Fields Instructor Gives Further Details Of Maize Variety Trials

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 21, 13 February 1948, Page 5

Fields Instructor Gives Further Details Of Maize Variety Trials

Several farmers have expressed , appreciation of the informatiompublished last Friday on the Maize Variety Trial carried out by the Fields Division in co-operation with ah 'Otakiri farmer last year and Mr Marryatt has therefore been asked for some further notes. He advises that the yields of maize in bushels per acre for the different varieties were: (Pfister will hereafter be abbreviated to P) P 360 New, 74.6; P 360 Ist gen. 71.7; P 360 sth gen. 70.7; P3BO 84.5; P 1897 79.6; Marigold 75.6. These are weights of shelled maize. An interesting set of figures obtained from this trial is the comparison between the weights of shelled maize and.those of the green, cobs for each” variety. The shelled maize expressed as a percentage of the weight of green cobs is: P 360 New 64.2; P 360 Ist 65.6; P 360 sth 74.4; P3BO 70.3; J 1897 71.3; Mari-' gold 63.4. Marigold gives the lowest yield of grain per unit of unshelled cob, and Pfister 360 sth generation seed is higher than the new importation or Ist generation seed by a considerable amount. This may partly explain why it sometimes has yielded i comparatively well, particularly in Poverty Bay, when by all the rules it should be deteriorating. Pfister 380 has one of the highest “rates of : extraction” as well as being the highest yielder.. Differences in ma- > turity at plucking will be of course have had an effect upon these figures.

Notes Oh Trial Marigold was- outstanding because stalks were not broken: stalks of other varieties were broken by the weather; cobs were set higher, and much more tightly fixed to the stalks, and so ' this variety took twice as long to pluck. Maturity was much later than for other varieties.

Pfister 360: The sth generation seed was bigger and heavier than the original hybrid and the number of rows on the cob were fewer. It did not stool out as well as the original hybrid and was not quite as mature.

Pfister 380: A fault affecting ease of plucking was a small spine on the seed; this is similar to the spines on the cones of Pinus muricata but not as painfully prickly to the touch. This small spine* should not be confused with the sharp hooked beak of Early Butler. Pfister 380 and Pfister 360 New were the first to mature. There was a small percentage of cobs of Pfister 380 With very large grains almost white on the caps. Pfister 1897: Cobs were very inconsistent in type.

, The results of this trial show clearly that it pays to use new seed each year and farmers are advised by the Fields Instructor to obtain fresh Government Approved Pfister seed rather than use their own saved seed.