New Ryegrass Moves Into Final Tests

Press, Volume C, Issue 29513, 13 May 1961, Page 6

New Ryegrass Moves Into Final Tests

LONG - ROTATION ryegrass, bred by the Grasslands Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, is about to undergo widespread tests on farms from one end of the country to the other which will finally determine whether the grass has a place to fill in New Zealand grassland farming and should be released to farmers under the Government certification scheme.

If it comes successfully through these trials it is likely that a decision on whether the new strain should be released will be made in perhaps three years, according to Dr. L. Corkill, Director of the Crop Research Division of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, who as chief plant breeder at the Grasslands Division at Palmerston North, made the initial crosses for the new strain and has since been closely associated with its development.

The new grass originated from crossings of perennial ryegrass and short rotation with the idea of producing a basically perennial ryegrass with some of the valuable

characters of short rotation. From perennial there have been sought the characters of a true perennial that will stand up to hard grazing and will be densely tillered, and from short rotation a degree of early spring growth, palatability, and resistance to leaf rust. More Trials Trials are in progress with the strain at research stations of the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research and this autumn in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and farmers some 50 trials have been sown on research stations but mainly farms from North Auckland to Southland. A few of these trials will be sown next spring. These trials are on a small paddock scale and on each property have been duplicated to allow for any variations in conditions. In each case the new strain will be compared with at least certified perennial ryegrass. Sheep will be grazing the trials. Information will be collected on dry matter production, palatability and stock thrift—grazing records will be kept—reaction to grazing, resistance to rust and persistency. Dr. Corkill said that these trials would produce information from a very wide range of environments. Performance There was no evidence to date, he said, that the new grass was not performing as it had been expected to. In two respects at least it seems to be clearly superior to perennial. It is much more resistant to rust and it is also more resistant to Argentine stem weevil. These further trials are being conducted by the Grassland Division, in collaboration with the Department Of Agriculture, under its director, Dr. P. D. Sears, and Dr. P. C. Barclay, who succeeded Dr. Corkill as chief plant breeder.