KALE AS A FORAGE CROP.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume LVIII, Issue 8940, 14 December 1907, Page 9

KALE AS A FORAGE CROP.

A SOUTHERN DEMONSTRATION

Mr Lowrie, the director of the Lincoln Agricultural College has demonstrated the great value of kale as a supplementary forage crop. There are several varieties of kale which have been cultivated for a lengthened period in Europe. For some reason its culture has hitherto been much neglected in New Zealand. Mr Lowrie has, however, succeeded in bringing its value before the farming community, with the result that it may be said to be fairly established. It is not intended that it should take the place of rape. As a forage crop, however, the kales compare very favourably with the varieties of rape. It will staud drought better than rape, it is less liable to blight, it is healthier

for stock

Mr Lowrie remarks: "I

have never kuowu kale to injure stock, either sheep or cattle, aud I have frequently had to take lambs off rape, when they have beguu to die from irritation in the intestines, and put them ou kale to recover. " The value, however, of the food from a fattening poiut of view is scarcely so high as rape. Y r ouug stock will fatten ou rape quicker, but wethers aud two-tooth sheep and over seem to do as well ou kale as they will do ou rape, aud the percentage of deaths will always be lower. A good block of kale should always be grown, for reasous above stated. It lias another advantage— viz., it cau with impunity be fed to dairy cows with little fear of taiuting the milk, as is not the case with rape.

The cultivation of kale consists in sowing the seed in drills, 21 inches apart, with lib of seed per acre. Sown in September, the crop will be ready for grazing in February, and cau be grazed right through the autumn. Stock should be taken out about the end of May and the crop left until the spring, when in the month of September it will yield an enormous amount of forage; but care must be taken not to feed it too closely at auy time. The plaut is a gross feeder, and must be treated generously if sown in indifferent soil. From 2 cwt to 3 cwt. per acre of manure should be drilled in with the seed. The variety known as "Thousand-headed kale" is the most generally useful.