ON THE LAND

Taranaki Daily News, 14 February 1931, Page 24 (Supplement)

ON THE LAND

WHEAT FOR PIGS. RESEARCH IN AMERICA. When wheat could not bo shipped from Australia during the early stages of the World War, owing to shipping space being required for the transport of soldiers and war materials, many farmers found it more profitable to feed the grain to pigs than to accept the low prices ruling. Mr. G. T. Kerr, who was one of the original settlers on the Strathkellar closer settlement area in the Hamilton (Victoria) district, secured a much more satisfactory return for wheat utilised in this way instead of selling the grain at 2s fid per bushel. The substantial drop in wheat values this season has turned attention in Australia to, the use of wheat for fattening swine a matter of economic necessity, and although the same conditions do not apply here, the subject holds a large increase of interest to New Zealand.

The use of wheat for feeding swine, not having been a general practice in the past, 'brings up the questions of the relative value of wheat as compared with maize, as also the best methods of feeding wheat. All these questions have been investigated by research workers in America. Plumb and Anderson at the Indiana station and Snyder and Burnett, at the Nebraska station, compared dry, whole wheat with shelled maize. In Indiana the cereal grains were supplemented with skim milk; in Nebraska tlie pigs had access to lucerne* hay. Pigs averaging about 771 b were used in the feeding trials. Shelled maize proved to be the better feed under the conditions of these trials. The pigs fed maize gained 1.13'51b head daily, whereas those fed the whole wheat gained only 1.021 b. Furthermore, it required only 3901 b of shelled maize for 1001 b gain, while the wheat-fed. pigs required 4321 b for 1001 b gain.

This brings up the question, whether wheat should be ground for swine. In six trials by Missouri, Ohio and Nebraska stations, ground wheat was compared. with ground maize. The pigs averaged about 1001 b in weight at the beginning of the trials. In three of the trials the cereal grains were fed without supplement, while in the other three trials were supplemented 'by additional protein. The ground grains were fed as thick slop. Averaging the six trials, the pigs fed ground maize gained 1.1361 b per head daily, requiring 522.61 b feed for 1001 b gain. The pigs fed ground wheat gained. 1.2191 b per head daily, requiring 474.41'b feed for 1001'b gain. The pigs on ground, wheat gained 13.6 per cent, faster than those on ground maize. One hundred pounds of wheat proved equivalent to 1101 b of maize, not considering the cost of grinding wheat. It is well-known that it does not pay to grind shelled maize for pigs. Weaver, of the Missouri station, got slightly better results from ground wheat alone than from a mixture of equal parts of ground maize and ground wheat. Henry, of the Wisconsin station, however, obtained slightly better results from equal parts of ground maize and ground wheat than from ground wheat alone. The old practice of soaking feeds for swine has been brought down to date on some American farms. The Nebraska and Indiana station compared, dry whole wheat with soaked whole wheat. Pigs averaging 881 b ( were used. On dry ‘whole wheat the pigs gained .8911 b per head daily, requiring 5001 b grain for 1001 b gain. A gain of .941 b per pig daily was made from soaked, whole wheat, requiring 4781 b grain for 1001 b gain. Comparing soaked whole wheat with soaked ground wheat five feeding trials show an average' daily gain of I.llBlb per pig for soaked ■ whole wheat, and 1.3541 b for soaked ground wheat. Commenting on these experiments, an American writer says: “Thus far we have shown that feeding wheat ground and soaked is a better practice than feeding dry whole wheat or soaked whole wheat. Now let us compare ground soaked wheat. fed alone as a slop with the same supplemented, with tankage and middlings. The average of five feeding trials shows that pigs fed wheat alone averaged to gain 1.1581 b per head daily, whereas similar pigs getting protein supplement averaged 1.3561 b per head daily. Henry and Morrison 'summarises the result of three feeding trials in which ground wheat and ground maize were compared, both being supplemented with tankage. On a daily ration of 6.21 b ground w-heat and .64 tankage, pigs weighing 1641 b gained 1.541 b per head daily on 4401 b feed for 1001 b gain. Similar pigs averaging 9-Slb averaged 1.371 b per head daily in 4541 b feed for 1001 b gain from daily ration of 5.61 b maize and .58 tankage.

Apart from the fact that wheat should be» ground for pigs, the feeding of.it for best results is very similar to feeding shelled maize, says an Australian authority. Both feeds require supplemented feeds. In the case of feeding shelled maize the self-feeder is advised, both for the maize and the supplemented feeds, except where skim milk is available as the supplemented feed. There is not any experimental data on self-feeding dry, ground wheat. It is possible that better results would be secured from feeding the ground grain as a slop to.the limit of appetite than feeding it dry in a self-feeder. In ease skim milk is not available as a supplemented feed, an American expert auggeste a mixture of 60 parts tankage, 20 parts linseed meal, 15 parts middlings, and five parts lucerne meal for pigs in dry lot. This mixture is suggested either for wheat or for maize. It should be fed in a self-feeder. RED CLOVER TYPES. VALUE IN THE PASTURE. An instructive commentary on rhe importance of red clover in pastures by Mr. E. Bruce Levy, agrostologist, am Air. W. Davies, of the staff of the Welsh Plant Breeding Station, Aberystwyth, at present seconded as plant geneticist to the Plant Research Station, Palmerston North, appears in the current issue of the Journal of Agriculture. They refer to the fact that the type of red clover now dominant in world markets plays its greatest role in temporary and short-rotation pastures and point to the desirability of producino- a type which could hold its place indefinitely 1 in the mixed sward. The typical broad red clover, they say, has apparently been evolved as the result of years of short-rotational farming practice. New Zealand red clover is essentially of this particular type, though, as they point out, our broad red is slightly longer lived than the ordinary European red of this type. Such clover, the world over, however, is characteristically short-lived, as, for the short-rotation system under which it has been evolved, high persistency has been regarded as a secondary consideration to rapid establishment. They point out, however, that with high renewal costs and the ever increasing practice of top-dressing, the trend is ° definitely in the direction of long-

rotation and truly permanent pasture. The great question confronting the research worker, therefore, is the production of a red clover that can take its place and hold it indefinitely in a mixed sward of ryegrass, cocksfoot, timothy, crested dogstail and. white clover. The writers are definite on the point that there is a place for a red clover in the permanent pasture. It must, however, be a type'' that will persist and blend in with the other dominant species. The broad red sown to-day, they say, is in many respects dangerous to include in a permanent sowing. It establishes rapidly, and produces in the first year an enormous bulk of herbage that quite overshadows and smothers much of the truly permanent elements such as perennial ryegrass, crested dogstail and white clover. Then, in the second year, its yield rapidly falls off, the plants die, and a weak, open, poor-ly-constituted pasture is left to carry on. An ideal permanent pasture red clover should not establish more rapid- ) than the other constituents of the mixture, and it should blend in and harmonise with these other constituents, yielding a seasonal quota of feed when th; otlier species are at a low stage in production. They are of the opinion that red clover will best fit in during that period from the falling-off of the ryegrass and white clover shortly after December until the recovery of these when the weather has definitely broken in the autumn. In this critical period red clover should fit in together with cocksfoot or paspalum. The extra late flowering red clover types, such as Montgomery or Cornish Marl, are more likely to fill this role, they think, than any early flowerincr type such as the ordinary broad leaf clover. The Montgomery Red, with its lower set and more densely tillered crown, is structurally more fitted to persist under grazing conditions than the open-crowned, few-tillered broad red types. If a red clover is ever to be introduced into our permanent pastures the hope of success lies very much more definitely in Montgomery. Red than m any other type. The trials in New Zealand with this clover up to the present certainly indicate that some measure of success in this is assured.' Another important point made is the need to cater for export requirements. Great Britain is probably our greatest potential buyer of red clover seed, and her requirements' for a persistent red clover are more specific than our own. In New Zealand, with its milder winters and autumns that favour comparatively easy re-establishment from seed shed, persistent strains would appear to bo less absolutely essential. In Great Britain, particularly in western and northern districts, there is less chance of autumn re-establishment and a great’ er degree of winter killing than in New Zealand. Highly persistent, truly permanent types are what Britain is likely to demand in th© near future. The writers do not advocate abandonin<r the growing cf broad red’clover in New Zealand, %ut rather of adding Montgomery Red as a special type, keeping in mind always that as the world °demand for a truly permanent red clover expands so should our crops of this increase in order to cater for that demand.

Red clover is considered a particularly interesting species, as it provides an example of how environment, natural or modified to suit human purpose, selects out of the type best fitted to survive for the particular end in view. The low-production, small-leafed, wirystemmed wild forms, it is pointed out, arc the outcome of an environment peculiar to the very old pastures of Great Britain. Montgomery Red and Cornish Marl are types cultivated respectively in the long-rotation pastures of certain parts of Moptgomeryshire and Cornwall. The late red group, as represented by Hersnap and Atl aswe de, are intermediate between Montgomery and typical broad red, and, judging from their behaviour in New Zealand, are intermediate in demand of environment between these two major groups. The broad red is plainly the outcome of arable and short-rotation farming, where the more tardy establishers and lower early-yielders are rapidly eliminated, either by the smother or by the fact that their seed does not ripen simultaneously. The extreme broad red type is represented by certain French, Chilean and Italian types, such as Lombardy red clover. This latter type was the first to establish in New Zealand trials, and during the first year it was always ahead of any other type. In the second year, however, it failed badly, and was the first to go out under our mowina trials. Finally, the writers suggest that in the hands of a skilled plant-breeder a red clover for any soil and condition could ultimately be evolved, and that while many types may b© useless as competitors with species already filling a definite role in our grasslands there are still unfilled places that co'uld well be filled by- certain types of red clover. SECOND-GROWTH COUNTRY. PROBLEM OF REVERTED LAND. The annual report of the Fields Division of the Department of Agriculture for the year 1929-30 contains the following reference to second-giowth country: “Experimental work on hill country (particularly in the Whangamomona County) reverting to secondary growth has been continued, and the excellent results secured are being made use of over a wide area of country wherein the conditions are similar to those existing there. The demonstration farm conducted in Whangamomona County under the provisions of the Deteriorated Lands Act has been carried on throughout the year, and notwithstanding that it is being run partly on experimental lines the good work done by those responsible on the place has resulted in quite excellent returns being shown. The instructional officers of this division continue to co-operate with the officers of the Lands Department in the work necessitated in connection with advances under, the Deteriorated Lands Act, particularly in the back country of Taranaki and the King Country, and great improvement is shown. This is brought about chiefly by the use tf fertilisers and by subdivision. There are still 871 farms under supervision.”