ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS

Otago Witness, Issue 3100, 13 August 1913, Page 19

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS

By Agricola

“Farmer” asks how many pounds of ; linseed is sown to the acre, and ho also | wants to know whether it requ-res artificial j manure, and, if so, what kind; also, the best 1 way to prepare the soil? Although soils rich in organic matter, heavy clays, and gravelly sods are not generally considered so suitable for linseed as those of the medium class, any soil in which this crop is grown should bo in good heart and in fi.no condition. It must find its needed supply of food within a limited range and in an available form. As a rule linseed follows a straw crop, but may bo taken any time if the ground can be got fine enough. If the stubble is well cleaned in autumn and thrown up to the winter’s frost, such treatment gives an ideal tilth for linseed. A light Roller should be run over the finished ground, so that it can bo drilled in evenly and shallow. Little covering is wanted for the seed. One and a-half bushels per acre will yield a better sample than two bushe’s. Twenty bushels (551 bto 561 b per acre will be a good crop, and 2cwt per acre of superphosphate would not be too much to give a crop which extracts as much from the ground as an average of wheat or beans. i