Cotton Culture. ■ IGl 



well attended to is far more profitable and satisfactory than a large 

 acreage wliicli has to be neglected. I^et your motto be quality rather 

 than quantity. This brings us to the question of good seed. I am 

 quite aware of the fact that there is very little seed in the country 

 which is not moie or \e?is mixed, but of this mixed seed there are 

 portions which are better than others. We propose next season to 

 start a vigorous campaign with the object of improving the grade of 

 our cotton by selecting the best strains in the field. No doubt some 

 of the cotton grown in the country is good, but it is rather badly 

 mixed. In my opinion we can materially improve the grade of lint 

 we are producing, and this can be done very quicldy, but we must 

 have the hearty co-operation of the growers. 



Iwporlafion of Scrd. — We have found it necessary to severely 

 restrict the importation of fresli seed into the countrv as there is grave 

 danger of introducing Pink Boll AVorm. Several parcels of seed 

 introduced from Egypt have had to be destroyed on account of being 

 infested with this insect, and one parcel from Nyasaland, received in 

 Portuguese East Africa, was found to contain a very suspicions 

 moth — if not Pink Boll Worm Moth it was very similar to it, 



I iiave recently visited the principal ginning plants and found 

 that they were winding up their j^ear's work, after having handled 

 something like 1250 bales at Durban, 600 bales at Rustenburg, and 

 450 bales at John Jack, Ltd. With the output of the smaller ginning 

 plants we can reckon on 2200 to 2500 bales, or about 1,000,000 lb. of 

 lint, which is an increase of something like 200,000 lb. of lint over 

 last season. 



There has been considerable complaint in regard to the lini 

 shipped oversea; this is due to the mixed quality of indivulnal 

 growers' cotton and also on account of the mixed condition of the 

 lint after it passes through the gins, i.e. long and short lint mixed. 

 This is attributable to two causes, first, the mixed condition of the 

 seed sown and, secondly, to the mixing of different crops at the gin. 

 No doubt the mixed seed is largely a fault of our own, as a farmer 

 frequently plants two or three varieties and these are either mixed in 

 the harvesting or get mixed at the gin. 



Up to the present too little regard has been given to the length, 

 strength and lustre of the lint by the buyers. 1 must warn groweis 

 that the time is appro'aching when buyers will look carefully into 

 these qualities, and growers of the ])oo]er grades may expect n reduced 

 price for their cotton. 



British Cotton Groirinr/ Association's Prizes. — I have received 

 up to the present samples from about fifty of last year's competi- 

 tors, and there are about ten more to come in. Immediately on receipt 

 they will be dispatched to Manchester for final adjudication. 



A second competition has been arranged for the 1920-21 crop 

 along similar lines to those of the last competition. The prize-money 

 will be the same, and as follows: — 



For best 50 acres or more. £100; for second best 50 acres or 

 more, £50 ; for third best 50 acres or more, £25 ; for best 

 10 acres or more, but less than 50 acres, £50; for second 

 best 10 acres or more, but less than 50 acres, £25 ; for 

 third l)est 10 acres or more, but less than 50 acres. £12 10s. 

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