Transactions of RHASS Volume 1940 - Page 101
Image details
| Year | 1940 |
|---|---|
| Transcription |
|
| OCR Text |
190 CEREAL AND OTHER CROPS OF SCOTLAND FOR 1939. got; much of it damaged in making, later. illeadow Hay—None grown. Potatoes—Much the same as in 1938; 513» tons per acre; quality good; not much disease; no new varieties. Turnips— Very variable; some fine crops of swedes up to 30 tons per acre; others very poor where the ground was too dry when sown ; yellows a poor crop on the average; disease not so bad as in some former years. I meets—Not so much trouble with raan or rotting as in some former years. Weeds—Gave little trouble to turnips, where well hoed during the early dry spell; later, they were more difiicult, and many fields finished very weedy. Pastures—Made slow growth in the early spring and summer; improved greatly later and made a very good pasture season, both quantity and quality. Live Stock— Did very well. and cattle and sheep were free from disease. Clip of Wool—Average. NAIRNSHIRE. Barley—Very poor yield of grain; about 24 to 28 bushels per acre; seed sown, 3% to 4 bushels per acre. Oats—Yield very much below average; about 40 bushels per acre; seed sown, 6 to 7 bushels per acre. HarvesF—Began about usual tirne—that is, about third week in August. Hay— Much under previous year, say 15 cwt. per acre. illeadow Hay— None grown. Potatoes—About 7 tons per acre; no disease reported. Turnips—The poorest yield of turnips for many years; the crop brairded badly, and second and even third sowings were common owing to dry weather. Insects—Caused no injury. Weeds ~Turnips suffered much from a weed known locally as melgs. Pastures—Above average. Dive Stock—Did well, and kept free from disease. Clip of Wool—Better than average. INVERNESS-SHIRE (Skye). Wheat—None grown. Barley—None grown. Oats—A good crop, worth considerably more than the previous year’s and mostly stacked in good condition. Harvest— Commenced about normal time, during first week of August; weather at first broken, but afterwards excellent. Hay—Both in respect of quality and quantity the crop was better than in the previous year. Meadow Hay—Most of the crop was secured in good condition and was improved in quality and quantity over the previous year. Potatoes ——Seed supplied to crofters last spring proved much inferior to the crofters’ own; those who planted their own secured sounder and better crops ; the crop, as a whole, was good and would have been abnormally so had the seed been uniformly good. Turnips—«Very little of the crop grown in the area, and What was tended to unsound' mess. I nsects——There did not appear to be much damage from insect pests. Weeds—There was the usual damage from weeds; only a small proportion of the land is weeded, that under potatoes and patches of turnips, and thus weeds get a chance to thrive. Pastures-f As a rule, were better than in the previous year. I/lve Stock—Did well; cattle and sheep were in good condition at the end of the grazing season; diseases were much as usual, the most common being trembling among sheep; cattle also showed signs of trouble during the first month of the grazing season. Clip of Wool—About average, being slightly improved over that of the previous year- INVERNESS—SHIRE (Lochaber). Wheat—None grown. Barley” None grown. Oats—Over average crop ; seed sown, about 6 loufiheIE CEREAL AND OTHER CROPS OF SCOTLAND FOR 1939. 191 per acre. Harvest—Began before the usual time ; early in August ; all crops were secured in good order. Hay—Ryegrass and clover below the average owing to the dry weather in May and June. Meadow Hay—Came away well after the middle of June ; quite an average crop and well secured. Potatoes—An average crop, secured in good order; no disease and potatoes kept well; mostly Kerr’s Pink and Golden Wonder grown. Tm‘nips—Under the average, and Very badly affected by grub or maggot; brairded well and looked well until about August, when this pest got a hold and seemed to affect all the crop. Insects—The damage was worse than usual; the maggot or fly seemed to attack all turnip crops in this district, and unless it can be checked it is little use trying to grow turnips. Weeds erry little damage done owing to dry season. Pastures—Average. Live Slock~Did very well all season; cattle and sheep were free from disease. Clip of l/Vool—‘Average. ROSS-SHIRE (Dingwall and Munlochy). Wheat—Smaller acreage grown; yield, 32 to 44 bushels per acre. Barley—Larger acreage grown; yield below average, 30 to 40 bushels per acre; grain light, and straw short. Oats—A fair crop, but straw small in bulk, and grain only fair sample ; did not thresh up to appearance ; yield below average. Harvest—Began about the normal time; the crop was all secured in good order. Hay—A light crop. Meadow Hay— Practically none grown. Potatoes—Yield, 4 to 10 tons per acre; 8. good deal of blight experienced. Trumps—Swedes, 15 to 25 tons per acre; yellows, 10 to 20 tons per acre ; a great deal of resowing owing to frost. Insects—No damage reported, but a great deal of damage done to crops of all sorts by crows and wood-pigeons, which have both become a plague in this area. Weeds—NO injury recorded. Pastures—Average growth; pasture scarce at start of season, but good at back»end. Live Stock—Throve well, but fat cattle did not weigh well off grass; cattle and sheep kept free from diseasc. Cli p of W ool—About average. Ross-SHIRE (Tain, Cromarty, and Invergordon). Wheat—Generally speaking, a very bad crop ; did not thresh well ; weather too dry in May and first two weeks in June; seed sown, 4 bushels per acre. Barley—Over all, a light crop; the worst in this county; quite common return, 30 to 40 bushels per acre; generally husky and light in weight, 52 to 54 lb. per bushel; grain in good condition; 3 to 4 bushels per acre sown. Oats—Probably the worst threshing crop ever seen; light in straw generally, but straw very good; 40 bushels to the acre would be slightly above the average ; colour good. H arcest—Began last week in August. Hay—Very light crop ; quality fair. Meadow Hay—A better crop, but not much grown. Potatoes—A little more than an average crop; some good fields after lea gave up to 10 tons per acre. Turnips—Very irregular, owmg to dry weather and maggot—fly; tonnage per acre variable, especially in yellows. Insects—Not much finger-and-toe, but great damage by maggot-fly. Weeds—Land fairly clean all over. Pastures —~Cattle grazed well, although there was shortage of keep. Live Stock—Lambs did well until the rain came ; although dosing had not been neglected earlier, there was a good deal of trouble ; cattle and sheep have been fairly free from disease. Clip of Wool~Generally good. |
| Title | Transactions of RHASS Volume 1940 - Page 101 |
