PERENNIAL RYEGRASS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21431, 4 September 1931, Page 4

PERENNIAL RYEGRASS

SEED PRODUCTION IN THE SOUTH \ WORK IN OTAGO AND ■ ; ' SOUTHLAND An interesting and thorough survey of conditions in Otago and Southland during the past season with respect,to the production of certified ryegrass seed in these provinces constitutes a feature of , the August issue of the Journal of Agriculture which is of particular moment to southern pastoralists at the present time. The writer' of the article, Air K. xh Tennent, fields superintendent of the Department of Agriculture' - for -Otago and Southland; has included local information ( of the greatest importance; and on this account it is reprodueed'.belbw an* full. Perennial ryegrass, writes. Mr 'Tennent, has assumed the most important place as a foundation grass in New Zealand pastures, largely, on account •Or . its adaptability to varying .soil and climatic conditions, and its inherent ability of producing palatable foliage over a long period of .the year. The recognition of this has ultimately led to its being regarded by* all farmers as an' ideal pasture base, with the result that of all grass seed in New Zealand it easily takes pride of place. Naturally the bulk of the ryegrass seed produced in this country is used within the Dominion ; for the renewal of old pastures and the establishment of new ones, comparatively little export taking place.

. ;, HEAVY, SOUTH ISLAND CROP. It' is •• of? icbniridefable : interest to note that during-the season 1929-30 9,922,7271 b of perennial’ ryegrass seed was Produced, ancf of -this amount the North Island liarvested 1,120,7291 b. as against 8,801,9981 b m the South Island. -The South Island, therefore, is the main..source of production, this-fact being largely accounted for by the rotational cropping practised there, necessitating as it does the frequent break-ing-up of -pastures for the. growing of crops. When snch 'land after having been cropped is sown down again to grass, the usual’ practice is; to, harvest a seed crop within the first two years; the farmer usually securingiA '-gbbavificftietary return which more than repays him for his labour and cost of production. In this manner an internal seed trade has evolved in the Dominion which occupies an important place in the farming programme. This type of farming has reached its greatest intensity in Otago and Southland, which last season produced 6,031,6371 b of perennial ryegrass seed, practically twothirds, of the Dominion's total production. Consequently any adverse movement affecting the reputation and subsequent sale of southern seed is of paramount; importance .to- growers, .and-the, seyqjrd crjti;- ; cism has been made during the past few years as to the value of southern seed for the production of first-class permanent pasture has aroused considerable interest, naturally admixed with strong feeling, on the part of growers in the south. Recent research work by . Levy, andDavies at the Plant Research Station, Palmerston North, has conclusively shown that New Zealand ryegrass is not a homogeneous species, but is comprised of many individual types; and as an outcome of painstaking investigation they have classified the bulk of ryegrass produced, in New Zealand into six distinct types., ',',Of these, two may be;,considered as truly,'iperennial and, as practically equal in value, ns herbage producers, whereas the remaining four types range from fase perennials (type 3) to genuine annuals (type 6). These lastnamed, either from the fact of their low production ability and incapacity to recover after hard grazing or cutting, or-to their purely annual habits, are of /relatively low value, being practically: useless for the establishment of permanent pastures.

EXPERIENCE IN 1930-31 SEASON; During the season 1930-31 441 acres passed field inspection, the seed produced being certified. These crops were kept under close observation throughput the frowinfig period. On practically every arm the germination of the seed was good, and excellent “strikes” were obtained. The crops, in the main, grew well, and were quite equal in rapidity of establishment to the . locally grown seed. Several growers asserted that the certified seed established more rapidly,; and appeared superior to the ordinary ryegress sown elsewhere on their farms. The bulk of the crops were closed for seed production, and heavy growth resulted, leading farmers to believe that heavy seed crops would be obtained. In some cases the growth was so heavy that great difficulty was experienced in harvesting. Unfortunately, the harvest season , of 1931 in Southland and South, Otago was an extremely bad one, wet conditions, with cold winds, prevailing, and as a result the seed harvested from the certified crops was_ adversely affected as regards germination capacity. This feature was common to all ryegrass seed produced in these districts, but there can be no question that the germination of the seed from the certified areas was much lower than that obtained from the ordinary southern-grown seed. It would thus appear that when grown under wet, cold conditions, particularly when such occur at the time of flowering, genuine perennial seed from the North Island is more-susceptible to such adverse conditions than acclimatised' southern seed, and that under such conditions germination is likelj' to be low. This only emphasises the necessity of farmers in the south producing their own supplies of certified seed, in order to have it acclimatised to local conditions. It has, however, to be stressed that, although from this year’s experience growers have been disappointed with the germinating capacity of their seed profered from the wet season. These have duced from certified ryegrass, the actual pastures established have in no way sufcome up to expectations, and time ■ will clearly show that such pastures will be much superior to those sown down with the inferior types already referred to. NEED FOR EXTENSION. It has also to be pointed out that in North Otago, where conditions were much drier and warmer during the harvest season than was the case further south, good crops of certified seed were obtained and the germination of the seed was.in every way excellent. The results of the past season’s trials with certified ryegrass have thus- been most successful in North Otago in every respect. In South Otago and Southland although the pastures sown down with certified seed have esablished rapidly and grown excellently, producing reasonable crops of seed, it is unfortnate that the germination of such seed has been low. This, however, must not be regarded as damning evidence as to the unsuitability of certified ryegrass for the south. Rather must it be taken as an indication of the necessity of extending the growing of this type of ryegrass for the establishment of permanent pastures, to the exclusion of all inferior types, so that acclimatised strains may be rabidly produced. In conclusion, it can fie positively asserted that, given a normal harvest season, certified ryegrass will produce seed of high germinating capacity in southern districts.