TO Aug.. 191^.] 117/(7?/ and its CiiIfivafio)i. 461 



every wheat farm, and pnrtion. at least, of the area is therefore 

 periodically reserxt-d for pasture, and a more or less regular rotation is 

 practised. 



Advantages of Rotation. — The most important advantages accrumg 

 from a rational svstem of crop rotation is that it leads to the best possible 

 utilization of the resources of the- soil, and makes for maximum crops. 

 Different crops vary very widely in the manner in which, and the depth 

 at which, they obtain their nutriment from the soil. Some obtain it from 

 relatively shallow depths, whilst others are deep rooted, and, by alternat- 

 ing such crops, the store of fertility is more evenly used up. A well- 

 planned system of rotation leads to a better and more economical distri- 

 bution of labour throughout the farm year, and thus enables a farmer to 

 offer permanent, instead of casual, employment to farm hands. Moreover, 

 it aids in [ireventing the ravages of disease, for crops susceptible to the 

 attack of specific fungoid pests are less liable to be attacked when grown 

 in rotation with other crops. An illustration of this may be seen with 

 regard to " take all " in wheat. It enables land to be cleaned without the 

 employment of special labour, for where one kind of crop is grown 

 repeatedly, the weeds favoured by that crop cannot be kept in check. 

 Finallv. it provides a means whereby the fertility of the soil may, by 

 rational treatment, be maintained, and e\"en increased. 



A regular system of rotation — by which is meant that different kinds 

 of crops are made to succeed one another on the same ground in regular 

 order — is a feature of the advanced forms of agriculture practised in the 

 older countries of the world. We must not fall into the error of assuming 

 that because certain rotations are found profitable in the densely populated 

 countries of Europe, that they would be equally applicable in a new 

 country like Australia, with a relatively sparse population. 



The most advanced and profitable rotation for us will be that which 

 is best adapted to the exigencies of our peculiar climatic and economic 

 conditions. What are the conditions obtaining in the wheat areas? The 

 climate is such that the greater part of the rain falls during the winter 

 months. The spring and summer rains are irregular, and rarely copious. 

 Hence, in the wheat areas proper, the growing of summer crops is more or less 

 risky and uncertain, and for securing suitable crops for rotating wath w^heat 

 we are driven back to the use of winter-growing forages or cereals. 



Among the economic considerations, the labour problem is of great im- 

 portance. To break away from an extensive system of culture and adopt 

 intensive methods is to change from a system in which a minimum of labour 

 is required to one necessitating the eniployment of a maximum of labour. 

 To rear and feed a large number of li\'e .stock, to rotate and diversify 

 crops, and to follow the hundred-and-one practices of the intensive 

 farmer, imply the expenditure of additional capital and labour. In 

 den.sely crowded countries, the latter factor of production is usually 

 abundant. In a spar.sely populated country, in which immigration cannot 

 keep pace with local requirements, trained farm labour is at a premium. The 

 hicreasing cost of, and difficulty in securing, efficient local labour are 

 already inducing many farmers to lessen the area devoted to cultivation, 

 and increase the area devoted to grazing. 



The size of the holding is obviously an important factor in determining 

 the method of cultivation adopted, for the smaller the holdings, the more 

 intense must be the methods of cultivation. According to the Y ear-Book of 

 Victoria for 1910-11. more than one-half of the total area. i.e. 2.916,671 

 acres, devoted to cultivation in the whole State w^as confined to holdings in 

 which the amount of privately owned land varied from 500 to 2.500 acres. 



