MEANS FOR INCREASING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION IN NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XVIII, Issue 3, 20 March 1919, Page 140

MEANS FOR INCREASING AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION IN NEW ZEALAND.

By

A. McTAGGART, M.Sc.Ag.,

Agriculturist,

Apart from the highly important questions of increased population, closer.' settlement, and ; supply of capital, with which it is not my function to deal, there are numerous purely agricultural considerations which, ' if given widespread, practical, and ’ concentrated attention by our farmers, would increase the production of New Zealand - to a vast extent. It is such details of agricultural economy that count most in raising the. output of a country whose prosperity is mainly dependent upon what is produced from its soil. The following embrace the more important of these factors : —

DRAINAGE.

As one traverses almost any district in New. Zealand he is convinced of the great need there exists for systematic drainage of - not only agricultural but also pastoral lands. An extensive carrying-out of adequate drainage will of itself vastly increase production from the pastures and cultivated areas of the country. How many of our pastures are . growing plenteously rushes, sedge grasses, and other inferior and worthless vegetation; whereas these could be replaced by superior profit-producing grasses and . clovers. True it is that the capital involved in carrying out adequate drainage in many instances is a barrier, but.this is not always the trouble. It has been demonstrated over . and over again that within a reasonable time drainage pays for itself in the increased carrying-capacity of, or enlarged crop returns from, the land. Apart from the question of lack of capital, it may be . asserted that vast areas of country could be better drained, and so have their, productiveness greatly increased, were landowners to give more thought and attention to this important subject. They would , find that, there has already been designed and successfully used labour-saving machinery that could materially assist them. The drain or mole plough, for instance, has done extensive valuable drainage-work for Southland, and to a lesser degree for other districts. Its use, particularly on pasture lands of stiffish subsoil, is of very great economic importance. In North America the traction ditcher has been used extensively, its function being to dig daily long stretches of ditching and place pipes along the ditch-bank ready for subsequent ’ placing ’ in proper position. This labour-saving machine is of much importance for certain types of country, especially where extensive under-drainage is-badly needed owing to the stiff nature of the subsoil, where the land is otherwise of value, and where no stumps or buried timber exist. Again, where labour is fairly abundant, how much more drainage of land . could in . many instances be effected by using . ordinary farm implements, such . as the . single-furrow plough and the subsoil plough,

and employing manuka, stones, or rough timber for placing in .these ditches when completely, excavated! Further, as a last resource, the system of providing good surface-drainage, particularly for land to be laid down to pasture, could be employed. This method consists of ploughing, the paddock in comparatively narrow lands, high-. in the centre and low at. the sides, running with the natural slope of the land. Under-drainage in addition makes, of course, for "greater soil-efficiency, and is of permanent benefit to the pasture and other crops; As a final emphasis of the.importance of this subject, let it be stated that drainage is the first essential in the treatment of any soil, and without adequate, draining the land cannot respond to any extent to any subsequent treatment it may receive. It cannot grow cropspasture or otherwise—successfully. It may, then, well be asked, ' Are New Zealand soils as a whole growing as they should the staple crop of the country — ?

LIMING.

Next in importance to drainage in the rendering of soils fully productive is attention to the lime-requirement. Liming is almost unexceptionally required in New Zealand. The plenteous rainfall experienced ; the abundance of decayed or decaying vegetable matter with which most. soils . of the country are supplied ; the prevalence of large areas of swamp soils,' stiff clays or clay loams, and porous non-retentive soils such as pumice ; the preponderance of fern and manuka, scrub, whose roots render the soil sour, over large areas of the country factors all account for the soils of the Dominion as a whole being acid. Lime is universally required to neutralize this acidity, and to replace the natural stores of calcium that, through the course of centuries, have been neutralized by the organic acids evolved as the result of the process of vegetable decay, and the bases that have leached from the soil owing to the copious rainfall of the past.

Of agricultural lime there are two formsburnt lime and carbonate of lime (ground limestone). In general the former is more suited for soils well supplied with humus than for light sour soils deficient in humus, and, being more' concentrated than the carbonate form, is better adapted for long haulage from the railway. Carbonate of lime, while highly suitable for all soils reasonably supplied with moisture, is specially adapted for sour soils deficient in humus, for,'being a mild lime, it" does not attack the small humus-supply, and does not therefore cause loss of nitrogen. As in 100 tons of carbonate of lime there is only 56 tons of calcium oxide (burnt lime), ground limestone would require to be applied to the soil in practically double the quantity of the burnt form to satisfy the lime-requirement of a soil; moreover, owing to this lesser degree of concentration, it cannot be hauled by road profitably to the distance that burnt lime can. When haulage is a negligible quantity, however, finely ground limestone of satisfactory price is more to' be desired, all things considered, than burnt limedue principally to its greater ease of handling, its .greater safety in transit, and its non-caustic action on plant-food ..constituents of the soil. Increased quantity required per acre has nevertheless to be kept in’ mind. As to the quantity of lime required per acre, this depends upon the limerequirement of a particular soil, gauged by means of a modified system of soil-analysis. . ?

As an initial lime dressing for soils that have never been limed or that. have not been dressed for some years, however, I to 2 tons per acre of burnt lime (according to the extent to which the soil is supplied with organic matter and to the sourness displayed), or its approximate calcium-carbonate equivalent, 2 to 4 tons per acre of ground limestone, are usually applied to soils in, general. Nevertheless, obtaining the lime-requirement, either by soil-analysis or by carefully conducted plot experiments, is the only, accurate means of guiding the farmer in the matt of liming, not only as regards, the initial. supply required for a particular type of land, but also as regards the quantity required annually to maintain .the supply under a definite system of rotation farming adopted. In the absence of this knowledgeand the requirement will vary with type of soil, climate, and system of farming — as to maintaining the. lime-supply of soils in general, after.initial liming has been attended to, can only be given in the nature of supplying ground limestone in small quantity (2 cwt. to 5 cwt. per acre) with the manures when used for manuring the turnip or other crop with which fertilizer is supplied. Carbonate of lime is fairly, suitable for mixing with manures, especially those containing- nitrogen among their constituent parts. Failing this convenient method of keeping up the lime-supply, the system of applying a definite quantity every five or six years for instance, the quantities previously mentioned for soils in general—will require to be resorted ,to. This latter method is not an economical one for soils inclined to be porous, from which soils lime is leached considerably by a copious rainfall. For stiffish retentive soils it is, however, adaptive. But, as indicated, .the ascertaining of the annual limerequirement for definite types of soil, climate, and systems of rotation farming, by soil-analysis or by plot experiment, or by the two combined, is the only reliable guide in this question of liming.

Apart from these considerations, however, there exists the known fact that lime is required by New Zealand soils, and any legitimate means that can meantime be adopted for encouraging its universal use is justifiable, for there can be no doubt but that lime, used extensively and judiciously, will enormously increase the production of the country;

SOIL-RENOVATION AND MAINTENANCE OF FERTILITY.

Throughout the sections of the Dominion where cereal cropping has been practised persistently for a number of years, and in soils of the lighter nature, humus is required. Exhausting the virgin fertility, mainly through depletion of humus by continuous cropping, cannot always prevail if a soil is to remain productive. Commercial fertilizers are being used in large quantities throughout the country, and. lime is being applied more generally than formerly; but what steps, if any, are being taken to systematically replenish the humus-supply of our soils, particularly ■ of the soils above mentioned ? To my knowledge, practically no farm system of regular humus-supply has as yet been taken up seriously, and in the cropping districts it is time that some consideration was given to this, important matter. Traversing the older cereal-growing districts of the Dominion, it is evident, by the appearance of the soil in many instances, that humus is badly needed to restore the fertility of these areas. Lime and commercial fertilizers alone will not restore this fertility, however intelligently they are used.

Indeed, proper humus-supply to these , and other soils will render lime and manures fully effectivewill* make them go further. The practice of colder countries of annually treating , a portion of the farm with dung is practically out of the question in this climatically more-favoured land. Even .if farmyard manure were produced in quantity , here, soil-fertility could not be fully maintained thereby, for it has been ascertained by scientific investigations that 'even when stored under the best of conditions there is a loss of 40 per cent, to 50 per cent, of plant-food constituents in the manure. On the other hand, green-manuring .with leguminous crops will maintain. the fertility of the. soil. As to the most economical method of supplying green manure to the soil, the, practice of sowing red clover or cow-grass with. a cereal crop, and after harvest ploughing-under the dense subsequent .growth, has much to . recommend it. The purpose for which the clover is sown is one of soil-renovation, and one should not be tempted to .feed it off with sheep, no matter how good a crop it looks. Deliberately plough it under, and rest assured this action .will have a most. marked . effect

upon the —indeed, crops—that follow. It has been shown by experiments in North America that the ploughing-under of a good crop of red clover is . equivalent to applying 15 tons to 20 ..tons per acre of farmyard manure to the soil. By the, method just described of providing humus the season is not . lost, for on the same area a cereal crop is still'grown. Indeed, a better grain crop is produced, for the leguminous crop—red clover or cow-grass-—-stimulates the non-leguminous crop; and vice versa (another.scientific fact).

Failing the growing of clover with the cereal whenever and wherever grown, the system of setting aside each year a small fresh area and growing on it a legume for ploughing under may be resorted to. Eventually the whole farm, or the portion requiring renovating, could be so treated. This, of course, entails partial loss of. season. Again, stubble areas might be disked and harrowed in the autumn, and white mustard, rape, or crimson clover broadcasted. Later, "the crop selected (all . three grow, quickly) could be ploughed under chain attached to the beam of the plough dragging under all green material. Here again the temptation to feed off with sheep should be resisted, for on a soil lacking in humus, greater production can eventually be obtained from the land by the deliberate ploughing- of this crop. Crimson clover is to be preferred to the other, crops mentioned, for it is a legume, hence a . nitrogen-gatherer. ,

Should any one doubt the economic value of green-manuring to a soil known to be through various causes not too well supplied with humus, let him sow a small patch of red clover and plough this under in a paddock intended for oats. Later, when the oats grow and mature, let him note the difference between the green-manured and untreated areas. He can, if he desires, cut the oats on treated and untreated areas of the same size, and so estimate the difference, per acre, either in chaff or grain, produced by green-manuring. Seeing is believing, and this simple and easily handled experiment, if properly carried out, will in all probability astonish by its results many , people, especially on cropped soils and on the lighter soils of the country. This phase of profitable farming and maintaining a permanent fertility is of great importance, and one which is by no means receiving the attention it deserves. ' '

RIGHT CULTIVATION AND IMPLEMENTS

Wherever cultivation is carried out it is essential to '• increased production that it be as thorough as the season, labour, and facilities available permit. Thorough and timely, cultivation makes available plant-food and conserves : soil-moisture, the two most important' factors in promoting abundant- crop-growth. In adverse seasons attention to thoroughness and timeliness as regards Cultivation frequently means the ■ difference between success and failure in crop-production. A : fine : firm seed-bed is important in giving a crop a good start-a highly important factor ; and the rule to follow in. the seeding of crops is, the finer the seed the finer the seed-bed. Elimination, as far as possible, of rough-and-ready cultivation will go a long way toward materially increasing production from our soils. : \

The adoption of methods of cultivation and the use of implements suited to varying conditions of soil, climate, and labour-supply will, where possible, contribute a great deal toward increased output. Laboursaving machinery can materially assist in this direction. The farm tractor, on land suitable for its use, can play an important part.

In parts of the country where the rainfall is prevailingly somewhat limited, or where in seasons the weather conditions are dry during the growing-period, implements designed for “ dry-land ” farming could be used to advantage. In preparing a seed-bed under such conditions use could be made of the subsurface and surface packers, as used in the western States and provinces of North America. These .implements pack the soil, both lower and upper portions, and thereby encourage moisture to travel upwards by capillarity. The thin dust mulch that, in addition to packing, is produced by the subsurface packer tends to check evaporation from the soil. Thus moisture is both conveniently concentrated and conserved, and so made the most of by the crop subsequently sown. Disk drills, especially the double disk, also pack the soil around the grain as it is sown, thereby causing the young plant to have the benefit of a maximum of the moisture available in this comparatively dry soil.

Failing the use of these special-purpose implements, the roller, of as heavy a type as made, should be made plenteous use of in preparing “ dry-land ” seed-beds, and their use should always be followed by a final stroke of a chain or brush harrow to promote a . dust mulch, and so prevent evaporation. After every shower of rain in such climates or seasons a stroke of the harrows (light tine), where possible, will conserve this extra moisture* to a marked extent. Indeed, during a dry spell when a cereal or turnip crop seems to " stand still ” a stroke of the harrows (crosswise) often works like magic in promoting growth. This, again, is due to evaporation of moisture being checked and concentrated at the roots of the crop.

. In like manner the intercultivation of drilled crops during a dry season often means the difference between success and failure with respect to such crops. This being so, the expenditure on labour for such purpose where at all available or procurable is thoroughly justifiable. In other words, it pays. . ...-.•

. INTELLIGENT USE OF FERTILIZERS. A better understanding of the chemistry and use of commercial fertilizers on the part of a greater number of our settlers would be

a highly important factor in promoting an increased agricultural output. These valuable crop-stimulants are not as well understood by farmers generally as they might be. An understanding by the farming community of their use from .the standpoints of soil, crop, climate, and economics is of first importance. A good deal has been accomplished in this educational matter, but much remains to be done. Official experts are at the service of producers, and it behoves any settler who is in doubt as to the manures to use for his particular soil, crop, and climate to obtain advice on the subject from a scientific source.

USE OF GOOD SEED. —CEREAL-SEED IMPROVEMENT.

The sowing of none but clean seed of good vitality is of great importance to our agricultural industries. Unclean seed is dear at the cheapest price, on account of the waste of time, money, and labour, and of the far-reaching effects of polluted land involved in the sowing of impure and weak seed. 'The- significance of this subject must be well enough known to any settler without further enlargement here. In the cereal-growing sections of the Dominion the improvement of grain used for seed purposes presents an important phase of more productive agriculture. ' Much can be done by farmers themselves in this direction, and, when considered collectively, with most marked effect upon grain-growing in the Dominion. Much improvement of grain crops can be effected on the farm' itself by a simple form of selection. This consists of making provision each year on new ground for a seed-plot. A standard local variety of wheat or oats, or of both, is chosen, and previous to cutting the crop a number o' the best plants, judged from all standpoints, are selected and harvested by hand. The best seed from these is sown next year on the seed-plot, varying’ in size according to the extent of that cereal usually sown. Previous to the next harvest selection from the seed-plot is made, and the surplus seed therefrom is reserved for the seeding of the general crop. The process is continued for a few years, and eventually valuable highyielding strains are produced; Apart from this valuable cereal-selection work much good to grain-growing may accrue by the trial of varieties and the eventual adoption of those that best suit local soils and climatic conditions.

SUITABLE GRASS-MIXTURES AND PASTURE-FORMATION.

The laying-down of pastures with grass-mixtures suited to both soil and climate is an economic factor which, if more or less universally adopted, is also calculated to materially assist in increasing the production of the country. For moist climates and areas grass-mixtures suited to such conditions should be employed, and should include such grasses as timothy, meadow-foxtail, meadow-fescue, and Italian rye, and clovers such as alsike and cow-grass. For very wet more or less undrainable soils glyceria fluitans is very suitable. Rich soils, such as those of alluvial formation, are better fitted to hold rye-grass, and hence for such this 1 grass should be the dominant mixture-constituent. ' Red and white clover are also most adapted to these richer soils. For the lighter, more porous, and drier soils grasses and legumes of the deep-rooting type, including crested dogstail, sheep’s fescue, tall oat-grass, yellow oat-grass, poa trivialis, sheep’s burnet, lucerne, suckling-clover, and

lotus corniculatus should be employed. For stiff clay and clay-loam soils grass-mixtures should include crested dogstail, cocksfoot, timothy, poa trivialis, white clover, alsike, and cow-grass ; also lotus angustissimus for northern soils. Cocksfoot is a most adaptable grass, being of special value for broadcasting on hilly and rough land generally. The foregoing embrace the more important elements in computing pasture mixtures suited to varying soil and climatic conditions. Under this important consideration pertaining to the premier crop of the country, there arises the question of breaking up land and laying down to grass afresh. The best system, all things considered, is to adopt, where possible, a rotation of crops suited to the conditions and kind of farming carried on, and to lay the land down to grass periodically under this rotation. The period during which a particular area is pastured will be determined principally by its ability to carry a profitable grass lea and by its suitability for growing and the market prices prevailing for other farm crops. There is in parts of the country land that has been in pasture continuously for twenty-five years — many instances land that has never been broken up. Where land can be ploughed and cultivated it is decidedly in the interests of greater production to break it up periodically (this does not necessarily mean at short intervals) and to renew the pasture, preferably under a suitable rotation system in which grass is the dominant crop. Periodic renewing of the 'pasture crop, where at all possible, is of very great importance to increased agricultural production in New Zealand.

PROVISION OF WINTER FEED AND SUMMER FORAGE.

The provision of winter feed in quantity sufficient to carry livestock satisfactorily through that period of the year is a matter that should, particularly in certain districts, be given more consideration. In some parts the condition in which . dairy cattle, for instance, struggle through to the spring is deplorable; and this is due to neglect on the part of their owners to provide the' all-necessary winter feed. The climate of certain of these districts is highly suitable for the growing of suitable forage crops, and this is so to some extent even in the winter period itself. Apart from the provision of such feed in the form of hay, ensilage, or roots (mangolds, swedes, and turnips), in most parts of the country arrangements may be made for the growing in winter of certain forage crops, and their possession during this period by any farmer can be turned to profitable use, whether for feeding dairy cattle, beef cattle, or sheep. Among such crops may be mentioned Buda kale, thousand-headed kale, emerald rye, and winter , vetches, prairie-grass (Bromus unioloides) and crimson clover, Western Wolths rye-grass (for strong lands), oats and vetches, oats and field-peas, and dun oats. The last-named and emerald rye and winter vetches are perhaps the only crops that -will grow during the winter experienced in the southern districts of the Dominion, whereas all grow elsewhere during this period. With the climatic and soil-fertility conditions possessed by New Zealand there should be no excuse for live-stock to any extent wanting food. Most districts grow roots well, and where hay cannot be made ensilage can. be provided. Where, owing to unforeseen circumstances or other causes, all three cannot be produced, winter feed, embracing certain of the crops mentioned, may still be grown.

Ensilage-making affords an economical means of conserving surplus feed produced in seasons of good rainfall, for use during winter or during dry seasons that follow. In Australia ensilage has been kept for a period of ten years, and at the -end of that period was still palatable and otherwise satisfying to stock. Such conserved fodder is of special value to prevailingly or seasonally dry sections of the country. The extensive practice of this principle of surplus-feed conservation and the adoption of ensilage-making generally, in districts unsuited for haymaking thus present further means of increasing .the country's agricultural output. .

Summer forage—in the form of . maize, millets, sorghums, oats and .vetches, or oats and peas — serves to materially supplement the pasture when dried up somewhat in late summer and early autumn. This provision of abundance of succulent green feed for cutting and carting out to dairy . cattle tends to keep up the milkyield, and hence, if generally carried out, will considerably augment the output of dairy products throughout the Dominion. Lucerne produces the same stimulating effect, and is of great value in feeding in any form to all live-stock, summer or winter. The growing of this fodder wherever possible throughout the country will vastly increase agricultural production, so palatable and nutritious is it to all kinds of farm animals. Its perennial supply of the most nourishing of animalfoods, when once the crop is established, and its suitability, for providing feed in form of pasture, green feed, hay, and ensilage, render it easily the most valuable forage crop in the agricultural world. Where lucerne cannot be grown successfully red clover can be substituted, also with excellent results. -

IMPROVEMENT OF DAIRY HERDS.

The culling-out of the poor producers of milk — in quantity and qualityin our dairy herds by means of systematic testing will, if generally adopted ,>y dairy-farmers, enormously increase the output of dairy-products. -The breeding from none but good sires of recognized milk-producing strains, and mated with dairy herds from whence the poor producers had been culled, would also have very farreaching effects upon the future of the industry. ’ This phase of agricultural improvement is, however, so consistently presented in the Journal that no more than a passing allusion to it is here necessary.

CONCLUSION.

The field for agricultural education is vast. Improved methods, based on scientific principles, are needed even in this land favoured so much by the gifts of nature. Indeed, these very gifts to some extent stand in the way of the ready adoption of modern methods of proven value in the scientific and agricultural worlds. Time will assuredly see the general . adoption in New Zealand of principles and practice known to be raising the standard of agriculture of other countries. Knowing, however, from the experience of older countries what agricultural losses intervene when constructive methods are deferred for adoption during the later .stages of development of a new country, all concerned may be urged to bend their energies towards an earlier attainment of the desired end.