WONDERFUL WEALTH IN GRASSLAND FARMING.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 21 August 1928, Page 7

WONDERFUL WEALTH IN GRASSLAND FARMING.

Fields Director Demonstrates Value of Science.

More Wet Stock and Fertilizers.

• New Zealand Grasslands. ite recently in Palmerston North, Stated Mr. Cockayne, three organisations had . been established which should in their respective spheres be dominating factors in the development of farming progress. There wore the Massey Agricultural College, the Dairy Kesoarch Institute, and the Plant liesearch station. - The last organisation, with which the speaker was connected, represented a combination of the plant and crop research activities 'of the Department of Agriculture and that of the Department of Scientific and Industrial llc.search. It was financed partly from funds provided by the Umpire Marketing Board and partly by the Government. In addition other organisations such as that of Imperial Chemical Industries were providing monetary and other facilities for the carrying out of special investigations. One of the features of , the work of the Plant Eesearch station was to he connected with the research and investigation work that must assuredly lead to improvement in the establishment, maintenance, management and productivity of grasslands. The Backbone of the Farmer. Whenever anything concerning the farmer is under discussion, it was customary to refer to the fanner as the backbone of the country, and that it was the strength or weakness of that ■framework that determined the prosperity or non prosperity of the Dominion.

Th’s argument appeared to be a very reasonable one and iu turn it could be said with - own greater justification that the grass lairds of Xew Zealand ■represented the backbone of the farmer, seeing that an overwhelming majority of the products that represented his livelihood were derived from grass. Twenty-five Years Progress.

The figures for the past twenty-five years showed that whereas with crops that had been sown each year, such as cereals, there had been little or no increase, during that period somewhat over four million acres had been added to the pastures of Xew Zealand. This however, represented an increase ot only IT or 14 per cent, over the grazing land of twenty-live years ago. But, when one considered what was now grazed on this grassland and the volume of production from it, a very different picture was presented. Bringing all classes of live stock to a common basis, it was found that the carrying capacity of the "’hole of the grassland had increased by 50 per cent. When brought to a standard value the production from grassland, lamb, mutton, wool, bnttorfat and beef, it was found that the increase had been 1.17 per cent. Brought to standard values, in 11)02, grassland produced £10,000,000 worth of products, and w.lh x only !•> per cent, increase in ground, £.19,000.000 was produced in 1927. One night be .inclined to say that these figures were wrong, as the stock carried, brought to a common basis had increased only 50 per cent; then production should only have increased by that figure, as a standard value had been given in both instances. The explanation however, was quite simple and emphasised a fundamental law with regard to grassland, utilisation, namely that the greater the percentage of female animals, the greater the annual production from grassland, provided of coprsc such female animals could bo properly maintained.

Increasing Wet Stock.

In the past twenty-five years nearly 3,000,000 cows had been added to the herds and 6.000,000 breeding ewes to the flocks ,of the Dominion. This exploitation of the maternity of live stock had enabled us to increase by 367 per cent, our volume of animal production from grassland while only increasing the stock units of the country by 50 per cent. The female animal was of very I‘cular significance in grassland farmiteg. As everyone knew, the Avcakncas •f all grassland from a management ■standpoint was that it produced a far greater amount of herbage in the summer than in the winter. Even the town dweller in mowing his lawn knew this only too well. In other words grassland would maintain more stock in the summer than in the winter. How could a farmer do this or the equivalent? The answer was byyusing female animals. The ewe required in the winter only ’ about 10 lbs. of grass or its equivalent per day. In the summer with its lamb it, required more than double that amount. The dairy cow when dry eould get along quite well_ on «0 lbs. of grass per clhy, out when in full milk 320 lbs* to 150 lbs. was not too much ' for a-heavy milker. Thp farmer realised that, fundamental fact and the tendency to replace dry stock witli wet stock was the most ' , outstanding trend of grassland management of the past two decades, the future of New 'Zealand grassland farming was connected"-, with the devclopmeAt of female animals with a low

The great importance of science as applied to agriculture was strikingly demonstrated in a masterly address delivered before » the Palmerston North Rotary Club yesterday by Mr. A. H. Cockayne, Director of the Fields Division of the Department of Agriculture, now located in Palmerston North. Mr. Cockayne’s subject was, “The Increasing Importance of Fodder Grasses,” and he demonstrated that the tremendous advance that had been made throughout New Zealand during the past 25 years in primary production had its basis in the increase in tjimnumber of female or wet stock carried, and tlie ability to carry wet stock in turn depended on the proper and sufficient supply of suitable fodder crops.

winter feed requirement and as high a summer one as possible. increase of butterfat in that respect was of great importance, as tiic higher tlie butterfat produced when grass was plentiful, the mure would be produced bvthe individual animal. In passing it might be mentioned that rho butterfat average had increased from lihj lbs. to L’OO lbs. per cow. the increase having been more rapid during the past, seven years.

With the ewe high fecundity and high milk yield were the factors that fitted it for high volume production on grassland. A very important factor in connection with the development of female animals to enable what is equivalent, to a larger number of animals to bo carried when grass was plentiful was that milk production was aimed at. Not only with the cow, but also with the owe" and' the pig, it was necessary that the herbage provided must be of a type suitable for milk production. Now the herbage suitable for this purpose was young grass. Old grass was often quite good for dry stocks but not for wet stock. The whole <>l: the problem of grassland management at the present time and the future was collected with the provision of ample voting grass so that the percentage of dry stock carried became reouceo and the percentage of female animals car ried increased. Need for Top-dressing.

In that conm'ct’.on young gross might be provide*! by the keeping of postures voting and vigorous or by renewing grassland by ploughing oml sowing. The great development in Xew Zenhunl young gross production wos the keeping grassland young by top- trussing, and the avoidance ol lioving to renew old grass. Top-dressing wos increasing at a very rapid rate. Two years a.go the North Island railways carried oil.ooo tons of artificial manures. Last vear oi’AOOD tons were earned. Phosphates had up to the present been mainly used and had not by any means yet reached (four zenith, when one considered that only 12 per cent., of the sown grass lauds was top dicss- (>(• at present. The time wos fast approaching however, when other moteiia 1 would supplement phosphate, particularly ‘nitrogen and potash. lop dressing however at the present time lepresv'nted the greatest single f octal leading to young grass production, but there'’remained a vast amount experimental work to be performed in this field of research before this factor towards increased production had been fully exploited. How to Got Best Results.

To got the best results young grass must bo consumed as such and a great deal of investigation work was imeessary before (be management and ulib isat ion of grass land could be bioug.it to the plane it should occupy. Improvement in the animal itself, m the production of grass by the production of slrabis especially suitable, improvement in top dressing, in drninage and cultivation of pastures, in stock manipulation —to enable young grass to bo consumed as such, improvement in hay and ensilage making replesented for intense investigation t.mt would direct the future of New Zealand grassland farming ami make it the envy of the world. When this was done the backbone ot the country would be in good shape. Air. Cockavno was sure that m that work the three institutions he had mentioned would have played their part.