IMPROVING PASTURES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXVI, 19 August 1933, Page 2

IMPROVING PASTURES

MORE RESEARCH NEEDED Australia, New Zealand's most serious coni petit ior in the export of primary produce, is doing a great deal of research work for the improvement of her pasture lands, and it is necessary for New Zealand to keep ahead of the Commonwealth in that direction. This was the message given by Mr G. H. Holford, of Christchurch, in an address on “Grassland'Work Overseas,” to the New Zealand Grassland Association (reports the “Times”). Mr Holford traced the work being done in many countries and pointed to the large sums of money that were given for research work by private persons and bodies! not connected with the Government, in Australia. He showed by means of a motion picture some of the trials carried out in New Zealand and elsewhere. Mr Holford said that grass was the most important and universal of all living tilings. No country was so dependent upon grass as was New Zealand where 94 per cent of the exports were from grasslands, compared with 04 per cent in Australia and 17 per cent in Canada. Stock fed on grass in the Empire totalled 500,000,000 heads. Improvement of pastures meant more competition in animal foodstuffs and in seed export possibilities. A great advance in pasture improvement followed the establishment of the station at Aberystwyth in 1919. All European countries were conducting trials, and Canada and the United States were working on seed production and pastures.

LIFE BLOOD OF COUNTRY Australia was New Zealand’s greatest' competitor, and the Dominion must keep ahead of the Commonwealth in what was the life blood of the country. Australia was competing with New Zealand in butter and lamb, and was getting great results from her 4,000,000 acres of sown grasslands, compared! with Now Zealand’s 10,000,000 acres.! The Federal Government allocated £250,000 for research work, also £IOO,000 as a trust fund for trainin'? research workers. Victoria was the Australian State most interested in this work, and it was noteworthy that a considerable portion of the funds was ' given by private persons and semi- j private bodies. | The speaker argued the point as to' whether close-feeding of pasture in the autumn had a bearing on the capacity of the platns to absorb fertiliser in the season when growth was more or less dormant. He contended that root strength was to a great extent dependent upon leaf a pea, and that his experience had pointed to close-feeding being j a deterrent to early and rapid recovery. l A good deal of the work in New Zea-1 land was as good as anywhere else. I The amount of money given by private persons, particularly in Australia, should be impressive to New Zealanders, who should intensify rather than relax their efforts in research.