I

E A i' 46 years.. all have been kept at the Experimental Farm. ,Cliarlotta- town, and the following compar- isons are made for the year inst ended: . I V

The m temperatures for the months Jan and F . were I dun” 191' "W1 "'3 is years average. Temperatures mm March to November did not deviate more than a degree from the V. '. December tempera- uu-es recorded to date would in- dicate thst' the mean tempera- me for the month will be at least 3 degrees below normal.

Coldest days of the year were pebruary lst and 3nd. when 14 degrees below zero was record- ed. The warmest days were the uh and 10 of July when 87 de- grees was recorded. The total precipitation for the Year WI! 8!? proximately 3 inches below nor- mal. There was no extremely heavy rainfall, and with the ex- ception of the period from June uth to July 14th. when only .61 inches of rain fell, there was suf- ficient precipitation for the growth of all crops.

The hours of bright sunshine were down by 300 hours in 1955. and the mouth of May set a new low record when only 122.! hours were recorded in comparison to the long-time average of 116.3 hours. Seasonal conditions were such as to give average to above aver- age yields of potatoes. fodder corn. pastures, hay and clover, slightly below average yields of cats and poor yields of rnangels and barley. Generally speaking, weather conditions were satis- factory for field work.

ST AFT

Two members of the professional staff, namely Graeme Boswall end James Nicholson. were grant- ed leave of absence for post- graduate studies. Mr. Boswall is now at Macdonald College taking an advance course in Soil Chem- istry, and Mr. Nicholson is at Cornell University, Ithaca. New York. taking courses in Animal Nutrition and Animal Breeding. Both will return to their duties at the Farm in late spring.

Changes in the staff included the appointment of Lane Douglas is the position of Poultryrnan, and the reclassification of a number at full-time prevailing rate em- pioyaueto classified positions. Harold Macftae. Farm

ehfillan. Gardener; James Baldwin. Gardener; James Wil- liams. Herdsman; Harold Storey. Herdsman; Frank Gaudet, Plot- man.

PUBLICATION!

"Experimental Farm High- u'htg,'f. . joint publication of the (Abe Experimental Farms in the

and interested individuals. . is a very useful publication and gives thsrnsults of the major experiments conducted during the

year 1964. "Crop Variety Guide for use At- lantic Provinces" was revised diuggtheyesr andisnowheing dis uted. This publication gives a list of the varieties of cereals. forage plank, small fruits, tree fruits and vegetables recommend- ed in the Atlantic Provinces. no-

use of the great variety in tem- Eraturea and soil conditions. the H e.Provinces are soned. and the recommendations are made for gonna. Both publications are avail- able on request to any of the Ex- perimental Farms in the Atlantic Provinces

Vtlan Provinces. was publish- la&Wsl, 1956. andis ninth:-. . I ted to farm organisa-

VISITOR!

As in former years, many vis- itors from the town. cities and country came to the Experimental Farm to study at first hand the work being investigated, and to seek information on farm prob- lema. Many school children came for icnlcs and to collect insects. plan and seeds of various kinds pr school projects. Technical

ps. such as the Agricultural titute of Canada, the Federal- Provincial Conference. R. 0. P.

Inspectors, and Poultry groups, used the Station facilities for various 1:

urposes.

, Clubs of Prince Edward

Island had a mammoth Field Day August where a King -and sell of the 4-H Clubs wei'a

crowned. This ceremony was fol-

lowed by a parade through the

iottatowa '

streets-of . been was had

Thad-H

A chicken under-the itu-isolation sfthe P. E. 1., Poultry industry Committee. Various Bread Associations. and particularly the Ayrshire and

-Breeders. held their an- ,nual Meetings 1',

aior Activities Co-nducle menial Farm In '55

Federal - Provincial Agricultural Council was held at the Expert- mental Farm in February. This is an annual event where all Fed- eral and Provincial agricultural

the purpose of acquaintiug one another with the activities of their various departments and for mak- ing plans for studying new prob- lems and for co-operating one with another.

'The total number of visitors during the year was approximate-

orgsnized groups. Owing to the proximity to the City of Charllotte- town. many of the visitors are urban people. A total oi nearly 5.000 were classed as urban. A surprising number of visitors from the United States and other Parts of Canada visit the Farm.

APICULTUBE

Despite heavy queen losses and unfavourable weather during the month of June. and the first two weeks of.July, the beekeepers in the.Pr-ovlnce , duced an average crop of honey.

Studies on the value of the antibiotic, Fumidll B, for the con- trol of Nosema in bees, were con- tinued at the Apiary at this Form. The value of bees as pollinators for cucumbers was studied with the co-operation of Mr. Malcolm MacNell, Long Creek; Mr. Claude Vessey, Tryon; Mr. Lewis Mac- Donald, Cornwall; and Mr. 'S. A. Drake. west River. The testing of hybrid queens from the On- tario Agricultural College Apiary at Pellee Island. and.the manipu- lation of queens in package coi- onies, were also major projects.

The Apiary Division, in cooper- ation with the Provincial Deput- ment of Agriculture, imported and supervised the distribution of 920 two pound packages of bees which were obtained by 110 bee- keepers.

ANIMAL IDSBANDRY

At the end of the year. the herd of Ayrsllires at the Experi- df

mental Farm numbered 79.

which I) were breeding females. 3 young cattle, and 7 herd sires. Three of the latter were on loan from breeders,

The average production of all cows completing a lactation dur- ing the year was 9.344 lbs. milkand442lba.offat.iNmIIl average lactation of 316 ,days. Compared with the average for ths breed. the index for milk pro- duction was llli and for fat pro- duction 139.

In line with the herds on the Experimental Farms across Canada. a uniform feeding, breed-

and management schedule is owed. The meal mixture used for the milking herd during win- ter ls composed of crushed oats. 500 lbs.; crushed barley, zoo l1bs.; wheat bran. m0'lbI-Vllnleed Oils meal, 100 lbs. This mixture is fed at the rate of one pound to four pounds of milk produced. pa pasture. the milking cows receive aslmple meal mixture com red of 000 lbs. of oats and 4001s of barley. Cobalt iodlsed salt is fed attberateollpercantofthe meal mixture and steamed bone- meal at the rate of 2 per cent. in addition, the cows are given free access to a salt lick.

Dry. pregnant cows are fed a mixture composed of oats. M0 lbsz; barley. zoo lbs.; bran, 200 lbs.. and are fed at the rate of one half pound of meal per 100 pounds of body weight. daily. The mineral mixture for the dry cows is slightly different from that of the milking cows. Bonemesl is replaced with monosodium phosphate. The rnonosodium phos- phate is fed at the rate of 8 per cent of the meal and the ground cobnlt iodlned salt at 1 per cent.

The feeding of rnonesodium phos-

at.Ile rsrm. Tbephate to dry cows. in place of

workers meet for several days for f;

ly a.9oo. Among these were so ,

Gnns:Nn' A ouinurr.-H T IN 1953 s7'onI:(is:nnW H nnnnnmo

of rate of 4 lbs.. morning and eye-

MR. R. C. PARENT, Superintendent, Experimental Farm

bonemeal. appears to have lessen- ed the incidence of milk fever.

in body weight. or butt ' t con- tent of the milk. The cows on a full silage ration did exhibit a craving for hay and. until this craving can be explained. some hay. at least is recommended to be fed along with the silage. It is interesting to note that the average consumption of silage per cow on the full silage ration was approrirnately 72 lbs. per day. One pound of hay replaced ap- roxlsnately 3 lbs. of silage.

LOSBEI IN ENSILING GIIASSES AND CLOVEIIS

Records of the past three years provide some interesting obser- vations concerning losses in en-

-and other breeding troubles.

From six months to one year of age, breeding heifers are given a meal mixture composed of oats. 500 lbs.; barley, 200 lbs.; bran. 100 lbs.. and oilcake meal. 200 lbs.

No meal is given to heifers from

one year of age to two months

before freshenlug. All animals in

the above categories are given good pasturein summer and good quality hay and silage or roots in the wintertime. Ayrshire heif- ers are bred at eighteen months of age.

CAI.-F FEEDING

Many farmers have commented on the fine appearance of the young calves at the Experimental Farm, and. for the benefit of those interested. the feeding schedule is given below: 'The calf is left with the mother for

12 to 18 hours after birth. This allows ample time for the calf to get a good feeding of the colo- strum mllk. For the next 12 to 18 hours. no feed is given to the calf. It is then given whole milk, preferably its mother's, at the

filing. After the first week. a small amount of water is added to the milk at each feeding until two pounds of water have been added. to make a total of 6 pounds of milk and water.

After four weeks. the milk is gradually educed. and at 8 weeks. the milk. is stopped. The total amount of whole milk fed is slightly less than 400 lbs. No skim milk is given.

Call starter. In pelleted form. is fed as, soon as the call is in- terested. that is. at abonl ten days of age. After two months this a gradually replaced by a mixture of oats. 500 lbs.; barley, 200 lbs.; bran. 200 lbs. and oil- cakc meal. 200 lbs. This is the same mixture as is given the dry cows and is fed at the rate of from three tn four pounds a day up to one -vr of age. Good hay is available, in rocks in front of the calves at all times. A mineral mixture of 1 per cent cobalt iodin- ed salt and 2 per. cent steamed bonemenl is also kept before the calves. The same is true of drink- ing water. Spring and summer calves are kept in the stable throughout the summer. Fall and winter calves are put out to pas- ture in the spring. All calves are dehorsed prior to ten days of age.

RESULTS OF FEEDING GIASS SILAGE TO MILK COW!

An important experiment com- paring the feeding of grass sil-

siling grasses and clover: under different methods of handling. in a trench silo filled with thirty- three tons of long grass. in 1953. there was a total loss of 45 per cent through spoilage and shrink- 8K9- From thirty-eight tons of Chopped grass stored in the same silo in 1954, losses amounted to 31 per cent. Losses in upright silos filled with chopped grass were Ill per cent in 1953 and 3 per cent in 1954. Experience indicates that.. if the moisture content of silage” ranges from 65 per cent to 70 perj cent, losses through shrinkage and spoilage are at a minimum.

CEREAL CROPS

Seasonal conditions in 1955. were not favorable for cereal pro- duction. Except for a short period in the latter part of May. the; spring was wet and much of the grnin crop was not seeded until well on in June. Iiot. dry wea- ther in the early part of, July contributed to short-s tr a w e d crops and probably had an effect on filling. particularly on late sown and late maturing virleties. There were no bad storms to cause severe lodging. but harvest weather was wet and difficult.

Wheat crops were surprisingly good in spite of an adverse sea- son. As a rule wheat is sown on reaaonsblygood land and an ef- fort is made to sow it early. This tendency. together with well adapted varieties. such as Acadia. provide some assurance of a fav- orable crop.

The barley erop on many fields was almost a complete failure. There appeared to be two major reasons for the barley failure. Aphids appeared on the plants in early A-Iuly and multiplied until the leaves weielalmoatl completely covered. A disease. believed to be yellows, made in appearance at the same time and is thought to

aphids. As a result of the insect and disease attack. many barley

those that did head-out gave very low yields. Crops that were plant- ed in May escaped much of the damage, but late seedlngs suffer- ed severely. Although there seem- ed to be some difference between varieties In susceptibility to aphids, all of the commonly grown ones were badly affected. Ma- lathion spray will give good. con- trol of aphids.

Barley jointworm injury. In the Charlottetown area at least, was much lighter than in the past two or three years. Parasites appear to be playing an important part in reducing jointworm fly popu- lafions.

Oats. the major cereal crop in the province. was extremely variable this season. Many fine crops were harvested but. in western Prince County especially, the general yield was much below

damaged the crop to some extent. Both leaf and stem rust were. fairly prevalent. but. thanks to the fairly general use of resistant var-v ieties. losses from these diseases were not too severe.

Beptoria. or black stem. as it

' VIVC the winter and thou um sprout in the spring are

have been spread rapidly by the -

plants failed to produce heads and .

Charlottetown Farm on an. heavily Infested with wild The results indicate that a factory crop can be and excellent control of ish obtained. sauna plgntg germinate in the (.11 M

aEEg&tiE

E

3 5' to 5' C- -3' E to -1 I '5 E '4 g

- wheat. Good drainage and early

Ieedius. not later than mid dept- ember. are essential for success with Winter wheat. Fairfinld Rldeau have ptovgn to be 139'-013' varieties for Prince Ed-

is

- ward island. Construction of the cereal . . . Tm.

as was

greenhouse will be used to breed new varieties of grain for the Maritime Provinces . It is fully equipped .with modern heating and lighting facilities to permit W0 CFOPB to be grown during the winter months and thereby hasten the development of better var-

leties. IIORTICULTURE Virus-Free Strawberry selsg.

ttons Widely Outyleld B e g n l a r Stock.

The most recent advance in

strawberry Production is the in

dcxing and release of a number While

of virus-free larleljes, only three ilrlis-ll'el? selections were frurted In 1955, some sixteen

"9 "OW bill": propagated at the Charlottetown Farm. These are Duniop. Al- Pocahontas.

Tennessee Shipper, Armnre. Robinson. Stole-

as follows: S e n a to ,- Cntskill. Pl'Cl'1ll4'l'.

britton. Vermilion. Tennessee 8 n a u 1 y,

Sparkle.

master, M a s s e y, Blakemore and Midland.

Dixieland

The three varieties giownlln in Premier and

sufficient volume for fruiting 1955 were Catskill

E

ranch 'i:in7i::s'1'um"-15.. borne

I&&KlIdhgIII!Ia Varieties

ova: eight hundred dahlia var- iatias have been tested at Char- lottetown h the past fifteen years. The present collection consists of scans two hundred named var- ieties, a number of which are quite outstanding.

Artur Godfrey was the stand- mtinliddandwasgrowntoli inches. This variety is noted for fta long stems. rugged vitality and fine blooming qualities. ong the best of the large-

i varieties are the follow- lng: Kid's Climax, Croyden Van Eden, Cease Fire, Earl Baldwin, lira. Hester Pape. Nancy Scher- rag, Rockley Moon, River Jor- dan, Monarch of the East. Dia- mond Jewel. Amos Kirby. Caro- lina Maid. Barbarossa. Evelyn Chandler. Giant of Baarn. and

t. In the smaller dahlias best

CLOVER CREST NEW ARTIFICIAL BREEDING

Sparkle. The yields obtained are as follows: Virus-free vs. Nos-virss-tree stnwberrr Plint- Variety Virus-free Non-virus-free

Ms. per acre Catskill . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13.369 5.337 7-532 Sparkle ..............13.006 9-313 Premier .. . . . . . . . . . .l2.tll4 3.332 3-7” Promising New F ,' i-ry Variety suited for cutting, the following

Recent tests at the town Farm have shown the new

Ottawa seedling. 0-333. to be very desirable from the standpoint of

quality. hardiness and yield. Dur- lag the winter of 1954-55.

and Marcy. were jured. 0-383 is a

pearance and firmness.

Other varieties of merit which have been tested for longer per- iods sre, Madawaska, Trent and

Rldeau.

Maine No. 2 Cucumber Outstand- ing in Variety Tests Conducted in 1955

u:....i'u;; 2, ...'.-ms. ..'.i.. iety most widely grown in Prince

nu-qua Island, greatly outyleld-vweli and showed very rapid re-1 ed all other pickling varieties in our use teats. Our records show

that, under ideal conditions. a crop valued at more than five

is commonly called. could be found in every oat field. disease. which the leaves and later spreads to the stem causing it to turn brown or black just above the Joints. may be considered the most ser- ious diaeass problem affecting the, cat crop in Prince Edward Island.-, All of the c mmonly grown var-, ietlea are a

fer some protection. with lower yields per acre. of oat

strongest slrsu-ed varieties avail-' able; however. yield-

,-

sclod y ton will yi , inn such varieties jam

hundred dollars per acre can be This: obtained by the use of this var- flrst appears nniiety. .

ll!

eptthle and no prac-. Blooming Point. on upland cran- tfqal. control measures are known. berries. have shown that the use Early seeding. treatment with a of a complete fertilizer. such as rnencuris compound such as Cere- 5-1o-1o, ran. and the use of strong strawed stands of clover and is deteri- and early maturing varieties of- mental to vine stands and yield. However. Nitrogen applied alone has given early maturity is Often associated an excellent growth response with no increase in clover population. . ptflllk. ranks second Ammonliirm nltiriatle otr t:lpha:e 0: production uob- amnion . app I rae n vsrietiaa differ greatly as nee. lnmerous Island with mo gallons nr varsol. great- growers have shifted to Clinton ly Increases

.bccsuse of its standing ability. it with no increase In weed com-v a true that crimes k ass of the petition.

elf. successful culture of peaches have and Brban. pmvidins lldatng is, been received at this Farm. tests . conducted with eight ar- have not substantiated this claim. are All the varieties tasted during the h winter of users were complete ly killed sat. '

V leap its-as Outstanding. ' . Trials

White Flower, A Serious Post in

Upland Cranberries. is induced

the Application I Complete Fertilizers

Experiments c o o rt u c t e d at the

greatly increases

lbs. per acre in conjuncllnn

cranberry yields

iwloi Hardy in Prince Ed- ward Island

While isolated reports of the

varieties

Charlotte-

0-383 suffered only light cane damage, while others, such as Washington severely in- medium-sized berry of bright. attractive ap-

have real merit: Brandarls, Ma- dame Elizabeth Sawyer. Hylas. Moeder Asrtsen. Riesenwunder. Willy Flaton. Corona, S pir i t. Joke. Clair de Luna and Yellow Special.

The best of the poms now un- der test are: Red Baby, Mimosa, Light Ball. nvilllionaire. Mary lldunns, Madeleine. Gold Rush. Regal, Pooka and Little Dirk.

FORAGE CROPS

A number of variety tests were carried out by the Forage Di- vision in 1955. A large test of alfalfa varieties. seeded in 1954, was harvested for the first time with some of the newer varieties showing up favourably. Rhizome aita . ucad the highest 'yield' i all average of two cut- UII88

covery after cutting. Winter kill- in of this variety has been re- ported from other Stallnns. but none has been noted at Charlotte- town to date. Atlantic and Sache- ville also showed up well in the first year nl the,test. One of the newly developed. l'reeplng-l'nnl- ad. strains was also harvested, for the first time this year. Growthi was slow during the early part, of the season and yields were be! low average. Very lltllc evidence of creeping was noted. but it is. probable that this strain will do. better when firmly eslahllshcrlm A large test of red Clover var- ieties was also conducted in 1955. Lssallc. Otlawrand Dallard were the lop producers and were very close to each other in perform-1 nice. i The can test. II 155. produced excellent yields from all var- ieties. Algonquin was the highest yielding lishrld tasted. Longfel- low. an open-pollinaled variety. was also a yinicler although; immature when harvested. Pion-. eer 396. Canada I'll and Canada 55 '9"? If "R &al stage of maturity for e making when harvested as tembcr 23rd. They prod -mood yields. 1). .3. K8"? 35” ced an excellent yield. but was very immature when bandit : seven