Seasonal Notes

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 69, Issue 2, 15 August 1944, Page 153

Seasonal Notes

Spring-Sown Cereals

Now that spring is coming farmers may resume their sowings of cereals so that the target objectives outlined for each crop will be reached. This calls for effort particularly from farmers on those soils and in those districts most suited to' spring sowing. Wheat Three hundred thousand acres of wheat are required to be planted this year. Farmers nearly reached this objective in 1942-43 when they grew 287,000 acres. Each farmer should therefore try to improve on his programme for that year and those farmers, with land and facilities for growing wheat who grew little or no wheat in that year should endeavour to grow some this year. The wet weather that has prevailed in. the late autumn and early winter months over most of Canterbury and Otago and in the North Island has resulted in light autumn and winter sowings, particularly on the heavy soils.. In Canterbury on such soils spring sowings of wheat are generally successful as long as sowing can take place in August or early September. In the moister districts of Otago, in Southland, and in the North Island spring sowings of wheat are commonly practised and are generally more successful than those made in the autumn. Sowings .in most of these areas up to October are generally productive of good crops, but the attempt should be made to sow this month if soil conditions permit. .In the North Island the Tainui variety is recommended, except on the heaviest land in the wetter districts where Cross 7 is more suitable. ? - ■ " : ■ ' ■ •, ’. i Barley Thirty-eight thousand acres of malting barley are required as against 30,000 grown last year. Barley for malting is grown in recognised malting barley districts in the South Island, and each grower of barley is therefore required to increase his acreage by about 25 per cent. In addition, 40,000 acres of feed barley are needed, mainly for feeding pigs, and therefore most of this should be grown in the North Island as close to the pig farms as possible to save transport.

Barley will not stand wet and cold conditions, and generally, except on light soils in dry climates, is spring sown. For malting the two-rowed recognised malting varieties should be sown. For production of feed barley in the North Island sow Cape or Black Skinless barley. The sowing should, be at the rate of about 1| bushels per acre in the South Island and 2 bushels per acre in the North Island, and for malting' barley, in particular, careful attention should be paid to even drilling of the seed. Oats Oat production should be maintained so' that further importations of seed oats are not necessary. Oats for threshing have shown a serious decline in recent seasons as follows: Area in Oats ( ' Season. for Threshing. 1940- 71,700 acres 1941- . . 70,800 „ " 1942- .. . . 56,300 „ 1943-44 ' . . . . 48,400 „

In the North Island farmers should make an effort to satisfy at least their own chaff requirements. Every year many tons of oat sheaf , chaff are brought to the North Island from the South Island. The crop can be readily grown and harvested in the North Island and every ton grown there means a reduction in the strain on our internal transport system so evident at the present time. North Island farmers wherever possible should also grow oats for threshing to satisfy horse feed requirements and to provide'seed for sowing greenfeed crops next autumn. For all purposes Algerian oats should be sown in the North Island, August being the best month for sowing and the seeding 3 bushels per acre.. In the South Island spring-sown oats should' be confined to the moister districts of Otago and Southland. Here rust is not prevalent and Gartons Abundance is the popular variety on account of its high yield and the quality of the grain which is suitable for milling. The millers have been busy to an increasing extent in providing oatmeal, not only for domestic consumption but also for export overseas. The surplus over and above milling requirements is used for feeding

horses and to provide seed for next year’s crops. Oatsheaf chaff is also needed to feed horses and to an increasing extent to supplement winter fodder crops for sheep. Maize - In the maize grain growing areas over 10,000 acres of maize for threshing will be . required, as against 7251 acres grown in those districts in 194243. This means an increase of over a third in the area and calls for great effort on the part of the maize growers to keep this country self-supporting in this important product. Maize is in short supply on the world’s market, no doubt due partly to shortage of shipping space, and if we are to increase our production of eggs and pig meats it will be necessary for the poultry and pig farmers with suitable soil and climatic conditions to grow some of their own requirements and not rely entirely on the maize grower. Maize requires a moist, warm climate with no severe frosts from October till April. The seed is sown at about 14 lb. per acre in drills about 30 in. apart with 12 in. spacings, but sometimes it is . grown on the square with 30 in. spacings. Until the plants are a foot or so high the land may be harrowed to destroy weeds, the grower picking the hottest part of the day for this practice so that the least damage is done. After that very shallow intercultivation is necessary till the plants have grown to an extent to prevent further cultivation.

Preparing for Hay and Silage Making

TJLANS should now be made for the A closing of , fields when spring growth commences. Decisions not only have to be made concerning which fields should be closed, but also the order of closing. For silage fields should be chosen from those which make early growth and will be ready for cutting well before weather conditions are suitable for hay making. Thus fields' for silage should contain a high proportion of early grasses and clovers such as ryegrass or subterranean clover. These fields should be shut up from stock in September in the earlier districts or as soon as spring growth commences. The fields for hay should be closed a fortnight or a month later than the silage fields, dependent on the local climatic conditions and the type of pasture. Thus fields for hay should be closed at a time when a good leafy growth of grass and clover will be produced ready for harvesting at a period when reasonably good weather conditions can be expected. Therefore in districts where harvesting weather is not normally experienced till January fields should not be closed until October. In other districts, unless a late grass such as cocksfoot or paspalum is present in the sward to a major extent, fields closed in October would produce in normal seasons a light and stemmy crop and should therefore be closed one month earlier. Fields for hay or silage should be in

good heart and should not be made to produce these crops frequently unless they are in exceptionally good condition. The closing of a field and cutting for hay or silage tend to make the sward open and weedy and encourage inferior grasses such as sweet vernal. Such fields may continue for some time to produce fair crops of hay, but will produce little feed during the remainder of the year. • At this time of the year farmers should proceed to overhaul all the harvesting machinery used for hay and silage. This can generally be done during spells of wet weather. When the machinery, was housed after the last harvest all working parts should have been well greased so that rust could not affect the efficiency of the machinery. The mowing machine in particular should be subjected to careful inspection and any parts requiring renewal should be. replaced. Particular attention in this respect should be paid to the cutter bar to see that it is in perfect order and any worn sections are replaced. In overhauling harvesting gear the condition of the ropes, masts, and booms should be carefully inspected and replacements effected of /weak or worn parts. If any part is suspect it is better to purchase the replacement now than wait until the article breaks during harvesting operations, for such delays are often costly both in. labour and quality of the product.

Spring Sowing of Grasses

TpXCEPT in very cold districts the sowing of grass can ' safely commence next month. In some years sowings in late August are successful in the milder climates. It is all a matter of temperature and condition of the soil; the latter should be fine, firm, and not saturated with moisture. Spring sowings are not advisable where the climatic conditions and type of farming permit of a better chance of successful establishment by sowing in the autumn. Spring sowings are advisable where there is ample summer rainfall and the winters are severe and it is imperative that the young plants be firmly established before the first severe frosts occur. In some districts where the summers are dry it is necessary to sow in the spring because of the severity of the winters. In such areas the risk of failure is great and. special care has to be taken to secure good establishment. In Canterbury and other arable districts ’it is common to sow pasture in the spring on land sown to cereals in the autumn and with spring-sown cereals or fodder crops. The farmer who does this obtains extra immediate production from his land, but in the long run it may not be a good practice, particularly when . sowing with a fodder crop. Light Sowings If grass must be sown down with a fodder crop it is advisable to sow the crop ‘on the light side so that some light will penetrate and enable the young pasture to live and make progress. Thus sowings of rape should be not more than 11b. per acre on light and IJlb. per acre on heavy land and turnips not more than 6 oz. The grass seed should be distributed after the fodder crop has been drilled and covered and the ground rolled. After the grass seed is sown it should be covered by a light harrowing followed by a further rolling on light soils. If the fodder crop establishes more thickly than anticipated and threatens to smother the young pasture, feed it off early to a sufficient extent to check its growth and permit the young pasture to establish satisfactorily. The establishment with autumn-sown cereals depends on whether the ground can be surface worked well enough to cover the seed properly. If the crop is too long to permit working the ground it will be necessary to feed off the crop. Where the soil .is heavy the feeding off should be delayed till the

ground is fairly dry and should not be done in wet or showery weather. The ground should then be harrowed and the seed sown, followed by another harrowing, and a rolling on light soils. Cultivation and sowing practice with spring-sown cereals is the same as that for fodder crops. ~ In the March notes the kinds and types of grass and clover seed which should be sown at that time of the year were fully dealt with. The mixtures advocated will prove as suitable for late spring sowing, but Italian ryegrass sown in early spring is liable to bolt to seed head and produce little leaf, and should therefore not be sown then except under very . favourable conditions.

Tree Planting TN the seasonal notes for May farmers were reminded that that month was the generally-accepted time for commencement of the planting season which could be continued, except in the coldest districts, throughout. the winter months. In the coldest districts tree planting can be recommenced in the . spring, when danger of severe frosts and extremely cold spells of weather is over. Planting, however, should not be continued in these districts beyond the end of October unless a moist summer climate is commonly experienced. In districts where the winters are mild enough to permit of planting throughout there is ample time for this work to be completed at the end of this month. In such districts where the soil dries out in summer it is not advisable to continue planting after the end of this month.

Early Spring Harrowing of Pastures

piELDS on which cows have been fed hay, silage, and other supplementary fodders become trampled and well coated with droppings by the end of winter. Before the grass commences 'to grow in the spring these fields should be well harrowed to spread the droppings .. and distribute the rubbish usually resulting from feeding hay and silage. If the field is to be shut up subsequently for a crop of hay and silage, a good lookout should be kept for pieces of baling wire or other material liable to cause trouble when the field is mown. If. much hay of poor quality has been fed, the older droppings will prove particularly difficult to break up, and ordinary tine harrows or tripod harrows may not prove . severe enough

even when weighted. There have been special harrows on the market for 'many years for this purpose. If the droppings are not broken up properly and spread, the pasture they cover will be smothered and that adjacent to the droppings, being disliked by stock, will not be eaten. Thus not only is latent fertility in the droppings wasted through their not being spread to the benefit of the whole pasture, but each undistributed dropping results in a small area of ground going temporarily out of production. In the spring it is quite common to see the waste that occurs in fields on which much hay has been fed to cattle in winter. Dotted here and there are oases of taller dark green growth surrounded by lighter' green short pasture. If the droppings are properly spread the oases may still be seen, but the difference in growth and colour is not so 'great and there is less smothering and fouling of the sward where the droppings previously lay., In the spring, the droppings do not cause so much trouble because, being more liquid,. they dissolve much more quickly, their place being soon taken by pasture plants. Hence the need to

harrow is not so great then as it is at this time of the year, particularly on pastures on which stock have been concentrated through the winter months.

Spring Topdressing OW that increased ' fertiliser supplies are being made available to dairy farmers for topdressing purposes attention will need to be given to the best use that may be made of them. On lime-deficient soils, whether straight superphosphate. or serpentine superphosphate is used, it should be sown only on fields which previously have received ample supplies of lime. The farmer should not be afraid to sow his fertiliser soon after it arrives. Supplies available in the spring can be used first to topdress autumn-sown pastures and secondly fields shut up for hay and silage; Next he should pay attention to those fields which have deteriorated to the greatest extent through lack of fertiliser, provided that clover is still present in the sward and the pasture has not. reached the state when resowing is advisable. . ’ ■

Mole Drainage WHILST there is no cheaper method ’’ of drainage' in clay soils than mole drainage, there is no method that has been so attended with disappointing results. Probably because it is cheap farmers are apt to be more careless in planning the work and properly completing the job. Like all other systems of drainage the most important 'aspect and the one most likely to be overlooked is the outlet. Many a field has been traversed with the mole plough and no work done to see that the drains are properly connected with outlets protected from damage by stock. Mole drainage is best carried out when the subsoil is moist and the top of the ground firm enough for traction. These conditions are obtained in the spring when the topsoil has dried out. The subsoil should be heavy in texture and free from obstructions such as timber or stones. In regard to depth, it has long been generally accepted that the moles should be placed a few inches below the top of the clay subsoil. The recognised distance apart is 9 ft., but this should be varied, dependent on the heaviness of the soil texture and the amount of water requiring. drain-'

age. The fall should be either uniform or increase towards the outlet and should be . apparent to the eye. On steep slopes the drains should be run across the face of the hill to prevent scouring. Connections of moles with the major one to carry the water to the outlet should be carefully made so that no obstruction remains. The moles should

discharge into a tile drain or through a tile or tiles. If into a tile drain the connection is best made with stones of scoria. The outlets from the tiles should be properly protected from stock and inspected every autumn to see that they are discharging clearly.

—J. E. BELL,

Acting Land Utilisation Officer, Wellington.

One cord of firewood measures 128 cub. ft. and is generally placed in a stack 8 ft. long by 4 ft. wide by 4 ft. high.