1 May, 1902.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 841 
Rust, in its various stages, has a most important connection in all phases 
of this subject, and must be considered in the relation of resistance and escape 
in the choice of varieties. 
Roots of the wheat plant will, under certain mechanical conditions of 
soil, penetrate to a depth of 2 to 8 feet, and in dry localities “deep tillage,” 
where practicable, is to be commended to assist plants in developing this 
necessary feature. As a further means, early sowing of crops in accordance 
with variety should prove an additional adjunct to success. 
In late-sown crops, where deep tillage has not been practised, there is a 
natural tendency for the development of surface roots, which are more subjected 
to variations of heat and moisture, bringing in their train decreased yields and 
"inferior grain unless a most favourable season is experienced. 
Tn rich soils, where plants obtain a good supply of their nourishment in 
the upper strata of soil and produce a superabundance of flag, it is often found 
beneficial to turn this to account by feeding off with sheep, encouraging roots 
to strike deeper, at the same time lessening the effect of rust by removing a 
most fayourable propagation ground as well as consolidating the soil sufficiently 
to make a firm seed bed. 
This system is not, as a rule, practicable in the arid regions, where early 
maturing wheats are in more favour, nor is it always advisable, but the after 
cultivation of crops to conserve moisture may be practised with advantage. If 
proper cultivators fitted with steering gear are not available, light lever harrows 
may be substituted, but it is not advisable to touch crops sufficiently long to 
drag. 
“The first and second and, in backward cases, sometimes a third cultivation 
may be given at intervals of from three to four weeks, commencing as soon as 
the roots are strong enough. 
The numerous small cracks and fissures in the soil are the means whereby 
the moisture becomes rapidly lost. To prevent this it is necessary to break up 
these “ducts” and fill them with fine soil, so that excessive evaporation may be 
prevented, and moisture may rise and thus become available by capillary 
attraction. 
ENSILAGE AT ST. HELENA. 
At the Penal Establishment at St. Helena in November, 1901, grubs 
attacked the cobs of a splendid patch of maize, and on account of the con- 
tinued dry weather they threatened to totally destroy the crop. In order to 
save it for cattle feed it was run through the chaff-cutter—?-inch cut—and 
put into the silo pit on the 27th and 30th November, well tramped, but not 
weighted down. On the pit being opened on the 23rd January, 1902, just 
seven weeks and four days after filling, the silage was found to be in splendid 
condition and of excellent quality, the stock eating it greedily and doing well 
on it. 
EXPERIMENTS WITH MAIZE. 
By G. B. BROOKS, Manager, State Farm, Biggenden. 
During the past season some experiments were carried out with a view to 
ascertain the suitability or otherwise of several varieties of maize obtained from 
America. The varieties were sown alongside locally grown seed, and under 
exactly similar conditions. An area of a quarter-acre was devoted to the 
respective sorts. The land on which the crop was grown was in good tilth, having 
previously been cultivated to a depth of 8 inches. The seed was sown in 
furrows opened out with the swing plough, 4 feet 5 inches apart, with a 
distance of 15 inches between the seeds. 
Careful records were being kept as to the nature and habits of growth ofthe 
yarious varieties experimented with, but the extremely dry weather experienced 
