150 



Journal of Ar/nculture, Victoria. [10 March, 1916. 



The results for 1915, together with the average yield for the past 

 three years, are summarized in the following table: — 



Treatment. 



1. No manure 



2. Superphosphate, i cwt. 



3. Superphosphate, 1 cwt. 



4. Superphosphate, 2 cwt. 



5. Superphosphate, 1 cwt., lime, 5 cwt. 



6. Superphosphate, 1 cwt., lime, 10 cwt. 



7. Superphosphate, 1 cwt., lime, 20 cwt. 



8. Basic slag, 1 cwt. 



9. Basic slag, J cwt., superphosphate, i cwt. 



10. Superphosphate, 1 cwt., and nitrate of soda, 



^ cwt. 



11. Superphosphate, 1 cwt., nitrate of soda, 



^ cwt., potash, A cwt. 



12. Farmyard manure, 10 loads 



The triennial averages are especially interesting, as they indicate 

 the manurial treatment most likely to be successful on Wimmera soils. 

 They show that by thorough cultivation, and even without the assist- 

 ance of any fertiliser, yields of 19.32 bushels per acre have been ob- 

 tained. By sowing 56 lbs. of superphosphate, worth 2s. 6d. per acre, 

 an increase ol 7^ bushels per acre is obtained, giving an extra profit of 

 27s. 6d. per acre over the unmanured plot, with wheat at 4s. per 

 bushel. By increasing the dressing to 1 cwt. per acre, costing 5s., an 

 extra 9| bushels were obtained, the net profit in this case being 33s. 

 per acre over the untreated plot. 



Heavier dressings than 1 cwt. give greater yields, but the increases 

 beyond 1 cwt. are not remunerative. 



The results also indicate that lime gives little or no response on 

 Wimmera soils for wheat. Dressings up to 5 cwt. per acre increase the 

 yield, but the increase is insufficient to pay for the extra cost of the 

 lime.' Heavier dressings than 5 cwt. per acre depress the yield. 

 This is in striking contrast to results obtained in the north-east, where 

 the application of lime has resulted in substantial and profitable in- 

 creases in yield. 



Basic slag is apparently less efficient in the Wimmera than in any 

 other part of the State. The marked superiority of superphosphate 

 over basic slag at Longerenoug is probably due to the relatively high 

 lime content of the soil. 



In common with tests at other centres, the application of nitrates 

 and potash do not result in profitable increases. It is a fortunate cir- 

 cumstance for the Victorian farmer that even on the oldest cultivated 

 wheat areas experiments show that costly nitrogenous and potassic 

 manures, so indispensable in European farming, fail to elicit a material 

 response from Victorian wheat soils. 



It is interesting to note that the plot which gave the highest net 

 profit per acre for the three years was treated with 1 cwt. of super- 

 jihosphate. As the average amount of super, used in the wheat areas 

 is between 60 and 70 lbs.,. the test suggests that if heavier dressings 

 of this fertiliser were generally used a material increase in the wheat 

 output might be expected. 



