Life Sciences Commons^™

Correcting Cobalt Deficiency, Laurence C. Snook

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

COBALT is essential in the food eaten by sheep and cattle. As little as one part of cobalt in 10,000,000 parts of food appears to be adequate.

But if this mere trace is missing, ruminants will waste away and die, even when the feed appears excellent In every other way.

Third West Australian Random Sample Egg Laying Test : 1959-1960, R H. Morris

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

AS part of the poultry improvement plan for Western Australia, the Department of Agriculture inaugurated a random sample laying test for commercial grade chickens at the Poultry Research Station, Herdsman Lake, in 1957.

The results of the first test appeared in the May-June, 1959 issue of the Journal of Agriculture and those of the second test in the June, 1960 issue.

Castor Beans : Ricinus Communis Linn, T Pavy

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

MANY people have seen the wild castor oil plants around the metropolitan area, growing in rubbish dumps, and waste lands.

But they have not realised that the demand for castor oil has been increasing over the last 15 years.

Although one of its main uses is in the lubrication of jet engines, it is also used in plastics, special low temperature lubricants, hydraulic fluids, paints, varnishes, textiles and pharmaceutics.

Control Of Damping-Off In Seed Beds, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

"DAMPING-OFF" of seedlings is caused by a number of moulds, for example Pythium, Rhizoctonia, etc., which are common inhabitants of garden soils.

The Cornish Pasty, H M. Gloster

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

"Pastry rolled out like a plate, Piled with turmut, tates and mate, Doubled up and baked like fate, That's a Cornish Pasty".

If the average Australian woman was was asked for a description of a Cornish pasty, her answer would tally fairly accurately with the above lines.

Powdery Mildews Of Ornamentals, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

POWDERY mildews occur on a variety of ornamental plants.

As the name suggests, these diseases always appear as a greyish white powdery coating on the leaves. This is easily removed by rubbing or weathering, but beneath it a dark web-like discoloration of the leaf surface often develops.

Under some conditions these diseases can be very serious and cause considerable defoliation, stunting and malformation in such plants as Roses, Lagerstroemia (Crepe Myrtle), Hydrangea, Michaelmas Daisy, etc.

Potato Variety Trial, James P. Fallon, G. C. De Haan

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

DELAWARE has been the only variety of Potato grown commercially in Western Australia. This is due to the fact that in the past an early maturing variety with a short dormancy period has been required to suit both hill plantings and swamp crops.

However, with the advent of sprinkler irrigation and hence better control of moisture and growing conditions, the need for early maturing varieties has ceased to exist in some districts.

There has been consequently an increasing interest in testing varieties which have proved high yielding and of good quality in other parts of the world.

The Use Of Nitrogenous Fertilisers For Cereal Grain Production In Western Australia, William John Toms, G. H. Burvill

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

NITROGENOUS fertilisers have so far been little used in Western Australia for wheat, oats and barley grown for grain.

However, profitable results can follow their use under some conditions. Farmers who have seen field experiments are now interested in the use of nitrogenous fertilisers.Further interest will be stimulated by recent reductions in price.

This article answers common questions asked by farmers about nitrogenous fertilisers for cereals. It is based on over 100 experiments conducted by the Department of Agriculture during the past 30 years.

Establishing Saltland Pastures, C V. Malcolm

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

WITH the approach of winter, thoughts are turning to the seeding season. It will therefore be appropriate to discuss methods of establishing saltland pastures.

This discussion will be restricted to "bluebush," creeping saltbush, and old man saltbush. Seed of these plants is available from local stock firms.

The Granny Smith, Frank Melville

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

MOST of the commercial apples grown throughout the world today have originated as chance seedlings and commercialised by observant nurserymen or fruit growers.

Many Tasmanian varieties were established this way—the Sturma, Democrat and Crofton.

But the seedling which has had the greatest impact on apple growing in Australia is the Granny Smith and its rise to fame is an interesting story.

Swine Erysipelas : A Newly Reported Disease Of Pigs In Western Australia, M R. Gardiner

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

RECORDED in Western Australia for the first time last year, swine erysipelas is a potential menace to the pig raising industry.

This preliminary description is given to help farmers recognise its occurrence. I t is not known how widespread the disease might be, and farmers' co-operation is needed to estimate its extent.

Any suspected cases should be reported without delay.

Chemical Poisoning In Animals. 3. Prussic Acid, H D. Seddon

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

HYDROCYANIC or prussic acid poisoning is a serious and not uncommon ailment of ruminants, and may be a cause of rapid death when pasture plants capable of developing dangerous levels of the poison are being grazed.

Is Your Water Supply Safe?, D C. Mickle

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THERE can be no doubt in anyone's mind that the need for a clean, safe and adequate water supply is essential for the production of high quality milk and cream.

It naturally follows, that, even though every possible care has been taken in an endeavour to produce clean, germ-free milk and cream, contamination by bad water can render these efforts void.

Shot Hole Of Stone Fruit, R F. Doepel

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

SHOT hole of stone fruit is a serious fungal disease which occurs in orchards throughout the fruit growing areas of the State.

Successful control is based on routine applications of Bordeaux mixture at leaf fall and bud burst.

Poisoning Rabbits From The Air, C D. Gooding

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

AERIAL baiting gives spectacular kills of rabbits in country which cannot be effectively treated by conventional means, and has been widely adopted in New Zealand and other States in Australia.

Here Mr. Gooding reports on developments in aerial baiting in Victoria, and suggests practical applications in Western Australia.

Avoid Losses From Poison Plants, Robert Dunlop Royce

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

E VERY country in the world has its poisonous plant problems, but in Western Australia we have more than our share.

Farmers in "Poison" districts can avoid serious stock losses if they can recognise dangerous poison plants, and have a knowledge of how the concentrations of toxic substances in these plants change with the seasons.

In this article, R. D. Royce, Officer in Charge of the Botany Branch, outlines the principles involved.

Bee Farming : Maintaining Productive Stock, R S. Coleman

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

EVERY bee hive must be a productive unit, headed by a young vigorous queen, to to make sure of the greatest possible return from capital invested in the commercial apiary.

Feeding For Egg Yolk Colour, P Smetana

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

ON July 3, 1961, the Western Australian Egg Marketing Board commenced paying a bonus to producers for yolk colour.

This is an extremely important step in the marketing of eggs and should have a widespread beneficial effect on the poultry industry of this State.

Automatic Waterers For Day Old Chickens, P Smetana, W. Ward

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

ONE of the most tedious and time consuming tasks on a poultry farm is the provision of water to chicks from day old up to the age of three or four weeks.

Most poultry farmers use half-gallon glass fonts with metal bases for the first few weeks, until the chicks are old enough to use the automatic watering system usually situated along one wall of the brooder house.

This cumbersome glass font system can be replaced by the cheap and easily installed automatic watering system described below. This system has already been adopted by several local poultry farmers.

Potassium Deficiency In Medium Rainfall Areas, William John Toms

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

IT is well known that potassic fertilisers must be used for the successful growth of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) on many soils in the higher rainfall districts of Western Australia.

Recent investigations have shown that some soils in medium rainfall districts are also too low in potassium to grow healthy subterranean clover pastures.

Preserving And Pickling, O. Evans Scott

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

AT this time of the year many housewives wish that fruit trees would bear little and often throughout the year rather than a lot in a comparatively short space of time.

We preserve fruits to try to spread this short period, and to have them on hand to vary menus when fruit is out of season.

A cupboard shelf packed with bottles of colourful, neatly arranged preserved fruits is indeed a satisfying sight.

Bottling is the most popular method, with pickling being done to a smaller extent.

Let's Look At Dairying, Maurice C. Cullity

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

FOR several years there has been a lot of gloomy forebodings about the future of the dairying industry.

It has been said that there is a drift from dairying; the industry is declining; or even that it is finished.

The Open Range System Of Pig Farming, S R. Dunstan

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

THERE are several satisfactory systems which can be employed in planning a piggery, but under West Australian conditions, the paddock system has much to commend it.

Grazing admits an animal to the healthy influences of sunlight and stimulates exercise. The digestive processes of the pig are also stimulated and this helps to bring about more efficient utilisation of the feed.

Weed Control In Cereals : Aerial Spraying Trials, G R W Meadly

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

SPRAYING cereal crops for weed control is now standard farming practice in Western Australia. Almost 500,000 acres of cereal crops, mainly wheat, are sprayed each year, and approximately three-quarters of this area is treated by aircraft.

Recent trials have shown that aerial application of 'extra low" volumes of hormone-like herbicides, with oil or water solvents, does not damage cereals if spraying is done at the right stage of growth.

Incubation, R V. Vagg

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

TH E artificial incubation of eggs is not a recent innovation. For many centuries, some species of birds—our mallee-hen being a typical example—have hatched out their eggs by the heat generated in mounds of decaying vegetation.Furthermore, they have shown considerable skill in maintaining the mounds at uniform temperatures throughout the hatching period.

A number of reptiles employ similar methods to hatch their eggs, although in these instances there does not seem to be the same need for carefully-controlled temperatures

An Improved Method Of Utilising Strychine In The Preparation Of Dingo And Fox Baits, L A. Harrison

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

AT present dingo and fox baits are made from fat or other material attractive to the animal to be poisoned, into which is inserted either alkaloid or soluble strychnine.

Cheese : As I Know It, E W H Maslin

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

IT is probable that cheese was made accidentally in the first instance, by the carrying of milk in the stomachs of animals, when the milk clotting enzymes of the stomach converted the liquid milk into a junket or a solid mass.

Fossils And Farmers. 2. The Ice Age, D Merrilees

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

What did the giant Australian marsupials of the "Ice Age" look like?

Fossil remains found by farmers could help reconstruct them, as well as giving some idea of conditions on the Australian continent at that time, says D. Merrilees, B.Sc, acting Curator of Palaeontology at the West Australian Museum.

Fleece Weight : The Best Culling Guide, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

Flock owners' thoughts are now turning towards culling.

Culling should remove the worst sheep and keep the best to fill the bales and breed replacements.

A valuable aid to this annual task is Culling by Fleece Weight during shearing

Broom Millet In The Market Garden, James P. Fallon

Journal of the Department of Agriculture, Western Australia, Series 4

WHEN we think of broom millet we usually regard it as a crop for growing either under flood irrigation or in summer moist swamps for the sole purpose of producing straw for brooms.

However, the particular characteristics of the broom millet plant make it adaptable for use in the market garden as an excellent windbreak and rotation crop.