Agricultural ilotcs From Britain

E.-E

The Duke of Windsor is to es- tablish I Hereford herd at his AI- oerta ranch. When this became known on the second day of the Three Counties Show at Leomjn. iier recently, Hereford breeders expressed great satisfaction and there was much speculation on whether the Duke would import a itock bull from Britain. His fath. er. King George V, who bred Hcrefcrds, gained many succem, it leading shows.

The most impressive event at his show was the magnificent par. ads of cattle with the Hereford; occupying pride of place. They were undoubtedly among the fin. est ever seen in the Three Count- '.CS show ring.

Overseas farmerd touring the showground. made inquiries about pedigree cattle for export. Judging, which went on for most of ihe'day. attracted large ring- side crowds. The supreme cham- pionship went to Vern Boxer. a magnificent bull owned by Mr. R. S. de Qulncey. of Hereford. His Vern herd is world-famous.

Vern Boxer. who was also cham- plon at the Shropshire and West Midland Show, is one of the best inns of Vern Robert. This 11-year- old bull. though he has never ap- peared at any show, is known the world over. His sons have been sold for more than fl00,000. main- ly in South America and Aust- ralia.

Artificial lnsemina." Of Cattle On Increase

One in every three registered dairy farmers in England and Wales now use artificial insemi- nation in their herds instead of keeping a bull; Figures showing the spread of this method-ex- posted to be the biggest factor in increasing milk production in the near future-were issued recently by the Milk Marketing Board.

Five years' operations have just been completed by the Board. During the year ended March 31 last there were 55,000 farmer- members of the 23 insemination ccntres where 500 bulls are kept, and more than 481,000 cows were inseminated. This compares with a membership of 022 farmers and 6,400 cows inseminated during the year ended March. 1946.

There are also private stations opcrating. At one of these, con- trailed by the Cambridge Univer- sity Farm. a "walkle-talkie" sys- tem is used. Inseminators are di- rccted by radio from one farm to another.

Thousands of calves produced by artificial insemination are now mature milking cows and show substantial increases in milk yields as compared with their dams. Ono expert estimate is that within five years that new system will mean an increase of 50,000,000 gallons of milk annually from the same cow population.

A leading Cheshire dairy farm- er. Mr. O.W. Robson. of Nantwich, says: ”Ten years ago at least two- thirds of the smaller herds were using inferior bulls. but now. th r ou g h artificial insemination. they have access to some of the best bulls. The effect on the fut- ure of milk production will be tremendous." "

New lnseotlclda

In London, a weapon completely new to Britain was recently dem- onstrated for use against flies, gnats. mosquitoes and other wing- ed insects. About 140 files were placed into a glass case. Within two minutes every one had drop- ped. as a resultl of a one-second lpray of an insecticide being man- ufactured by Messrs. Cooper Mc- Dougall and Robertson. Berlrham- ited, Berta.

llay Anti Grass Silage

OTTAWA, July Q -Many tons of baled lfay have been lost by harvesting at too high a momma content. and storage losses in both Chopped hay and grass silage have resulted from poor storage.

Hay harvested by a pick-up bat. er should have a moisture content 0' 29-50 per cent J9DCndlng on the type of hay and the density of the bale. Mature timothy hay bal- ed. loosely may be stored satisfact- orily at 25 per cent moisture con- tent. or at the same condition as loose hay. Early cut alfalfa clover mixture baled tight should have a moisture content not exceeding 20 per cent. .

Baled hay may be handled in the barn by hand. by elevator or by a grapple fork on the hay track. Some breakage will occur with the grapple fork but will not be too serious if handled careful- ly. As baled hay weighs 4-5 times as much as loose hay per cubic foot care should be taken not to overload the hay mow floor.

Chopped hay cut to a length of 4 inches takes up about the same storage space as loose hay and so can be stored at the same moist- ure content. However, if the ma- chine is set to cut 215 inches, the hay should be particularly dry be- fore it is placed in the mow. Chopped hay should be distributed evenly in the barn by frequent adjustment of the blower pipe nozzle and under no condition should be walked on 'or tramped.

In making grass or legume sli- age the moisture content should be 60-70 per cent and should be cut at the proper stage of matur- ity. The crop should be cut into short lengths by setting the mach- ine for a it inch cut or preferably Va inch. Knives should be kept sharp and set close to the cutter plate. The cutting schedule should be arranged to correspond with the ensiling operations as closely as possible.

If part of the crop becomes a little drier than desired, it can be mixed with freshly cut material as the crop is loaded in order to obtain the desired moisture con- tent. The ensilage should be pack- ed thoroughly as it is put in the silo and tramped every 5 days for about 30 days after filling. To seal the top. the last 4 feet should be filled with green material freshly cut.

Complete details on the storage of silage are available in the Do- minlon Department of Agriculture Publication No. 525. ”Slla88 Pyo- duction". Information on equip- ment and methods of handling hay and silage is contained in the Do- minion Department of Agriculture Publication No. 328. "Equipment for Harvesting Hay and Siiafle-"

dustrial concerns. Although nine times more powerful than any standard fly spray. it is harmless to men, beasts and food. but dead- ly to insects. It isnon-inflammable and will not taint milk.

The sprays are self-contained and automatic in operation. The basic principle is the dispersion of a liquid by means of a propel- lant. Oni pressing the button. a fine mist-like spray is emitted through a special nozzle and it re- mains floating invisibly in the air. Because of the high concentration. only very small amounts need be used.

This Aerosol fly-spray for farm use. is claimed to be equivalent in insecticidal effect to nine pints of standard flyspray.

RUNSCHEDULED PERFORMANCE v srizrrminn. Alta. - (or) -Scv- ;ersl elephants with a circus outfit hare gave an unscheduled per- -formance recently when heavy lralns made roads almost impass- able between Btcttler and Lacombe.

Plant Protection iilith Antibiotics

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Penicillin is 3 housgh d

in the world today. Notwonlywltgg it revolutionized medical practice and saved many thousands of lives, it represents a new approach to disease control in man and animals and now plant scientists are seek- ing tme counterpart of penicillin as an ally in the fight to cont;-oi plant diseases.

This so-culled fnuraclo drug" is but one of several antibiotics, or chemical substanc produced by micro-organisms whloh check the growth or interfere with the me processes of other minute (onus of life that may produce diseases in man. animals or plants. Other less well known antibiotics besides penicillin. include streptomycin. aureomycin and some others that are still on the secret list.

For some time. plant pathologists and bacferlologists in the Depart- men” 01' Azticultzure, Ottawa. have been engaged in fundamental re- search work dealing with sub. stances similar to penicillin as a means of controlling certain seed. borne diseases of crop plants and progress is being made.

Before a. disease can be ads. quately controlled, first the or- ganism causing it must be isolated and its life history studied. so it can be hit at the weakest point with the most effective weapon available. Canadian scientists are hopeful that a counterpart of Penicillin can be found to combat plant. diseases. which might, enm. inate some of the costly and rather elaborate spraying and dusting method! used at present. Several. antibiotics tested show promise for instance, in the cimp-01 of a fungus disease that

Nectar content Varies in Plants

Nectar concentration in a strain of red clover may be improved by selection. according to recent tests carried out in the Division of Forage Plants, Central Experi- mental Farm, Ottawa. While this work is still in a preliminary stage. officials find good indica- lions that the amount of nectar secreted miiy vnry not only from plant to plant of the same variety. but from flower to flower on the same plant. Different fertilizer treatments were found to have little if any effect on the-amount of nectar secreted by the plants.

Once considered as food for the gods. nectar is the substance that bees extract from flowers and int- er convert into honey. As bees fly from flower to flower in search of nectar. they act as nature's pollenizers. Their activities in this regard have engaged the atten- tion of agricultural workers for many years. Recently various div- islonal officials in Canada's De- partment of Agriculture started a co-operative study in the seed production of alslka clover. red clover and alfalfa.

Advising on the different aspects of the problem will be the Forage Plants and Bee Divisions of the Experimental Farms Service, and the Division of Entomology, Science service. The work will be

TM WCIDOI1 i8 I 10W D"!-Wm The elephants were used to haul done on brnnch farms and labora- insecticidal aeroul. now available bogged-down vvehicles out of torlas in British Columbia. On- lor housewives. farmers and in- ditches. tnrlo and "askatche-wan.

OUR BOARDING HOUSE MAJOR HOOPLE " eeaofmeeovs l.OOK.'lF'll-lAl"5 11-im"5 HIM, Veait BLITWE LEFT FINALLY HAVE NOT A CARBON A5 PLAN. l-iIM'AT HOME ' ARRNED A"t'p coov OF -ri-ta A6 A cops 5Not2iNt5 uh?-its I 'l-PE t:mi.'-'- tsssrcrm new . 9 Aagzetli)-AYgST I-tERMv'(5i BOOKIE THAN CUFF LINK6 ' 1 '.... ..iei.i.;.i5,.ig . Mecca! Joim! "4 THE HASH! ' ii? ' 4- ' ll . r . Y 3 U V H d Ezfzmws N i x ii I k 1 I” C 0 g. p xp . . . . . a wall ts; . V x x ' ). i l Toms W d 3 I 5-r g. h. Tm ' 2 2-" . ' I I ' '3 ( agiah . . 1 IS . I-US I5

ULSTER - (left to right): Austlne C. Taylor. Min- istcr of Agriculture for the Province of New Bruns- wick. Canada. and William B. Shaw. Deputy Minis-

CANADIAN AGRICULTURE CHIEFI VI-SIT tor of Agriculture for the Province of Prince Edward Island. Canada. on the farm of Sam Neill, Fonthlll.

Bangor Co. Down New Orchard Fen

looking at the fine Frleslan bllll man.

Farm Briefs From Abroad i T-' I

i The appearance of the Colorado! potato beetle late in May in the

Netherlands resulted in the sus- pension of cauliflower exports to

Beetles Cause Ban

for the insects and large numbers appeared. Inspection and control measures were put into effect in accordance with the European Colorado Beetle Control Regula- tions affecting the United King- dom. the Netherlands. Belgium and France.

Corn for France

Hybrid corn will be used to in- crease the domestic production of this crop in France. where at the present time less than 50 per cent of the consumption is home grown. it is planned to use American hybrids for a start and experi- ments are under way to determine the varieties mostl-suitable for the various zones under consideration.

Study Grassland Improvement

International experts met last month in Paris to study methods of improving grasslands in Eur- ope. Numerous experiments have been conducted during the past few years and the conference was designed to enable the results to be discussed and compared and the best possible techniques applied to the different conditions.

Wlna foductlon Up

Wine production has steadily in- creased during the last 50 years in North and South America and in Africa. and world production has been stepped up about 2.3 per cent, it was revealed at a wine confer- ence held recently in Algiers. While North America is reorgan- izing her wlne production. it is not "considered as- a dangerous threat to French exports there.

MAEINERY FOR. POTATO PRODUCTION OTTAWA. July 234 1950 - P'0' tho comrnerci-l production of

potatoes I grower requires spec- ialised equipment to care for and Inn-kot his cmpl This equipment usually consists of a potato seed cutter. planter. hlilsr and cultiva- tor, sprayer or duster digger or harvester and a potato grader- Power seed cutters. requiring a crew of two men. are now avail- able that will automatically cut and potatoes. other hand operat- ed machines are suitable for the small grower.

Planters may be either the as- alatad feed or picker type of ma- chine. The picker type is fullr automatic and plants acts with little error. The aaalalad food - machine requinq one man pu row to atttiid the seeding mechan- Isin but a very high degree of ac- curacy is possible. Both types of plantar: may be equipped with fertiliaa: attachinentai that dis- tribute -the fertiliser in hana on each side of the row.

Standard row crop cultivator:

naaybouudforwcodocntrolbv

the United Kingdom. Weather cun- B qua; ditions were reported favourable W” One” ask on aux”! In Cin-

chcrry Olives a Canadian Product

Is there such a product as a distinctly Canadian food? This is tion that tourists and visi-

ada. Cherry olives, a form of pick- led cherry, on a unique product that can claim Canadian origin. says F. E. Atkinson, Experimental Station, Summeirland. B. C. This delicacy, he said. had been packed by housewives in British Colum- bia for manyyears and is now

available as a commantal pro- duct.

Large, luscious. fully ripened Bing, Lambert or Royal Ann

cherries are used in the manufac- ture of this product. They are preserved with vinegar, salt, sugar and splcm to make a very stame- tlve hora d'oeuvre or pickle. Ee- cipes for processing cherry olives in the home may be obtained by writing to the Fruit and Vege- table Products Laboratory, Ex- perimental Station. Summerlaud, B. C. '

tween the rows. To control the weeds within the row and to mould the earth around the plants, disc or mouldboard hillera are used.

sprayer: or duster: an neces- sary to control disease and in sects in the crop. Power driven or tractor mounted units are more easily adjusted to apply a uni- form amount of dust. Bra-ayars capable of applying N to lilo gal- lons per acre are necessary. To reduce crop injury these machine: should have an adjustable width of wheel tread.

with heavy crops. it may be necessary to attach vine lifters to the tractors and wheeled equip- ment to reduce lntury the potato vines during the growing season.

Potato diggers of the apron type when properly adjusted handle the tubers carefully and result in a minimum of injury. Two row diggers may be designed with two separate elevator chains or they may have one wide chain that will lift two rows at one time. War but performance the large diggers should be power or tractor driven. Picker attach- ments that allow the vines and refuse to be removed and permit the potatoes to be begged. are be- comipg popular in sirens free of stone. Complete harvesters are available to lift and bag the aop.

Graders are used to also and sort the potatoes. Machines thst om- ploy rubber spools or wire mesh belts are two popular type: of units. Either styles of grader will also the potatoes but the rubber spool machine is claimed.to clean and grade the tubers with I mus gentle action. l

IIIJINH

(524 -E5

limiting factor in pea as so far it has defied control practices used against it.

is proving a- production,i all ordlnaryl

tiff Tynes Found in oats

0',1'IfAWA- July 23 - Several varieties of oats have been treated with 2.4-D during the past few years at the Dominion Experimen- tal'Farm, Indian Head. Sask. Ester. amine and sodium salt formula-

tions. have been used at rates varying from two ounces to 32 ounces of acid equivalent per acre. The crop was sprayed at three stages, 3-leaf (six inches high), shot blade. and heading. Numerous off-types have ap- peared. says E. Buglass. the amount varying with the variety of oats, formulation and rate of 2.4-D. The kind of off-types are the same regardless of treatment or variety. Split leaves. onion-like leaves. and irregular blister-like lesions are frequently found. but it is in the development of the head that the effect of 2.4-D is most noticeable in the production of off-type growth. Twisted and distorted panicles are frequently found.

Twin panicles (heads) are fre- quently found. that is. two or more panicles can be found arising from the top joint instead of the usual one. Plants have been found

Good Soil Management

OTTAWA. July 2! - to the conditions under which they have been developed, many soils of the Maritime Provinces do not possess a high natural fertility but they will respond very readily to good management. Practical ex- perience on many farms in Prince Edward Island and results of soil fertility experiments at the Char- lottetow-n Experimental Station have shown the value of good man- agement in maintaining good crop yields.

Much has been written about proper land-use in its broad as- pect. Once the areas to be main- tained for agricultural purposes are determined. probably the most important factor in good manage- ment of agricultural land is the type of crop rotation followed.

The rotation should provide for a reasonably long period under grass crops. Most farmers have ob- served that when land has been more or less idle for several years the following crops are better.. This is attributed to the accumul- ation of plant nutrients in the soil during the period 'of rest from cultivation. The rotation should include the use of deep rooted crops. such as alfalfa. Deep rooted crops are able to make use of plant. food minerals in lthe deeper sub- soils. Some of these minerals will be added to the surface soil in plant residues returned to the land. A good rotation copies nat- ure's soil-building ya0CeSSES for replenishing the soil with miner-I

als and organic matter.

Continued cultivation and crop- ping favour the rapid depletion of soil humus and plant food miner- als. The system of management should provide for the regular re- turn of organic materials to the soil and for the supplying of lime. phosphorous. potash and nitrogen sufficient to maintain vigorous growth of all crops in the rotaf tion. including the grass crops which are often neglected. Maintaining the humus or or- ganic matter content of the soil at a high level will aid in maintain- ing a good physical condition. A plenti-ful supply of humus in the soil and good physical condition make the soil more porous yet more absorptive. Consequently. air can enter and circulate more free- ly through the soil which is es- sential for good crop growth. and

more of the rainfall for the use of the growing crops.

Owing to the naturally strongly acid conditions of most soils in the Maritime provinces the use of lime is essential. It is needed to correct the acidity of the soil and provide more favourable condi- tions for the growth of legumes and for the worlrving population, the micro-or-ganisrns. of the soil.

when the soil is well supplied with organic matter and lime the plant nutrients natural to the soil and those applied in commercial fertilizers are maintained in a more available form for plant use.

While the inherent characteris-

tent. regulate the type of agric-

with one main panicle. and four or five additional panicles grow- ing from the last node. usually enclosed by the leaf sheath. When treated at the shot blade and heading stages very few off- types were found. Off-types were frequent when the treated at the 3-leaf stage.

The varieties reacted different- ly in the development of off-types. Ajax producing the least. and Ex- eter the greatest amount. Victory and Vanguard fell in between, but were more like the Exeter. Sodium salt induced the fewest off-types and ester the most. with amine in between but more like the ester. Generally the rates of application caused an increase in the amount of off-types from the

ounce rate of ester produced more off-types in all varieties treated

OUT OUR WAY

.' THOSE WHISKE

oats were I

low to the high rates. The two.

OFF THEY COME .' HOLD AS MUCH

b WATER AS A SMALL CHIN IS WHUT

TOMIN STREET

ARE THE 5Cl5SORt ?

ulture followed and the product- ive possibilities of the soil. the soil management practices followed iwill determine the ultimate pro- lductive capacity of the soil and the success of the individual farm ientex-prise. E.

:than did the eight ounce rats of , the amine or sodium salt.

; In 1949 second growth was pro-

the soil will take up and retain -