The Rural Voice, 1978-10, Page 50crested wheatgrass and Russian wild
ryegrass--both commonly used in
reseeding native pasture. They also talk of
its qualities as a winter feed, its superior
curing qualities and high production.
"Fact of the matter is that one cannot
define prairie wool," Dr. Looman says. "It
means something different to prairie
ranchers in different areas."
For instance, he found that ranchers in
the southern part of the prairie provinces
know prairie wool as a forage in which
speargass is the most important
component, withsome grama and sedges
mixed in. Further north, the main grasses
are rough fescue or porcupine grass, with a
few other sedges and grasses mixed in. In
central Manitoba, it is a meadow
vegetation in which sedges predominate
and reed -grass is important.
"And these three main types are not the
only kinds of prairie wool," Dr. Looman
says. "Locally, ranchers have their own
types as well."
Dr. Looman's tests have shown that the
tame grasses produce more useable forage
of better quality than any type of prairie
wool, especially early in the grazing
season.
Russian wild ryegrass is of considerably
better quality towards the end of the
season than any prairie wool. Even the
best -curing prairie wool --the spear -grass
type --has lost most of its nutritive value by
the middle of the winter.
Peep???
Scotland studies
sheep -pig cross
An animal breeder raised the possibility
of crossing a sheep with a pig to create a
single animal to provide wool and bacon at
the same time. Dr. John King, director of
the Animal BreedingResearch Organization
in Edinburgh suggested such attempts
would be made and could eventually be
successful. He said pigs would be given
genes to make them grow wool. The
re -fashioned animal would also be made to
breed at the rapid rate of pigs rather than
the slower rate of sheep.
More of Holland
Marsh farmed
production, for a total of 3,588 ha.
The Holland Marsh is a 12 km strip of
organic soil. 3 km wide, extending from the
tip of Lake Simcoe to Bradford. Develop-
ment of the marsh began in the early
1900s. After drainage and clearing, it
became the riches vegetable -growing area
in the province.
The largest crop in the marsh is onions.
The 1978 vegetable crop survey shows that
1,215 ha of onions were planted this year.
This accounts for more than 33 per cent of
the total production area.
The rich muck soil of the marsh is also
ideal for carrots. Marsh growers planted
915 ha this year. 31 per cent of the total
farmed area.
"Carrot and onion production is rela-
tively stable," says Mr. Valk. "However,
other marsh crops fluctuate from year to
year, depending on prices and weather
conditons."
Production area for other marsh crops is:
lettuce, 430 ha; potatoes. 320 ha; celery.
150 ha; parsnips. 67 ha; cabbage. 40 ha;
cauliflower, 89 ha; beets, 18 ha; and
miscellanieous crops, 137 ha.
Production in the Holland Marsh, which
includes the Bradford. Beeton, Cookstown
and Keswick Marshes. depends upon an
intricate drainage system. This system
pumps water away from the fields, and
provides irrigation during dry periods.
More land is being farmed in the
Holland Marsh area this year than ever
before, according to Matt Valk, senior
muck crop specialist for the Ontario
Ministry of Agriculture and Food.
This year an additional 54 ha are in
PG. SO THE RURAL VOICE/OCTOBER 1978
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