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Warning

This information was published in 1966 in An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand, edited by A. H. McLintock. It has not been corrected and will not be updated.

Up-to-date information can be found elsewhere in Te Ara.

Initial Rates of Application

by Cornelius During, B.AGR.SC., formerly Farm Advisory Service, Department of Agriculture, Wellington.

Recommended rates of application of superphosphate needed to obtain vigorous initial growth of pasture sown on cultivated but previously unimproved land are approximately as follows:

  1. Rainfall 40 in. – 200 in.

    1. poor initial phosphorus fertility, 6–9 cwt/acre.

    2. medium initial phosphorus fertility, 3–5 cwt/acre.

  2. Rainfall 30 in. – 40 in.

    1. poor initial phosphorus fertility, 3–5 cwt/acre.

    2. medium initial phosphorus fertility, 2–3 cwt/acre.

  3. Rainfall 15 in. – 30 in.

    1. poor initial phosphorus fertility, 3–5 cwt/acre.

    2. medium initial phosphorus fertility, 1–2 cwt/acre.

Where unimproved phosphate-deficient pasture containing little clover is oversown with clover seeds, initial rates of application of phosphatic fertilisers seldom need to exceed 3–4 cwt/acre because heavier rates cannot be utilised fully straight away. It is usually important, however, to consolidate pasture improvement by regular annual dressings for several years.

Initial Rates of Application Cornelius During, B.AGR.SC., formerly Farm Advisory Service, Department of Agriculture, Wellington.