Plant Biology Commons^™

Poison Plants In The Garden, T E H Aplin

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

SOME 18 commonly grown garden plants are known to be toxic and many local home gardens have five or six of them.

Several other species can cause skin ailments.

The Recent Story Of Skeleton Weed : A Menace To Our Wheat Industry, G R W Meadly

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

SKELETON WEED was first found in Western Australia at Ballidu in 1963.

No further recording was made until December of last year when a small area was located near Esperance, but, within a brief period, plants were reported from Geraldton and Kwinana.

Continuous Grazing On Rose Clover At Northampton, R J. Parkin

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

BECAUSE of its upright growth habit, it is often thought that rose clover may require some form of specialised grazing management.

It has also been said that the sheep find the plant and in particular the seed head, undesirable in the dry stages.

However, more recent observations refute this (Bailey 1966). The present commonly-grown strains of rose clover are later flowering generally than the medics or Geraldton subterranean clover and stay green later in the season.

Pasture Seed Production, 1966 : Statistics And Comments, B J. Quinlivan

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

THE marketing of pasture seeds differs from that of some other primary products in that there are no guaranteed prices.

A knowledge of potential supply and demand for the various species and strains is just as important to the seed producer as good production techniques.

Stop-Drop Sprays For Jonathan And Delicious Apples, N H. Shorter, J. Cripps

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

STOP-DROP sprays prevent excessive pre-harvest drop of Jonathan and Delicious apples.

Recent research has thrown more light on the best methods of employing these materials.

TWO CHEMICALS used as "stop-drop" sprays are available commercially in Western Australia. One of these, alpha napthalene acetic acid (NAA), is also well known as a thinning spray for apples.

The Effect Of Seaweed Meal On Yolk Colour, B R. Vale, P. Smetana

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

Could seaweed, plentiful on local beaches, be used to improve egg yolk colour?

This article gives the results of experiments at the Department's Poultry Research Station.

Wheat Quality Surveys In Western Australia. Part 1. The Distribution Of Areas Producing High And Low Protein Wheat, J A. Parish

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

THIS article reports results from survey work carried out by the author, in collaboration with Co-operative Bulk Handling Ltd., on wheat drawn from all receival points in Western Australia during the period 1956-63.

Sheep Can Be More Profitable In The Wheatbelt, G T. Halpin, P. Nelson

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

TRADITIONALLY, wheatbelt farmers have looked upon sheep as being subsidiary, or at best, complementary to their main activity, wheat growing.

Because there has been a mistaken belief that clover would not grow, these farmers have depended upon native grasses and crop remains (stubble) for sheep feed, a practice which has put a limit to the number of sheep a property could support.

Time Of Lambing At Esperance, R J. Doyle

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

ESPERANCE is one of the few places in Western Australia at which experiments over three years have shown a definite improvement in number of lambs produced to marking, as a result of lambing in the August-September period.

Weed Control : Cotton Fireweed, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

COTTON FIREWEED is a native perennial plant which has developed as a serious weed in the south coastal areas.

Being a perennial it makes quick, active growth following summer rains and rapidly outgrows annual pasture plants.

Kimberley Research Station Progress Report, 1964 : Insect Pests And Insecticides, K T. Richards

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

FOR the past four years, detailed studies have been carried out in regard to the identification, status, bionomics, and control of insects and mite pests attacking the various crops grown in the Ord River Irrigation Area.

Root-Bound Shrubs, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

THE illustrated garden shrub (Cotoneaster) strangled itself with its own roots.

When purchased several years earlier it had been in the pot too long and the young roots, not being able to grow straight down had spiralled round and round in the pot.

Molybdenum Increases Cereal Yields On Wheatbelt Scrubplain, R J. Doyle, R. J. Parkin, J. A. C. Smith, J. W. Gartrell

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

IN four field experiments and two paddock strip trials since 1960, molybdenum applied to wheat and oats grown on scrubplain soils in the eastern wheatbelt increased yields by up to 3 i bushels of wheat and 5^ bushels of oats per acre.

Herbicides For Firebreaks, Geoffrey A. Pearce

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

IN recent years, great interest has been shown in the possible use of chemicals for creating firebreaks as an alternative to cultivation.

The advantages are obvious, and suitable treatments are available; the main deterrent at the present time is cost.

Gorteria : A Recently Recorded Weed, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

A NUMBER of our major weed pests including Cape t u l ip and double gee are native to South Africa.

It is not surprising, therefore, that Gorteria, recently recorded for the first time in Western Australia, also comes from that country.

Dairy Farming In The Busselton-Margaret River District. Part 4. Pasture Production, R A. Bettenay

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

If deteriorated pasture and underdeveloped pasture in the Busselton-Margaret River district could be improved to the standard of the present highly productive pastures stocking rates could be improved by more than 50 per cent.—final article in a series reporting the results of a survey of farm practices in the district.

Kimberley Research Station Progress Report, 1964 : Oil Crops, D F. Beech, M. J. T. Norman, W. R. Stern

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

INVESTIGATIONS on the adaptation of a range of oil crops to the Ord River environment have been in progress since the early years of the Station.

Weed Control : Watsonia, Onehunga Weed, Western Australia, Geoffrey A. Pearce

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

Suggested controls for two persistent weeds.

Plant Nutrition In Western Australia, George Henry Burvill

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

PLANT nutrition is of great practical importance in Western Australia.

Without a well developed fertiliser industry and research and experiments to guide farmers in appropriate fertiliser use the State's agriculture would be very restricted.

A Herbicide For Native Poison Plants, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

THE usual method of killing poison plants is by a programme of ploughing, cropping and burning.

The burning not only destroys a proportion of the plants, but stimulates the germination of dormant seeds, which otherwise would remain in the soil in a viable condition for many years.

Stinkwort (Inula Graveolens Desf.), G R W Meadly

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

THE original home of stinkwort is the Mediterranean region, including northern France. Apparently the first Australian record was at Onkaparinga in South Australia about 90 years ago.

Efforts were made to keep it in bounds during the years immediately following introduction, but it continued to spread and is now f i r m ly established in all agricultural districts of South Australia.

It also covers large tracts of land in New South Wales and Victoria and occurs in most districts of Western Australia.

Root Knot Eelworm And Its Control, O M. Goss

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

ROOT galling caused by root knot eelworm attack is very common in the lighter sandy soils of Western Australia.

This parasitic worm causes severe unthriftiness which may even result in the death of the plant, particularly during the summer months when the disease is most damaging.

Root knot eelworm has a wide host range.

The Naturalised And Cultivated Annual Medics Of Western Australia, B J. Quinlivan

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

IT is not many years since the term pasture improvement in Western Australia was synonymous with one species only, subterranean clover.

The amazing adaptability of this species to the environment enabled it to be grown in a wide range of rainfall conditions and in many different districts.

Robinia : The False Acacia, Robert Dunlop Royce

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

ROBINIA, the false acacia, is a tree up to 60 feet high, and is native to the eastern United States.

There it develops a trunk 3 or 4 feet in diameter and produces a hard close grained and durable timber.

In America it is known as black locust or simply as locust.

Wheat Quality Surveys In Western Australia. 2. Variation Between Seasons And Localities In The Production Of High And Low Protein Wheat, J A. Parish

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

Although the protein content of West Australian f.a.q. wheat averages only 9.4 per cent., often substantial amounts of comparatively high protein wheat are contained in this mixture.

However the quantity varies widely from year to year and is obtained from widely scattered areas of the wheatbelt.

Insect Pests Of Cotton In The Ord River Irrigation Area, K T. Richards

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

COTTON is grown in the Ord Valley of north Western Australia, mainly as an annual, irrigated crop during the hot summer months of the "wet season".

It is usually planted in November-December and harvested March-May.

This period of growth corresponds closely to that of maximum insect activity.

The Pruning Of Fruit Trees : Deciduous Fruit Trees (Apricots), H R. Powell

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

APRICOTS are grown in this State mainly for the fresh fruit market. Varieties commonly grown include Newcastle Early, Royal, Ouillins Early, Blenheim, Moorpark, Trevatt and Tilton.

In some orchards the trees are regularly pruned, but in others they are left unpruned. Unpruned trees are given some renovation pruning from time to time.

Continuation of an illustrated series on pruning fruit trees, by H. R. Powell, B.Sc. (Agric), Chief, Horticulture Division.

Broom Rape, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

BROOM RAPE (Orobanche australiana) is a parasite which becomes attached to the roots of other plants.

It is not very selective regarding hosts and has been found parasitising many species, but particularly clovers.

Plants For Saltland : This Is Bluebush, Department Of Agriculture, Western Australia

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

Bluebush occurs naturally in the 12-16 inch rainfall belt in Western Australia.

It provides very productive and nutritious fodder.

Lucerne Establishment On The West Midland Sandplain, J W. Gartrell

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

WEST of Dandaragan and the Midland line from Watheroo to Mingenew there are four million acres of scrubplain commonly called the Western Sandplain.

All virgin soils in this region are acutely nitrogen deficient so that the agricultural future of the region depends on how successfully legumes are grown.