TOP-DRESSING PASTURES.

Putaruru Press, Volume VII, Issue 306, 19 September 1929, Page 7

TOP-DRESSING PASTURES.

IjSE OF SUPERPHOSPHATE. A Wonderful Stimulant. The essence of successful dairying lies in the quality of the pastures. Quality in pastures can only be obtained by the liberal use of fertilisers. Dairy farmers have learnt by experience that superphosphate used as top-dressing has a wonderful beneficial action in stimulating the growth of grasses and clovers. This fertiliser, which provides phosphates in a water-soluble form, gives quick returns, especially when applied in winter and early spring. It stimulates root growth, makes the pastures more palatable, and provides that mineral matter so essential to cows during pregnancy and during lactation.'

It is a mistaken notion that, because superphosphate contains watersoluble phosphate, these leak away in the drainage water. This is not so, as can he easily demonstrated by passing water through a tube packed with soil to which superphosphate has been added. No phosphates are found in the drainage water. They

are completely absorbed by the surface layer of soil and are used by plants as required. It is not always realised what large quantities of phosphates are required by dairy cows. Besides requiring a large, quantity during pregnancy, the dairy cow must absorb food containing phosphates for her own maintenance and for the production of at least five to six times her own weight in milk per annum. The question a dairy farmer may ask himself is whether his cattle are receiving sufficierft phosphates for the purpose mentioned above. It may be asserted with confidence that very few cows do receive sufficient phosphates to maintain a maximum production of milk and keep them in good health for a period of years.