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but some stocks of seeds had become very impure, and in view of the drive for increased acres of maize it was deemed advisable to provide a source of seed of reasonable purity. Seed of the parent material has also been imported from the raisers, with a view to producing locally seed of the original hybrid generation. The fluctuations in the production of Government-approved turnip and swede seed do not indicate that a shortage of the former may be expected. The altered production from the 1946 harvest is a controlled one. On the one hand, increased carry-overs of turnip seed enabled a considerably reduced area to be required for seed purposes, while, on the other hand, production of swede seed was increased to build up the diminished reserves from the previous season. A very appreciable increase has taken place in the quantity of seed potatoes tagged as certified after examination of the tubers. This is all to the good, in that, while similar quantities of good-quality seed from provisionally certified crops may have been utilized in past seasons, the buyer is entitled to receive seed which is satisfactorily identified as being the produce of such crops and to have this seed properly graded. Seed-testing Station Requests for seed-testing services during the year 1946 exceeded previous records. The increase of work coincided with an acute staff shortage and a continuance of deficiencies in equipment resulting from wartime restrictions overseas. In these circumstances there was an aggravation of difficulties which have recurred with increasing weight since the early years of the war. Number of Samples.—The total number of samples received for testing during the calendar year 1946 was 44,933, of which 17,176 were officially drawn samples of seed for certification and 27,757 were samples received directly from merchants and farmers. The number of samples received in each of the past five years is as follows: 1942 . . . . . . 21,793 1943 .. .. . . 23,964 1944 .. .. .. 26,960 1945 . . .. . . 35,000 1946 .. .. .. 44,933 The growth in demand for seed-testing was due mainly to the expansion of seed-production and the activity of the export trade, but partly also to the increasing appreciation on the part of merchants and farmers of the importance of seed quality. The number of tests carried out during the year is shown in the following table, with the figures from previous years for comparison:—

The work was fairly evenly distributed through the year. The decline in the rate of receipt of samples during the early summer provided an opportunity for disposing of large arrears of work and for the overhaul of equipment.

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— 1942. 1943. 1944. 1945. 1946. Purity 17,469 20,079 22,350 29,366 33,732 Germination 21,793 23,964 26,960 35,011 40,000 Ultra-violet tests 3,106 2,201 4,675 4,150 5,190 Picric-acid tests 2,954 3,628 3,455 4,780 7,258 Totals 45,322 49,872 57,440 73,307 86,180