LUCERNE.

Otago Witness, Issue 3247, 7 June 1916, Page 13

LUCERNE.

REAL SOLUTION OF CENTRAL OTAGO PROBLEM. INTERVIEW WITH GOVERNMENT FIELDS' INSTRUCTOR. WORLD'S-GREATEST FODDER. It is said that lucerne growing marks the highest development in modern agriculture. The plant is tne agricultural wonder of the twentieth century, and the most perfect animal food known to man. It is very prolific, cheap to produce, highly nutritive and palatable, suiting equally sheep, cattle —botO dairy and beet —swine, poultry,, horses, and even bees, much honey being obtained irom the flowers, which are of all colours, but mainly blue or yellow. The roots penetrate, to an almost incredible depth, and in consequence of this lucerne is the salvation of dry and barren country and poor lands. The 'Government Agricultural Department has been experimenting with lucerne in Central Otago, and in view of what has been accomplished and the display now being made at part of the Government exhibit at the Winter Show, a representative of this paper had a long talk with Mr Maopher.son, the Fields' Instructor for the South Island, regarding the Mr Macphcrson is responsible for the Government exhibit at the show and is_ always prepared and willing to give, any information that may be required from him. Mr Macphcrson stated that a dominionwide recognition of the value of the forage, with the hearty co-operation of farmers, in establishing stands on even one-tenth of the area at present under cultivation would increase by 50 per cent, the volume of animal products available for export. What this meant might be gauged from the fact that at the present time the animal products exported totalled in value some £26,000,000 out of the grand total of exports of £31,000,000 as at December 31. No progressive farmer in the dominion should be satisfied unless he had a wellestablished lucerne stand on his farm. Lucerne growing was no innovation in the dominion. It had been grown for 42 years on down lands with clay subsoil on the Now Zealand and Australian Land Company's Levels Estate, Slouth Canterbury, and at the Clydovale Estate, Otago. That was in the early days, when the squatter reigned and when vast areas of land were at command, and there was abundanoe of other feed available for tho stock carried. Lucerne, however, was then considered too much of a luxury, and was only used particularly as a food for stud animals. . Lucerne was also an established production in Marlborough, where it had become one of the staple crops. The value of lucerne was first recognised in America, and wonderful development has resulted in the desert areas of California and other parts as a result of its cultivation during the past 50 yeajs, and more particularly tho last 12 years. From a few hundred thousand acres a dozen years ago expansion 'went on rapidly, to a large extent by the application of irrigation, until now there are something like 12,000,000 acres devoted solely to the plant. In the Rocky Mountains, in Colorado, at an altitude of 8000 ft, Mr Macpherson has seen lucerne being cut and baled, and was assured that a great part of what ho saw was to be shipped to Australia to feed stock starving as the result of drought. It had first to be railed 1400 miles to San Franciso and then shipped 7000 miles, and one could imagine that the prico of food transported such a distance must be high. The lesson was obvious. Argentine also used lucerne extensively, particularly for the purpose of finishing off fat stock. In Canada the Government was giving the utmost encouragement to tho grow of lucerne wherever it would prove of benefit, and the result was that at the present time at loa-st 1,000.000 acres were devoted to it. Tho exhibits at tho Winter Show are taken from several places in the South Island, but so far as Otago is concerned the greatest interest undoubtedly centres in that from the experimental area at Earnscleugh. The plants have been grown without manure or irrigation on the hill country, and have developed splendidly. A special feature is the prolific way in which they have produced seed, proving that tho climate, with its great amount of sunshine, should make Central Otago one of the best lueorne-soed producing districts in Now Zealand. At present the seed used in New Zealand is principally grown in tho Marlborough province, but very large quantities are annually imported from Europe and America. Mr Macpherson is convinced that it would bo a great advantage to Otago if it were produced here, and Central Otago promises to be specially favourable for that purpose. With tho double advantage of the food value and seed value there should bo a fortune in lucerne-growing in Central Ota,go to anyone who talces it up properly.

In proof of the fodder value, Mr J. Love, j of Springvale, Galloway, last year, on an j area of 25 acres, second years' growth, grazed 950 sheep from October 1 to the middle of December. He then took the stock off, cut a full growth, and then a half-growth, and has now eight stacks of lucerne. He intends to send some 60 tons tp Dunedin for sale, and yet this will leave him sufficient to increase the number of stock at present on his holding. Further proof of the wonderful growth and value of lucerne is given in the portion of the exhibits that comes from the .School for the Deaf and Dumb, Sumner, Canterbury. Here six cuts were taken off tins season. The first four were each three feet in length, and the fifth and sixth made a total of 17 feet —a wonderful result. These cuts are shown only on a small scale in the exhibit, the height being only 12 feet. The crops were produced on very poor soil, there being only about two inches of light sandy loam over sand substrata. The trouble about lucerne in New Zealand in the past has been that farmers did not understand how to grow it. Much wrong information has been disseminated from time to time, and tho difficulty is now to get people to know how different the process is from the ordinary farm crops. It requires explicit attention in all details during its early growth, and until it is fairly established. Lucerne grows at .its best only when it is in exclusive possession of the land devoted to it. Weeds and grass are deadly enemies; the plant fails immediately if the land is allowed to become weedy. When established lucerne is hardy, but when young it is delicate. It is necessary, therefore, that it should not be sown broadcast. The ground must first be made as freo as possible from weeds, well cultivated and brought to a fine tilth. The surface should then be heavily rolled to give a firm seed bed, except in the case of heavy clay land, when it may not be desirable to roll heavily. If a firm seed bed is not given, the land may subside during the early growth and tho plant will then die out. Tho seed should bo drilled in in rows not closer than 14 inches apart, these rows being kept straight in order to permit of a cultivator being driven through without injuring tho plants. It is important to stir up tho soil to let the air in, and also destroy growth, but tho lucerne roots must on no account be injured. The advice to use a disc harrow or tine harrows on a lucerne field is absolutely wrong, as such treatment means the ruin of the crop. About 151 b of seed to the aero is the correct quantity to sow for fodder in most cases. For seed purposes tho rows should bo about 24 inches apart, and the seed used should bo from 31b to 6lb tho acre. This allows of the better development of the plant, and consequently more seed stalks on which the seed pods are borne. Not fewer than two grubbings should be given in the season; more aro beneficial. In proof of the wonderful productivity of lucerne it may bo said that as many as three cuttings have been obtained within tho first 12 months. The plant develops year by year, and reaches maturity in about six seasons, after which it goes on continuously. In America there are places where it has been showing heavy results for 50 years without a break. Mr Macpherson is convinced that the seed for the dominion should be grown here. No seed should be allowed to be sold to farmers unless it is pure, has a high germination test, and is viable. In Central Otago the altitude is high, and therefore seed produced there is capable of standing the rigours of heat and cold, and is much to be valued. No part of the world, Mr Macphcrson said, is more adapted to lucerne growing than is New Zealand. The plant can bo grown in the driest seasons and in the most unlikely of soils without the assistance of irrigation, but where irrigation is neces sary in this country there, is abundance of water. The plant will not. grow on wet or sour soil. It thrives on dry, poor country, where nothing else will grow well, this being the result of the great penetrating power of the roots, which have been known to go in one instance 129 feet below tho surface. At Earnsoleugh the hill soil is very shallow, anel resting on a hard rock bottom, but in spite of this the roots make' their way downwards in an astonishing manner. It is beyond doubt that had the farmers of North Otago and Canterbury gone in for lucerne growing such a drought as that experienced last season would not have affected them, as the lucerne would have thrown sufficient growth to provide abundance of feed. The greatest return from lucerne is obtained by cutting it and feeding it direct to stock. It is unwise, unless great care is exercised, to graze sheep and cattle immediately upon it as, like clover, it is liable to cause bloat. Moreover, if eaten bare to tho crown of tho plant injury will result, and the plant is liable to die out. It is well to leave a certain amount of growth on tho plant during the winter season. For winter provision it can be made into hay. Herein lies anot'tfr of the reasons for failuro by those who have tried growing it. It is very easily damaged in harvesting-. The most nutritive part is the leaf, and if the hay is allowed to bo-

come dry the leaves fall off. It should be stacked while fairly green, and always bundled up and handled with the greatest care. When cut while wot it makes good ensilage, without, recourse to a silo, but for this purpose is bt'st mixed -with soma other crop, such as oats, ryeoorn, etc. To sum up so far as Central Otago !■ concerned, it may be said that the soil and climate are peculiarly favourable. Irrigation 'would in many eases he quite unnecessary, though an improvement. In soma cases, however, where the ground is exceptionally dry, irrigation would bo necessary. Irrigation would have the decided advantage of giving complete control of the moisture problem. In ordinary farra work everything depends on what happens with regard to weather, but in a dry climato with plenty of river water, such as Central Otago has, complete control is placed in the hands of the farmer. Those interested would do well to study the exhibit at the show, and better still were they to try nn acre or two under lucerne, closely following tho instructions given. At the School for the Deaf at Sumner an attempt was made for two years with broadcast sowing. This proved a failure. Mr Macpherson was then appealed to, and informed them that if they would closely follow the instruction? ?iven, and !»eleet the poorest portion o? _• rounds, the department would supp'' seed, lime, and inoculated soil for a I f. A quarter of an acre was drilled in two years, followed by a little less than a quarter of an aero about 18 months ago, with excellent results, as is proved by the fact that the institution has been milking six cows without other Heed, notwithstanding that the season haa 'been tho driest on record, and that th« country is not of a water holding nature.