NEW GRASS

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 125, 26 April 1940, Page 4

NEW GRASS

HIGH COUNTRY PROBLEMS. IMPORTANT EXPERIMENT.. (I3y Telegraph—Special to Standard.) WELLINGTON, April 24. Experiments are being made with a I new grass known as creasted wheatgrass Jor use on the high pastorai country of the South island, stale's Hon. E. Langstone (Minister ol Lands), who has recently been in conference with tlie Crown tenants who hold large areas of this class of country. The problem, he explained, is to maintain a good nutritive growth on these lands, and the crested wheatgrass appears to have the right qualities for these special conditions. It is deep-rooted, and is thus a good binding agency, and it also lias a high 1 odder value. The Lands, Agriculture, and Forestry Departments and the Department of Scientific and. Industrial Research have co-operated in this search for a suitable grass for high country, and experiments have led to the adoption of crested wheat-grass for planting out on a fairly large 'scale on the Moleswortli run, owned by the Crown, in Marlborough. Returning from the high country, with its limited carrying capacity of possibly a sheep to two or three acres, Mr Langstone had a vivid contrast when he inspected an area at Winchmore, which is included in the irrigation scheme being carried out in Canterbury. Here lie saw 400 sheen and 420 lambs obtaining ample pasture from 30 acres of irrigated land. “Irrigation,” declared the Minister, “is going to be the salvation of the dry arid j area in Mid-Canterbury. One of the additional advantages of the irrigation scheme from the Rangitata and Enkaia is that there is a fail which enables hyro-electricity to be developed. If was at first intended to raise the level of Lake Tekapo by 60 feet, for wißer storage purposes, but the introduction of the Rangitata scheme enables the Tekapo level to be raised by only 12 feet as a means of additional supply for the Waitaki hydro-station. In the summer, when there is less call for hydro-electric power, the waters of the Canterbury irrigation scheme will bo fully available for land irrigation, but in the winter with its big demand for electric power, they will be turned to good account without depriving the farmer of his water supply. It is ob-

vious that agricultural and engineering science are making for more intense cultivation of the areas nearest to the railways, an immense increase in carrying capacity being noted as a result of these developments.”