat Board in its first freight contract with tho 'shipping- companies, and also by the assistance given the industry by tho board in a number of other directions, notably tho annual grants to pig recordings clubs to enable them to carry out educational work regarding pig management and research work.

New Zealand porker pigs are particularly well thought of on Smithfield market, in fact in the opinion of the trade, there is no better quality coming to that market. With the increase in New . Zealand production of baconer pigs,buyers at. Homo, some of whom arc. large users of our product, are. becoming more discriminating and the hoard is of opinion that the time has arrived for placing the grading of baconer carcases on a bettor footing. It is. essential that Now Zealand should set about reducing the present, disparity in prico of bacon made from New Zealand pigs, and that of Danish bacon.

Most other countries adopt very exacting grading standards and they are all taking steps to improve thefir quality. The standard of grading set by competing countries is very much higher than it. was even two or three years ago.

When the grading of• New Zealand pork for export was first, introduced it was recognised that the standard would require to be gradually tightened up as the producers became educated to the class of carcase that was required by the trade. A great deal of valuable educational work and propaganda, has already been accomplished by tho recording clubs but much yet remains to be clone before New Zealand can introduce such strict measurement standards as for example those in fore’ in such a country as Denmark which ha*specialised in this trade for a long period of years. The new standards of grading will provide for definite measurements as to length of side and thickness of back fat land it is the intention that these measurements will gradually be placed on a. still hgher standard as the educational work spread under the co-ordinating efforts of the re-organ-ised pig husbandry section of the Department of Agriculture under Mr. M. -T. Scott, late of Lincoln College.

FERTILISER CONTROLS SCRUB

A North Canterbury farmer has successfully brought in fairly steep tussocky and manuka-covered faces of the hill country of his farm by consistent top-dressing with super. In quito a number of paddocks the manuka, ten years ago was so heavy that it was impossible to ride a horse through it.

Cut and burnt, the annual application of super has transformed the waste land into valuable grazing country. The fertiliser has established ryegrass pasture very little inferior to the pasture on the flats. Tussock country lias also been brought into ryegrass pasture simply .by tho application of tho yearly dressing of super. The policy of consistent top-dressing of the waste hills of the farm was embarked upon eight years ago, and the owner, Mr. EL G. Gardiner, is emphatic that it takes from threo to four years to establish a thoroughly good pasturo by top-dress-ing. Consistency, he says in the applications, is of th# greatest importance. A periodic dressing of lime would be an advantages as well as a light dressing of a potassic manure every few years. This interesting experience is only what ono would -expect. The degree' of fertility of a soil determines the plants that naturally grow upon it.

C'/cs. O/cs. 1925-26 28,819 21,184 1926-27 ... 45,147 29,-186 1927-28 ... 118,651 29.050 1928-29 ... 115, ,996 43,301 1929-80 ... 94,404 39,187 1930-31 .. 110,092 22,308 1931-32 130,520 22,357 1932-33 26S,616 55,364 1933-31 .. 361,430 .103,181 1934-3.5 .. 430X>75 157,334 1935-36 .. 459,871' 129,690: