GORE EXPERIMENTAL AREA

Southland Times, Issue 20111, 23 February 1927, Page 6

GORE EXPERIMENTAL AREA

FARMERS’ FIELD DAI’. The annual field day at the Gore Experimental Area is now becoming quite a feature. The gathering, held at Gore yesterday, w T as arranged at the request of the Gore Branch of the Farmers’ Union, and the members of that body should be well pleased with the response made by the farmers of the district. Farmers started to arrive about 1 p.m., and shortly after Mr R. McGillivray, Instructor in Agriculture, took the party on a tour of the various experimental plots. The first block visited was a large area of swedes manured alternately with super 2cwt per acre and potash lewt. It was noticeable that the super and potash divisions showed a better growth than super alone. In this block there were also two plots in which experiments were under way for the purpose of eliminating dry rot, a disease that causes great loss in Southland. Another interesting plot was where various rock phosphates were being tried out in the growing of swedes. The next experiment explained was the potato one, where last year’s work is continued in connection with corticium disease control. Present indications are that in some of the plots this disease has been successfully dealt with. The experiments carried out this season in the complete control of smut in oats appears to have given satisfactory results. Smut was found in plots treated with formalin and bluestone, but under the hot water treatment no smutted heads were found. A nice young pasture block was next visited. Mr McGillivray explained that portion of this block had been limed at the time the pasture was laid down, and it was apparent that the lime had exerted a most beneficial effect on the growth of the various clovers and grasses. The mangel block created quite a lot of interest. The manuring of this crop was as follows—(a) Super 2cwt; (b) super 2cwt, 30 per cent, potash lewt; (c) super 2cwt, 30 per cent, potash lewt, dried blood lewt per acre. Mangels are not very common in Southland, but good yields were obtained on the area last season, and this season’s experiments promise to be very successful. The block that perhaps received most attention was the Chou Moellier manorial experiments. The whole block had been badly infested with the grass grub, but wherever potash was included in the mixture the growth was extremely good, and the grass grub did not seem to have done any damage. In the turnip block potash again showed up well. In all cases where it was used the growth was vigorous and the plants looked very healthy. Numerous other experiments were also explained, after which Mr H. E. Bacon, chairman of the Farmers’ Union, asked Mr McGillivray to address the gathering. Mr McGillivray said he was very pleased to see so many present, and explained that the Gore Area was now largely devoted to fertiliser trials, and the investigation of diseases of turnips, swedes, potatoes, and oats. He showed that the loss due to diseases like club-root and dry-rot in turnips and swedes amounted to a very large sum per annum. The work of disease investigation started at Gore many years ago, but it had ceased and had been re-started on somewhat different lines in 1924. He referred to the work of Messrs Cunningham and Neill, of the Biological Division, in connection with the investigation of plant diseases. He mentioned that last year on Gore Area the swede seed treated with hot water before sowing produced a crop that had less than a half per cent, of dry-rot infection, while the same line of seed untreated produced a crop with 15 per cent, of infection. Mr McGillivray also referred to the wonderful results they had had with potash and also to manuring generally. Mr H. Smith, of Waikaka Valley, also spoke on the good work the Department of Agriculture was doing. Mr David Dickie spoke on fertilisers and their general use and the good results obtained from super in combination with lime. Mr H. E. Bacon put in a plea for experiments with sugar beet, and also general experiments with fertiliser.