FARM EXTENSION SERVICE

Manawatu Standard, Volume LV, Issue 42, 17 January 1935, Page 5

FARM EXTENSION SERVICE

(Contributed by Fields Division and Plant Research. Station.) SEASONAL FIELD WORK. Pastures which are intended to have such a 1011" life that they are termed “permanent’ ’are our most important crop. Advances in our knowledge about pasture strains and about top-dressing enable a greater length of life to be more readily and certainly associated with continuous high production than was previously possible. Any initial weakness is likely to affect production detrimentally throughout the whole Life of the pasture. because of these three facts, the task of establishing permanent pastures is one of the most important in New Zealand farming, and one which warrants much greater attention than at times it receives.

Poor results in the establishment of permanent pastures are generally due to ono or more of the following causes: (1) Sowing on poorly tilled land; (2) use of unsuitable seed; (3) sowing at an unsuitable time. In the case of pastures sown in the fall, sowing on poorly tilled land and sowing at an unsuitable time both usually may he traced to starting preparatory cultivation at too late a date. For full success the seed-bed for permanent pastures needs to be in a fine, mellow and firm, rather than in a loose, lumpy condition. To secure the desirable condition, the cultivation of land to he sown in permanent pasture in the fall should now be kept in view. Hurried tillage eliminates the natural weathering of the soil, which has been shown by experience to be of much value in the economical production of a fine, firm seed-bed. The special need that exists for a fine, firm seed-bed arises partly from the really minute size of the vital parts of seeds of some of the more important pasture plants. There are about a quarter of a million ryegrass seeds and three-quarters of a million white clover seeds to the pound, and, as a substantial portion of the pound is represented by seed-coats, it may be deduced that the vital parts iu each seed are so minute that any process of covering them on uneven, lumpy ground must necessarily bury many of them so deeply that they are quite unable to send their shouts up into the light. The firmness of seed-bed that comes with fineness, apart from favouring even covering of the seeds, seems to beget vigorous root development. Even on the heavier soils that naturally consolidate relatively readily, failures which farmers at times are inclined to attribute to their being supplied with faulty seed are'found, on inspection, to be due to a. loose condition of the seed-bed —a good ‘strike may be noted where there has been additional consolidation, e.g., in liooitnarks or iu wheel-tracks, or at headlands, while similar seed has failed on the major and looser portion of the field. If pasture is to follow an arable crop, it is often sound practice, provided the land is reasonably clean, to disc rather than to plough —the greater firmness of seed-becl given by the discing may be an advantage, and additional fertiliser, provided by the animal manure, is retained near the surface where it most readily benefits the young pasture plants. , . Ais the seed used is of basic importance, it is unfortunate that three weaknesses in respect to seed mixtures are of common occurrence. Firstly, at times, the amounts of different pasture plants'included in the mixture are not in accord with thus? suggested as suitable by field experience; sometimes money is spent on seeds of plants plants which are not worthy of a place in a mixture, and sometimes seeds of plants which are of considerable value in specific circumstances are omitted in such circumstances. Secondly, suitable amounts and kinds or species of seeds may be used, but strain differences within a species may be ignored, with consequent marked inferiority in the resultant pasture. The great benefit of employing a good strain of perennial ryegrass is now widely recognised, but it does not seem to be so widely understood that analogous benefit is to be secured from the use of superior -trains of clover and of cocksfoot. The mlv sure way of exploiting recent advances in our knowledge relative to train differences within pasture species is to use certified seed. Thirdly, the use of suitable species and strains of seeds in appropriate amounts is not sufficient to ensure a. satisfactory seed position unless care has been taken to obtain seed of good germination capacity, vitality and puritv. There is abundant evidence from'last year, when there were no marked departures from the normal average position, that within the one district in the one season there were, as usual, substantial variations in germination capacity, which indicates that price comparisons atone were very imperfect guides in the purchasing ot seeds. There is-also ample evidence that lack of caution in purchasing seeds would at times lead to the inclusion in the seed mixture of seeds of such plants ■is Californian thistle, ragwort and ox eye daisy e.g., a normal sowing or cocksfoot and dogsta.il in a mixture for an acre might have included 4480 seeds of Californian thistle. Many of the faults commonly characterising pasture seed mixtures may be avoided bv seeking advice from district officers of the Fields Division. As time may be required for proper attention to some of the matters calling for consideration, the purchasing of seed for permanent pastures should not be niad-e in the hurried manner which is necessary when the selection of seeds is deferred until just before the seed is to be sown. Hasty purchase of seed is likely to he haphazard and not based on as full a knowledge as is desirable in respect to such important matters as the strain, and germination of the various linos of seed available. LATE SOWINGS.

The date of sowing of pastures in the autumn fairly frequently is too late. In many parts an element of danger attaches to any sowings later than March —occasionally, of course, sowings which would be too late in the majority of a series of seasons are quite successful, and because of this such la.te sowing’s are carried out generally and the number of relatively poor results that necessarilv ensure are attributed to anything but the real cause, which is the bad management that is involved in risking the dangers attaching to late sowings. It is widely known that clovers are likely to suffer in late sowings, but it seems not to be so generally known, although it has been well demonstrated, that the development of rye-grass and other plants in late sowings is at times subject to great checks from which it is doubtful whether the sowing ever fully recovers. Because of the prevalence of stemmy feed in summer, it is well to remember that such feed is far from ideal for young developing stock. Actually, growing stock, such as calves, develop well only when they receive highly digestible feed relatively rich in the materials required for the formation of muscle and bone —materials in which stennny feed is dangerously poor and ill which leafy feed is relatively rich. If the sowing of turnips and swedes has not been completed by the end'of December, as a rule, it should receive attention as speedily as possible. AA’lien rainfall is good, sowing may continue into January, but in most places after

the middle of January it is much safer to sow turnips than swedes —turnips not only develop quicker than swedes, but also suffer less from insect pests which at times, especially in dry seasons, appear in summer and autumn. Hardy Green Globe turnips are suitable for January sowing.

If the weather allows of the desirable preparatory cultivation, it is at times useful, when additional winter feed is desired, to sow in the late summer or early autumn, on land not yet broken out ,of grass, a temporary pasture mixture consisting of 251bs to 301bs. of Italian ryegrass and 41bs to bibs of red clover an acre. If the temporary pasture is likely to occupy the land for less than a year, anti quick production of feed is especially desired, then half of the Italian ryegrass may usefully he replaced by an equal amount of seed of western woltlis ryegrass. When the land available for late summer or autumn sowing will lie required in the spring for another crop, it may prove well worth while to grow a cereal catch crop, such as oats or black skinless barley, both of which are usually sown at the rate of about 24 bushel's of seed an acre. Such cereal catch crops, under favourable conditions, yield considerable winter and early spring feed, and in the spring may be followed In- roots or other suitable crops. Often the full possible returns are not obtained from temporary pastures or cereals sown for winter feed because the crops are sown too late —this applies especially to the South Island. With such crops a dressing of lcwt. to 3cwt. an acre of superphosphate is usually quite profitable. The likelihood of success with the crops mentioned above is lessened if there has not been thorough preparatory cultivation.