SAVING GRASS SEED.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19218, 6 January 1926, Page 13

SAVING GRASS SEED.

HEAVY AND LIGHT CROPS. METHODS OF HARVESTING. SUGGESTIONS FOR STRIPPING. 1)\" w.s. Owing to the high prices ruling for all classes of stock, especially sheep and cattle, many farms are considerably understocked, and there is every indication that grass seed will be fairly plentiful this sealion. With this in view, those intending saving grass seed should have, their binders and strippers in readiness. Whether tho crop is to be cut or stripped will depend upon tho size of tho crop. If the crop is sufficiently heavy or well grown to allow tho binders to make good work, cutting is undoubtedly the most profitable practice, as a much greater quantity of seed per acre is obtained than is possible when the stripper is used. On the other hand, however, when the crop is rather thin and short there will bo a deal of waste and much time lost, besides unnecessary expense in attempting to reap it. In this case tho stripper may bo profitably used, though less seed per acre will bo gathered. Tho seed will, generally speaking, bo of more value per bushel, as only the heaviest and best of the seed - will find its way into the stripper. Stripping Grass Seed. For stripping the crop must, of necessity, bo thoroughly ripe, otherwise : only a small proportion of the seed will be beaten off, unless, of course, the machine is geared very high and the beaters not very close. This, however, is of no great advantage, as in such a case the beaters will knock off a great amount of straw as well as half-ripened seed which will, in turn, give trouble in curing the seed, as it will require very careful handling to prevent it from heating in tho bag. Therefore a stripper, to do effective work, should be so geared as to knock off all ripened seed only, without gathering too much straw or dummy heads, and without bruising half-ripened heads any more than possible, otherwise much valuable feed that happens to bo growing among tho crop will bo wasted. Another advantage gained l>y stripping is that the field can be lightly stocked within a few weeks of stripping, provided, of course, the grass has been allowed to get a good growth in the spring. Sheep aro not at all partial to ryegrass after it has shot out into ear, and, if thero is sufficient undergrowth to satisfy them, tTioy will leave tho heads alone until the seed begins to fill or ripen. At this stage, however, the sheep should be taken off, because just before the seed commences to ripen the heads again becomes palatable to stock and they will leave the undergrowth and eat off the heads in preference. The usual way is to allow the field to gain a good start in the spring, then lightly stock with sheep until about two or three weeks previous to ripening, then take them off until after the field is stripped. A week or two after stripping, tho stock can be put back on again. When to Take Sheep Off Seed Grass. There is no need for any special knowledge as to tllo time to tako the sheep off a field intended for stripping, as the 6heep aro an excellent guide to go by. As soon as thero is any sign of them leaving tho undergrowth and taking to stripping off the heads, they should be taken off at once a$ they will devour much of the valuable seed. If not already done, the strippers should be got ready. This work is too often left until the time arrives for them to bo out in tho field, which, to say the least, is false economy. There are different methods of handling the seed after the strippers, the choice of which must vary according to conditions. Where there aro several strippers working in tho same field a large quantity of seed will be gathered in a day. Therefore thero should bo a good supply of sheets to spread the seed on, and sufficient hands to handle the seed. Two men, in an average crop, can handle the seed after the strippers. A good plan is to tako a large sheet (one mado out of sacks will assure tho purpose), and peg it down at each corner. This is for tho strippers to pull on to for emptying tho seed. More sheets should be laid down for sun-drying the seed after it is rough-riddled. A swinging riddle should be erected close to the edge of the sheet, where the strippers pull on to. A good handy riddlo can bo mado by taking two pieces of timber Bft. by 3in. and one-inch thick, and one piece of 3 by 1 three feet long. Nail tho 3byl at one end of the eight by three, leaving the other end open. The latter is for the straw or leavings to pass out to the ground. Next tako a piece of perforated zinc §in. mesh, tack this securely along the wholo length of the frame. z>r, better still, make the zinc 6 inches short, and tack a 6 by 1 piece of timber on the bottom of the open end of the riddle. This forms a month for tho riddle and strengthens the frame. Next tako four fencing stakes and drive them securely into the § round. This is to swing the riddle on to. 'our holes are bored, about one foot from each corner of tho ricldle and through these holes is run a piece of plough line. Now fasten each rope securely to tho stakes. Tho above forms a swinging riddle for the purpose of taking the rough heads or straw out from the seed. This reduces the bulk and leaves less bulk to bag up. Working and Storing. The strippers, laden with seed, are pulled on to the sheet and emptied, and the seed is left to bo dealt with by the men operating tho riddle. The seed is then shovelled on to the riddle, or a petrol One man attends to the seed while the tin can bo used for feeding the riddlo, other works the riddle with a shuffling motion. In this way the seed drops through tho perforated zinc while the rough straws aro carried over the open end of ahe riddle on to a small sheet, and dragged away into a heap to be burned. Tho riddled seed is spread out on another large sheet and dried in tho sun as much as possible before it is put into bags. Of course, this method of riddling does not leave the seed free from all straw or leavings, as thero is still a lot of short straw in the seed. This, however, is essential for drying purposes, _as it tends to keep tho seed from setting too close together and thus prevent it from heating. Many are of tho opinion that grass seed, stripped and rough riddled in this way, cannot bo saved without having large areas of granary floors available to spread the seed on ior drying. Tho work of saving seed can bo done quite well without the use of a granary at all. The seed is simply put into chaff sacks, one bushel in each bag, the bag being tied at the mouth, thereby having tho bag only puarter full. This leaves plenty of room for the wind and air to penetrate. Old manure bags make excellent substitutes for sacks, but when these are used only half a bushel of seed should be put in. The bags are then carted away to the nearest wire, or post and rail fence. They are thrown across the fence with an equal quantity of seed on either side. This forms a ridge and will turn heavy raius. For the first day or so tho bags should bo pulled off the fence, shaken and again thrown over the fence. After a few days' drying in this way tho seed can be put through the mill, or grass cleaner, an'l put into full sacks and stored in the ordinary way.