NOXIOUS WEEDS.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1354, 3 February 1912, Page 13

NOXIOUS WEEDS.

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE'S VIEWS. The Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. T. Mackenzie, in the courso of a reply to a deputation which waited on him at I'apatowai and urged the strict enforcement of tho Noxious Weeds Act, remarked that lie was fully alivo to the dire results that would attend if tho blnckIjerry was allowed to spread in the district, _ and was taking stringent steps to stop it!. Regarding, tho Californian thistle, he had 25 years ago endeavoured to liavo placed on tlio Statute Book an Act for dealing with this pest, and had tho measure become law then the Californian thistle could have been effectually dealt with at but little expense. Tho measure, however, was opposed and ho was called a faddist. At that timo wo had in Tasmania an illustration of tho seriousness of the weed, as Tasmania was then in the same condition as many parts of New Zealand were now in. . . . Tho question of noxious weeds was a most diflicult ono to deal with. Ho sympathised with those who lived in bush districts and inaccessible districts and he was alive to the difficulties that confronted such settlors. Ho felt that tho weed had in some parts obtained so great a hold that it was impossible to carry out the provisions of tho Act. He believed, however, that the Tahakopa district could be saved without indicting too great hardship on those resident there if farmers would willingly co-operate in this work as those who formed the present deputation. The matter of Crown and Native Lands h<v.! been mentioned and ho might say tlrat the Government were spending money on these lands. Tho whole question of tho Noxious Weeds Act and its administration would require reconsidering and ho purjKßed submitting to Cabinet proposals in that direction. Closely allied to tho question of the eradication of weeds was the matter of pure seeds. He might say_ that political capital was madia against the Government on almost every step that was being taken to improve the position of the farmer.

Mr. Mackenzio said he wished to point out that it was no use farmers clearing their lands if the seed they bought a sold contained an undue "proportion of impurities. If settlers were only awa.;re of tho class of seed that was often being sold to thorn they would sec thnt by restricting the percentage of certain weeds to 1 per ccut and others at a little more as provided for in the Bill of last session something was being dono for them. He luntl besn informed by one of the most trustworthy seed merchants in the Dominion that alsyke clover was being sold in New Zealand to farmers containing no le=3 than 50 per cent of impurities. Speaking of seed generally he might add that far more attention would require to bo given to this matter than had b'ion the case hitherto and not only in respect to purity. Consideration should also b" given to the germinating capacit'and also to ascertaining that such seed had been grown m»Vr conditions such as would secure to th 9 farmer the finality of plant that he hoped to produce by his cultivation. He had himself taken sample of seeds that were exhibited at some of the agricultural shows which had not on being tested shown 1 per cent of germination, and other seeds had not germinated more than 25 to 35 per cent. Mr Mackenzie fully described the conditions under which proper grown seeds should lie cultivated, adding that a lot of rubbish grown on the Continent and in America was sold in competition with carefully cultivated English seeds to the detriment of tho honest grower and to tho low of the farmer. If men, continued the speaker, professing to represent farming districts opposed every step ho took to effect an improvement on these important lines then the Pure Seeds Bill would be dropped. The fact was that politicians were so busy with their petty antagonisms that it was hard to get along with legislation dealing with subjects that Teallv affected materially the interests of the community.