Farm Production in War-time

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 59, Issue 5, 15 November 1939, Page 379

Farm Production in War-time

Interim Programme for Increasing Dominion's Exports

R. P. CONNELL,

Organiser of Farm Production, Wellington.

| An interim programme of farm I j production to meet war-time s 1 /conditions is ' outlined in this i 1 article. The recommendations 1 I are economically sound for I I both normal and abnormal ) [ circumstances, and point the j | : way to increases in production j jin our chief farm products. j ♦ I——llll——HU——llli——llli——llli——llli——llli——llli—llli—HU——ll«J«

THE programme of farm production which, after consideration by the National Council of Primary Production, is now recommended to farmers,' should be put into operation to the greatest extent practicable. This programme is an interim one. Altera tions in our circumstances, which if is imposisble to forecast, may call for, its revision, but if we do not have to face a change in circumstances, the programme may be expected to stand as sound. (1) The Use of All Available Supplies of Phosphatic Fertilisers. This calls for but little comment. The value of fertilisers for arable crops is well established, and it is estimated that there are at least 7,000,000 acres of grassland utilised for fat-lamb production and dairying which may be expected, as a rule, to respond profitably to phosphatic topdressing. In addition, there is a fairly substantial area not devoted to dairying or fat-lamb production on which phosphatic topdressing is known to increase the yield of pastures to a profitable extent. We have been topdressing approximately 3,300,000 acres annually. (2) The Local Production of an Increased Supply of Better Pasture Seed. The need for this exists even if the war-time farming programme does not lead to an increased acreage under the plough. The programme should, and probably will, lead to increased ploughing. The main species calling for attention are perennial ryegrass, cocksfoot, white clover, and red clover. The perennial ryegrass position is generally considered to be the most satisfactory, but actually it is weak, as may be seen from the following facts: About 600,000 acres are being sown down to grass each year. Of this, 100,000 acres is the estimated acreage of temporary pasture sown annually.

. There remains 500,000 to be sown in permanent pasture. , t . f . Approximately 170,000 bushels of certified seed or its equivalent is used locally each year. _ This means that on the bulk of the area annually sown to permanent pasture perennial ryegrass of poor or uncertain type is used. An increased use of the plough will intensify this weak position. '. , ■ \ In short, while our total production of seed of the more important pasture species has been quite sufficient to meet our needs, our production of seed which is known to be of good type is quite inadequate, and a war-time programme involving an expansion in the area ploughed can be looked upon as completely sound only if it is associated with the provision of adequate supplies of seeds of good type or strain

at the time resowing to permanent pasture is to take place. (3) The Increased Local Production of Seeds of Arable Crops, such as Mangels, Carrots, Turnips, Rape, etc., and of a Range of the Main Vegetables. In the past a substantial amount of this seed has come from the Continent of Europe, some directly and some as re-exports by Britain. The aim should be to make ourselves independent of such imports because of the prospective lack or uncertainty of overseas supplies. It is of importance that, in general, the earliest. possible action by New Zealand will not relieve the position until the 1941 harvest of seed comes into use. It may be advisable to grow seeds for export •as well as to meet our own requirements. The position is being fully investigated, and already arrangements have been made to meet some of our most urgent needs by local production. (4) Increased Production of Dairy Forages and Feed, including Those Advisable for Baconer Production. There are two main lines of approach:— ■ • < ' (a) Increased haymaking and ensilage. (b) Increased acreage of arable crops, including home-grown sup-

plies of barley, peas, maize, and roots for pig-keeping. In typical dairying districts under normal conditions, when pasture management is reasonably efficient, about 40 per cent, of the total area of an* allgrass farm • annually becomes available for hay or silage production. The area harvested for hay or silage is only a small fraction of that which becomes available, so that the scope for expansion in the conservation of surplus pasture-growth is very substantial. , The greater the exploitation of hay and silage potentialities the less becomes the need for arable cropping on dairy farms, but quite often such crops are useful and profitable, especially when pig-keeping is made the feature of the farm operations that it is fitted to become. . Adequate provision of reserves of feed for the use of dairy herds, may be expected to have the following results:—Better herd-averages, less disease and mortality in stock, and the production of better young stock for replacement purposes.

(5) Increased Provision of Sheep Forages. Although the need for increased provision of reserves of feed probably is not so acute in sheep farming as in dairying, nevertheless it is known that

an expansion of special feed production in sheep farming quite often would be profitable. The objectives of such production are:— . . ' (a) “Flushing” of ewes where no provision for this is now made.—There is evidence that flushing is often associated with such an increase in the number of lambs born as to make it profitable. In .a major sheep farming area

an average increase of 8 per cent, in the lambing percentage was found where flushing takes place in comparison with the results under similar conditions except that the ewes were not flushed. (b) Better feeding of breeding ewes in winter and early spring as a means to both lessened mortality in the ewes, especially at or about lambing, and smaller losses of lambs between birth and tailing. . In a main sheep farming province of a mild climate in. the North Island a recent investigation has indicated an average loss of 9 per cent, of lambs between lambing and docking. It is considered that among the main causes of this loss are: — . ‘ (1) Weak lambs due to the poor condition of their dams. (2) “Mismothering” arising from the ewes having a scant supply of milk due to their inadequate feeding. If a 5 per cent, increase in : the average lambing percentage could be brought about by lessening ewe-mor-tality, by increasing through flushing

the number of lambs actually born, and by lessening the loss of lambs between birth and docking, the net result would be an increase of 1,000,000 in the number of lambs produced without increasing the number of breeding ewes. (c) In planning their production of forage crops during the war - sheep farmers should face the fact that the war begets uncertainty in shipping programmes, and that any. serious upsetting of shipping arrangements may quickly lead to meat-works not being able to handle fat stock ' just when they become available. Hence, as a common-sense precaution there arises the need of special feed provision in addition to that which ordinarily is advisable, the objective being to avoid a general dislocation of the stock-feed-ing programme as a result of having to hold fat stock beyond the date expected and to obviate fat stock deteriorating to a store condition. (6) Elimination of Leakages in Production. Important causes of leakages in farm production are . diseases of crops, insect pests of crops, diseases of stock, weedinvasion, and the ravages of rabbits. The points of prime practical importance are that there is a substantial body

of knowledge on the economic means of minimising such leakages, and that these means are often overlooked when it would be quite practicable to employ them. In crop-protection alone much could be achieved by the universal application of knowledge which has become -available ‘ during recent, years in regard to fungicides, insecticides, disease-resistant • crops, and deficiency disorders in crops. It may be said with certainty that full advantage is not being taken of our knowledge relative to the control of diseases in .farm stock, while there is ample scope for the more effective handling of the problems of rabbits and weeds. As full use as' is desirable is not made of the information available at a nominal cost to individual farmers from the Meteorological Office. . Such information is particularly valuable in respect of such matters as shearing and haymaking. ... Sound Programme The -programme of farm production as outlined is economically sound in' that it provides for courses of action which quite well could be followed in normal . circumstances.

A vital feature of .. the programme is that the proposals for arable cropping, require 'to be associated with) sound grass-farming. work, the essentials in which are . the , use of good strains of pasture species in the resowing of -the land and the adequate use .of fertilisers on the grassland. If ' the programme is • carried out it will leave our farming in a. better position for production than it was ever before.' The expansion in arable work which it involves should lead not to a depletion' of land but .to the . replacement of present inferior pastures by superior ones. -

Each June there is held at Massey College, Palmerston North, a meeting of sheep . farmers at which lectures ,on subjects, of vital interest are given, by members of the staffs of the college and various Government departments and by farmers and others. These lectures, together with discussions, are published in booklet-form by the college and, ;as advertised elsewhere in this issue, are now available from the college at a cost of 3/6 (including postage).

In the personnel of the National Council of Primary Production given in the “Journal” last month the name of Mr. L. Maclean, chairman of the Electoral Committee of the New Zealand Meat Producers’. Board, and a member of, the Council of the New Zealand Sheep-owners’ Federation, was inadvertently omit-: ted.