Mallee - Part 1

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were used, except that I sowed oats 32lbs. to the acre. The result was half a ton to the acre. The land was all ploughed and sowed straight away. I always sow in May. I believe in fallow. In 1914-15 I mixed Algerian oats and Turvey's Purple Straw for hay on 100 acres. I got about 12cwt. In 1915-16 I again sowed 100 acres of oats and wheat mixed for hay, principally from my own seed. Some of the oats I got from Narrogin. I sowed 100 acres of new ground in wheat so I had 200 acres in all. The result of the wheat was 4½ bushels per acre. It was all cultivated with a heavy cultivator. It was spoilt with red rust. The mixed hay was half a ton again. A small portion of an old paddock of self-sown oats, 16 acres, stripped seven bushels. I have not tried any fallow at all. The best crop I ever had was disc-harrowed in. The land improves considerably with sweetening; still, the better ploughing I have done the worse the crop I have had. My crops have never had insufficient rain. It is a good rainfall, and falls mostly in the winter. By way of experiment, I tried 60lbs., 70lbs.,80lbs., and 90lbs. of super., but never saw any advantage from the extra dressing. These experiments were made in the first year. I made a small trial since with both super. and seed, but I saw no difference in the crop. This was three years ago. In later years I have cut my sowing down rather than increase it. I have sowed as little as 30lbs. seed to the acre with satisfactory results. I put in no crop this year because I had a good lot of hay and a good deal of wheat, and the Premier did not start this line until seven months after he promised, and so I did not put in a crop. I went for a trip round the world instead. Even without a railway I think I can make more than a living with stock. I intend to go on growing for stock only until the railway comes, when I will grow for wheat also. I think I would get better crops if the land were fallowed and worked better. The land sweetens as we cultivate it and kill the mallee. In future I am going to fallow. I have a sandy loam almost all over my farm. I have had assistance from the Agricultural Department on my clearing, but not recently. The assistance given was satisfactory. I have paid heavy freight charges on machinery. I paid £ 5 18s. on my cultivator, bringing it through Norseman. Twelve years ago I got a reaper and binder through Esperance for about £4 18s. It came in the cases. I have been able to keep my rents and interest paid up except the last. I have not very much machinery. I have only a binder, a chaff cutter, a seed drill, and a cultivator. I have no plough. The people who have ploughed alongside of me have done no better than I with the cultivator. The share plough clears the land more quickly.

334. By Mr. PADBURY: You say you are going to try fallow; why now?— I have seen a little done in the district with improved results. I intend to go in for stock, because wool and meat are up in price, and because stock will improve the land. I have no fences. I propose shepherding and yarding my sheep. I would regard as a failure to crop that would not pay. I got £9 a ton at the yard for all I could spare. I have one dam giving plenty of good water. None of my crops has been affected by salt so far as I know. I have grown crops within 20 feet of brackish lakes, and found them grown well there. The heaviest crops have been adjacent to the lakes. The reason why I did not pay my rents is shortage of funds. I bought pigs with the money I might have paid portion of the rent with, and I am giving them the wheat. I intend going on in the hope of a railway. I would not start a new farm here in the hope of a railway, but I have a good start, and I do not like to run away from the holding. Grass grows fairly well on the cleared land. My holding is a mile from the railway survey, and three miles from a proposed siding. I fattened a milker to 643lbs., and sold her in Esperance. Peake, the butcher , said it was the fattest cow ever seen in Esperance. These are two classes of land here, the sandy loam and the stronger red clay land. It is distributed about half and half. Those on the red land are doing as well as I am. Baker's paddock, adjoining mine, has got a lot of cockspur.

335. By Mr. McDONALD: That land at Simpson's Tank would not grow cockspur?— It is growing more extensively on the strong clay land, such as Baker's land. I think I must mix stock with wheat I expect to carry half a sheep to the acre, provided I feed them through the autumn. They would carry me 10s. profit. On old cultivation paddocks I do not know that I could carry on sheep to two acres with-out feeding them in the autumn. To hearten them I would need to cultivate the paddocks for three years. I do not think the sandy loam would grow better grass than the heavy clay land. I have five or six varieties of grass. I think eight or nine-bushels crops will pay to feed the pigs while meat is so high. Samples of soil were taken off my land by Mr. Middleton for analysis. He took them from down near the lake. He is supposed to have taken a sample also from another lake, but I did not see him do it.

(The witness retired.)

FREDERICK GILMORE, aged 48, Farmer, Scaddan, and Caretaker of the Government Water Supply, married, one son aged 21 and one daughter aged 10, sworn and examined:

336. B the CHAIRMAN: What land do you hold in the district?— I have 250 acres Conditional Purchase, Loc. 397, and a Homestead Farm of 160 acres, Loc. 391, both at Esperance. I have also a Miner's Homestead Lease, No. 1, 34 miles south of Norseman, and 10,000 acres of pastoral lease on Lake View. At Scaddan I have a special lease of half an acre, and am renting 14 acres from Cecil Brown of Kalgoorlie. I came to the district in 1896. I then took up a business area for the purpose of erecting a wayside hotel at Lake View. I procured a license and erected a hotel, which I ran for nearly 19 years. I continuously for 10 years prior to 1914. I was perfectly satisfied with the success I had. The first crop I estimated at 30cwt. to the acre off 24 acres, without super. After the crop I got an average of half a ton to the acre. I never had a total failure. I used super. on two occasions. In 1911 I had a drill on it. I used 40lbs of super. The year I had a drill was one of the worst we had, and I do not reckon I got any advantage from the super, but in the previous year when I broadcasted the super the result was apparent. I did carting between Esperance and Norseman for 18 months. That was about 1907-8. I carted a few tons of chaff to Norseman for Thomp-