LUCERNE IN NATAL. 35 



ADVANTAGES OVER OTHER CROPS. 



The first and perhaps main advantage is the quick return. 

 1 have before me the certified figures of the return from 18 acres of 

 lucerne, which show that within 11 months of seeding, produce was 

 sold to the value of 107, or nearly 6 per acre, besides which, 

 the first crop, with which there was much self-sown oats, was fed 

 to stock, as it would not make marketable hay. The crop, after 

 this return was taken, was then in a condition to give a cutting 

 every 5 or G weeks, and the return for the next 12 months would 

 be more than doubled. Compare this with other crops ; after- 

 reaping the farmer would have had to plough and harrow his land 

 again, and wait nearly a year before getting any further return, 

 and probably have to spend a heavy sum in manure.'; 



ENEMIES. 



The two great enemies of the Natal farmer, locusts and hail, 

 do not seriously affect lucerne. Locusts will not touch it at all, 

 while as regards hail, there may be one severe storm in a year, and 

 this storm, it' it caught the lucerne when it was approaching the 

 cutting stage, would ruin that crop, one out of perhaps seven or 

 eight which would be harvested in the year. 



Lucerne requires no annual expenditure for manure as most 

 other cr >ps do. 



Again, when once " established, 1 ' a long spell of severe wea- 

 ther (whether of drought or wet, to which our climate is so liable), 

 which w>)u!d be fatal to almost any other crop, would scarcely 

 affect lucerne, o:- only temporarily. 



CONCLUSION. 



In olering these notes on Lucerne in Natal, I feel that they 

 are very meagre, but the cultivation of lucerne on a farm scale 

 is of so recent date that very little experience has been gained 

 which c xild be collected for the benefit of intending growers. 

 1 trust, h >W3ver, that whit I put forward will tend to increase that 

 interest in the crop which is already considerable. I would say 

 that frjm whit I can see, and gather from works on lucerne, the 

 South African climate is most suitable fjr the crop; and when 

 farmers have disabused their minds of the idea that lucerne can 

 only be grown 'on land which can be irrigated, and realise that 

 th n-e is ,\ 0,-iv-at future f jr lucerne on our up-lands, I feel confident 

 that in a bw years thousands of acres will be under this crop, and 

 that very few laraa- in any part of the Colon.: will be found with- 

 out their field of luc T::C. 



LEONARD ACUTT, J.P., 



Member Natal Land Board, 



Ton gunt. Natal. 



