Harvest Running Late

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30959, 15 January 1966, Page 8

Harvest Running Late

Patchy weather throughout Canterbury has already made this season’s harvest a late one. Grass seed and white clover crops have not come up to expectations, and some of the early samples of wheat have been lighter in weight than last year.

Merchants and flourmillers have little in store as yet, but are quite philosophical about the situation. “We will get the good weather sooner or later,” one said this week. Farmers are getting a little concerned, “and you .can’t blame them,” a merchant told “The Press.” With rain frequently prophesied, they are endeavouring to get grass seed harvested, but in many cases it is not properly fit, and the seed is heating. The farmers then have to hold it, until it is ready to go into store.

As reported before Christmas, strong nor’-westers caused a lot of damage to grass seed crops in some districts, and yields were severely affected. There was also frost damage to grass seed, clover and peas, but merchants do not know yet to what extent. Paddocks were not entirely affected by the frost just after Christmas. The damage was generally found to follow an irregular pattern. The cold, erratic weather, and the frost, have affected elover crops. Merchants have found the clover did not set

well. There have also been instances of clover sprouting in the head. Grass seed has been coming into store in good quantities, but a spokesman for a large film of brokers said that quality was not as good as in a normal season, a fact directly attributable to the periods of wet weather.

Few wheat samples have yet come into the mills, and reports vary on the question of quality. A Rangiora flourmiller (Mr J. F. Tutton) had received three samples up to Thursday, and they were rather shrivelled. The baking score was rather lower, and the bushel weight at 501 b for the best sample was the lowest for years. Another sample had weighed out at 521 b a bushel.

The samples received by Tutton’s mills came from Omihi, Waipara and Parnassus, and like the early samples each year, were lighter than what is expected of later samples. Mr Tutton said there were reports of stem rust—mainly at Omihi —but otherwise he expected yields tn be goo't A spokesman for H. Worrall. Ltd., flourmillers, of Blenheim road, said he did

not think the wheat would be as good as last year in baking quality. “It would have to be good to be as good as last year, when quality was particularly high,” he said. 1 This firm has only had one sample of wheat so far —a line of Hilgendorf from Amberley. It was slightly shrivelled but had a 591b/60Ib bushel weight. As a comparison, wheat last year frequently weighed 611 b and 621 b, and up to 641 b to the bushel. The sample had a baking score of 37 points. The Canterbury Roller Flour Mills Company, at Ashi burton, had not received any samples up to this week, and none were expected until next week. Wheat crops Mid Canterbury area were'all looking pretty well, according to the firm.

Only an odd line of barley has jet reached stores, and the Canterbury Malting Company at Heathcote does not expect much until towards the end of the month.