SPRING WHEAT

Timaru Herald, Volume CLVIII, Issue 23260, 23 July 1945, Page 2

SPRING WHEAT

Appeal T o Farmers Increased Acreage Essential "The difficulties attendant on increased auiuagj oi sprnu-jjwn wneai are it-ahsed, but they art- not of such magimuue nor are they so numerou: occasion ana overcome tnem in me national interest, • said me Director- . General oi Agriculture 'Mr E. J. rawceit) m a broadcast address. Mr Fawcett explained mat he was speaking particularly to larmers \\no nau ccnivmpiated growing wneai ; ior the 194 b-id Harvest, but wno had own prevented irom doing so by aonormai wtauier. Tney had been nopeiul that a total of approximately 300,d0j acres oi autumn-soun wneai would be planted this year, but again me weamer had been unfavourable and me area estimated i.s now in wheat was lar below the oojective. In lact, unless tney could retrieve the position by additional sowings oi spring wneai, the Dominion would be lorced to rely on larger supplies from overseas in 1946—and any surpluses oi wneai were urgently needed in other countries where it was . not possible to produce Decause oi conditions associated with war. Probably some areas m the South ; Island mat normally would have been sown with autumn wheat would now be sown wim oars or barley, for spring i wheat was not. suited to all districts. ! Mr Fawcett continued. In those loca- ; lilies where spring sowing was sound ; miming practice he appealed ior every i acre possible. Every acre would count . m 19*16 and he was sure that farmers would respond. Although North Island lamiers had discontinued wheat-growing to a great extent there were many areas where spring sewing represented sound and economic farm management. His appeal was not based wholly on patriotic grounds— i for the' conditions mat had made : autumn sowing difficult were advan- ! tageous to spring sowing. He recognised that some modification of farming programmes might be entailed, but 1 this was a comparatively small incon- i venience when compared with possible i shortages in the Dominion’s essential ' food requirements. Varieties Recommended As a result of research and experi- ; mental work in connection with i wneai. the Department now had varieties that had widened the area over 1 which spring wheat could be success- : fully grown. In the Norm Island Cross 1 7 had very largely replaced solid ! straw Tuscan ana Jumbuck, and the variety known at Tamui was giving good results. These two varieties were strongly recommended and should be given priority. If. as a rf >ult of increased demand lor seed wheat for : pring sowing there was insufficient of tnese two varieties, Tuscan and Jumbuck could stili be relied on to give satisfactory yields. As a result oi last season’s harvest conditions care would require to be exercised in selecting and purchasing seed wheat. Many of the best certified lines were damaged during harvest by the grain sprouting in the stook, and although there was a recognised certification standard as far as sprouted gram was concerned, it was probable that uncertified seed would a~ times require to be used. However, •seed merchants had been watching the position closely and had selected the most suitable lines to be held for seed, so there should be no anxiety in this connection. The wheat crop had been given 1 every consideration as far as the ration of fertiliser was concerned, and the most generous allowance possible had been made. In the South Island the allowance based on superphosphate had been increased from 1 cwt to 1. cwt an acre, while the ration for wheat in the North Island was 2 cwt an acre. Experimental work with serpentine super on wheat had shown that cwt for cwt serpentine superphosphate could be obtained in place of 20 cwt of straight superphosphate, the former —that is serpentine superphosphate—should be used if obtainable at the time of sowing. While the ration of 2 cwt an acre in. the North Island was not as heavy as th? application usually employed. it was felt tha r much oi the additional acreage devoted to wheat this spring would be land that had been in pasture for a number of years and therefore comparatively high m fertility. Under such conditions 2 cu. of fertiliser an acre would be amp.: to ensure a good crop of wheat. “Owing to a variety of reasons which have operated during the war years," Mr Fawcett concluded, “much of our pasture land has shown some degree of deterioration. and the time is approaching when sound pasture management will' necessitate much of this being ploughed and resewn. How better could this requirement be approached than by first taking a crop of wheat?'