The experimental determination of the digestibility of feeding stuffs has been carried out only to a very limited extent in this country. Nearly all the tables of digestibility-coefficients are of Continental origin, those of Kellner having pre-eminence and being generally adopted. The desirability of carrying out digestibility trials with home-grown feeding stuffs and with new feeding materials obtained from the Colonies and India is, however, apparent, and this is also the case with many of the proprietary feeds which are much used in this country.

During the investigation in connection with maize digestibility recorded in the current issue of this journal (1), a period of feeding was carried out in which the two pigs received a ration consisting of unsoaked crushed maize and whole milk. Although it was found necessary to discontinue the main maize trial along these lines, the results of this isolated period are not without interest, since they enable conclusions to be drawn concerning the extent of the digestion and assimilation of the constituents of milk when fed to swine.

The crushed maize used in this period was from the same stock as that fed in the mixed maize and middlings periods. The daily ration consisted of 2000 gm. crushed maize together with one quart of whole milk; it was given in two equal portions during the day, the milk and a little water being mixed with the dry maize in the trough at the time of feeding. The presence of the milk appeared to make the ration attractive to the animals, since ready and complete consumption was obtained.

Nitric phosphates containing 80, 50 and 30% water-soluble phosphorus, and Mussoorie rock phosphate, alone or with Amjhore pyrites, farmyard manure or straw, were compared relative to concentrated superphosphate for each of three cycles of a clusterbean–wheat and a groundnut–wheat rotation. Both the field experiments were made on alkaline P-deficient Samana sands. All phosphatic fertilizers were applied to each crop at the rate of 10, 20 and 30 kg P/ha. Dry forage of clusterbean, groundnut pods and grain yield of wheat were measured. The model of concurrent straight line response was employed to calculate availability coefficient ratios which express the relative effectiveness of the different phosphatic fertilizers.

Nitric phosphate containing 80 % water-soluble phosphorus and concentrated superphosphate were almost equal in their effectiveness in both 3-year rotational studies of clusterbean–wheat and groundnut–wheat. The relative efficiency of the nitric phosphates increased with the amount of water-soluble phosphorus they contained. Mussoorie rock phosphate was the least effective source of fertilizer phosphorus, although its efficiency is considerably higher for the legume clusterbean and for groundnut than for the cereal wheat. The efficiency of Mussoorie rock phosphate increased when it was mixed with the soil together with Amjhore pyrites, farmyard manure and straw respectively. These materials were more effective for clusterbean and groundnut than for wheat.

Two experiments investigated the effects of raising crisp lettuce seedlings under different environmental conditions prior to transplanting, on transplant size and weight and head weight at maturity.

The use of tungsten lighting for 4 h after the end of a 12 h period of fluorescent and tungsten lighting increased transplant size and weight and the weight of heads at maturity compared with fluorescent and tungsten lighting only. Glasshouse-raised transplants were larger than those raised under artificial lighting but gave heads of similar weight to transplants which had supplementary tungsten lighting for 2 weeks. Both these treatments gave significantly heavier heads than a drilled crop or plants raised without supplementary tungsten lighting. Increasing the number of weeks of the supplementary lighting treatment tended to increase the coefficient of variation (c.v.) of head weight. Nevertheless the drilled crop had a higher c.v. of head weight than any transplanted treatment.

The variety Pennlake produced pointed (‘coned’) heads when grown in the open and its leaves were shorter and broader than those of plants grown in polyethylene tunnels, which did not show ‘coning’. It is suggested that ‘coning’ occurs primarily as a result of either lower mean temperatures or a lower amplitude of temperature when grown in the open. It occurred most frequently with glasshouse-raised plants indicating that a higher raising temperature may also contribute to the problem.

Cowpea and hyacinth bean nodulated and grew well at 11–14 h and poorly at 8 h light duration. Nodulation and plant growth increased with increase in light intensity from 1·4 to 17·1 W/m2 but the natural light intensity (228·3 W/m2) inhibited nodulation in July and plant growth in December.

Nodulation and growth of both crops were best at ‘moderate’ temperature and cowpea tolerated ‘warm’ more than ‘cool’ temperatures whereas hyacinth bean showed the reverse situation.

Inoculation improved nodulation of cowpea but not hyacinth bean. Application of nitrogen did not improve the growth of plants affected by light and temperature.

Field assessments of varietal contamination from entomophilous outcrossing in okra revealed that the plant characters employed in such assessments influenced the estimate of contamination expressed as percentage of offtypes. In Nigeria, complex cropping systems, land use patterns and the abundance of insects associated with okra flowers make the effective isolation of seed crops difficult. Also, the largely subsistence production where annual seed purchase is infrequent, and consumers' acceptance of variable and ungraded edible okra fruits, imply that breeding for uniform or pure varieties may not be appropriate. Consequently, a composite bulk variety is proposed for growing or seed multiplication in areas where edible fruit production is envisaged. In this way, the difficulty of pure seed production or unwanted adulteration of varieties will not pose problems to breeders or farmers.

In this paper the general theory of the coagulation of dilute clay suspensions is discussed. The more important of the points considered are summarised below.

1. Two separate mechanisms causing collisions between suspended particles are considered, namely their Brownian motion and the mass motion of one group of particles relative to another group. Following Wiegner, these two types of collision are called perikinetic and orthokinetic collisions respectively. The rate of coagulation of a suspension is then shown to depend on the rate of collisions between particles and on the probability of adhesion between them when they collide. If this probability is unity, that is if every collision between two particles results in their adhesion, the suspension is undergoing rapid coagulation. There is excellent agreement between theory and experiment for this type of coagulation whenever the mathematical equations involved can be solved. But if the probability of adhesion is less than unity, the suspension is undergoing slow coagulation, and there is as yet no theory capable of giving the rate of coagulation of such a system.

The necessity for a method of comparing and, if possible, distinguishing chemically between the different classes of peat, and especially between alkaline or normal peats and acid peats, was suggested by a collection of soils received at the Rothamsted Laboratory.

The digestibility of the crude-protein equivalent (N × 6·25) of rations containing urea conforms with the general equation, y = 70 log x − 15, correlating the dry-matter crude-protein content (x) with its coefficient of digestibility (y), irrespective of whether the urea nitrogen is absorbed as ammonium salts or converted to microbial protein prior to digestion.

Maize was grown al the Regional Agricultural Research Station, Hathazari, Bangladesh during 1988/89 and 1989/90 to study fodder yield, cob growth and grain yield together with the contribution of pre-silking stem reserves to grain. Population densities were 33300, 44400 and 66600 plants/ha. Plants were either detopped after silking and pollen shedding, keeping 0, 2 or 3 leaves above the cob, or were left entire.

The results showed that the maize crop could successfully be detopped for fodder with little or no adverse effect on grain yield. Fodder yield increased with increased plant density and among the detopping treatments the highest fodder yield was obtained when the plants were detopped just above the cob. Cob growth followed a sigmoid pattern and the highest dry weight per cob was obtained from the lowest plant density and from entire plants. The number of cobs/m2 increased with increased plant density but detopping treatments did not give any significant difference in relation to densities. The number of grains/cob was highest with 33300 plants/ha but, among the detopping treatments, plants detopped just above the cob had the lowest number of grains/cob in both years. Weight of 1000-grain decreased with increasing plant density but it was increased by detopping plants just above the cob during 1988/89, although it was decreased in 1989/90. The highest apparent translocation of pre-silking reserves was obtained using densities of 44400 plants/ha but detopping treatments did not show any consistent effect, although the highest apparent translocation (20%) and harvest index (58%) were obtained from plants detopped just above the cob.

1. Differences in cattle population (4 June returns) and in average body size of fat cattle (data from the collecting centres) have been illustrated for the three counties (Cardiganshire, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire) constituting this region. They indicate the superiority of Pembrokeshire.

2. The six westerly collecting areas of Pembrokeshire produce the heaviest cattle of better grading. It has a higher proportion of steers to heifers than the rest of the region.

3. The statistical analysis of the data has made it possible to partition the region into four main groups of centres, which show significant differences in the size of the fat cattle.

4. The superiority of group 1 has been demonstrated in relation to (a) the seasonally of deliveries, (b) the percentage grading and (c) in the average live weights.

5. These differences are examined in greater detail by comparisons of the deliveries to the Pembroke and to the Llandilo centres. These show that Pembroke is superior in average live weights, percentage grading and in the proportion of steers to heifers.

6. The ungraded cattle are also examined, and the results indicate the same trends within the region as for the graded cattle.

7. The possible explanation of the variations or the ecology of beef production has been discussed in the light of Ashton's (1930) suggestions that variations in body size between cattle of different breeds is mainly due to the calcium and phosphorus content of the soil.

8. The conclusion is drawn that differences of climate dominate the whole picture, because of the effect of rainfall on leaching and soil erosion, as well as on the quality of the harvested fodders, the effect of temperature on the length of the growing season and of the beneficial influence of sunshine on the quality of both grass and hay.

The analysis of plant competition experiments in which all possible pairs of p genotypes are grown in replacement series is discussed. Two methods of analyses, using models of de Wit (1960) and Gleeson & McGilchrist (1980), are compared. The two approaches, which are shown to be linked algebraically, complement each other in terms of agronomic interpretation.

An experiment with two blocks containing phased sequences of continuous spring barley after beans or fallow was located on sandy soil over Lower Greensand on a gentle north to south (N–S) slope at Woburn Farm. Season had the greatest effect on yield with a 135% difference between the worst (1975, 1·73 t/ha) and the best (1974, 4·06 t/ha). years. N–S position was the next most important factor with average differences of 65 and 52% between the plots at the top and bottom of the site in blocks I and II respectively. The third most important factor was E–W position which gave a maximum difference of 35% in 1975.

A fertility trend with a strong linear component, which was most conspicuous in drier years, followed the main slope of the experiment and was attributed to erosion (fieldwash). After 1972 as different cropping sequences were progressively introduced, yield variation due to crop sequence differences was confounded with this positional effect.

Crops in the eastern block were taller by l·5–12·3% and, after adjustment for the linear trend, yield was on average 15·6% greater than in the western block. The site is astride a N–S soil boundary with Stackyard series to the east and Cottenham series to the west. The Stackyard soil has a greater available water capacity, and is subject to drought less frequently than the Cottenham soil. Using Penman's (1971) data for the Cottenham series at Woburn and estimates of profile available water for the two series elsewhere on the farm, theoretical yields were derived, which were generally greater than actual yields adjusted for the N–S linear trend (block means 1·47–4·32 t/ha), but which showed similar trends in the between-block differences. Explanations for discrepancies between theoretical and actual yields are discussed. The incidence and severity of take-all disease and differences in soil pH were always small and unlikely to have caused significant yield variations.

In the last two decades significant progress has been made in understanding the factors and processes affecting the K requirement of crops. Simultaneously analytical techniques to study the behaviour of K in soil have been developed, on the understanding that soil controls the supply of nutrients to crop plants by adsorbing and sometimes fixing nutrients. As in solution culture, the concentration of K in the soil solution governs the uptake of K by plants. The soil matrix serves as a reservoir from which the soil solution is replenished. Monitoring K status of the soil solution under fixed crop sequences can provide a useful basis for improving fertilizer recommendations. Kconcentrations in the soil solution have, therefore, been measured on a soil in which a number of crops have been grown in fixed annual sequences in field experiments.

Bastard Trenching as ordinarily performed consists of two distinct operations; loosening the lower spit of soil, and digging into it farmyard manure or other fertilising material. A considerable volume of data has been accumulated to show the effect of the addition of farmyard manure to soil, but little is known of the effect of loosening the bottom spit, either on the soil or on the plant.

A number of herbicide treatments involving the use of trifluralin, preforan and igran were compared together with hand weeding as methods for the control of weeds in a cultivar of Phaseolus vulgaris sown on 19 January 1972.

Favourable increases in yield of beans were obtained by combinations of preforan and igran which were associated with an increase in the number of pods produced per plant. Hand weeding failed to give a significant increase in final yield.

Within 14 days from sowing there was an appreciable weed cover in the control and hand-weeded plots but little evidence of weeds in the herbicide-treated plots. At 41 days there were still no significant differences between the control and the plots to be hand weeded. There was, however, a considerable reduction in percentage cover of weeds on the herbicide treated plots. Trifluralin and preforan were equally effective in reducing weed cover.

Hairiness in wool of Suffolk sheep as a fault was found to be associated with other defects like coarseness of wool fibres, hairiness of the britch, and the occurrence of pigmented fibres. The presence of these various defects was studied in the lamb's tail at docking time, and subsequently evaluated and correlated with the fleece.

The tails were graded according to the nature of the fibres and the spread of halo hairs from the tip to the base into four principal grades which by further subgrading could be made into seven grades. The results were as follows:

(1) There was wide variability in grades of tails within each flock.

(2) Average grade of tails followed in general the mean quality of the adult fleece.

(3) When Border Leicester were crossed with Welsh Mountain the tails of the two reciprocal crosses were found to be of hairy type of tail and nearly like the Welsh Mountain type.

(4) The percentage of coloured tails in the least hairy grades was found to be inversely related to the quality of the tail grade and indirectly to the fleece quality.

(5) The diameter of the wool fibres on the base of the tail is highly correlated with the diameter of fibres from the britch regions or mean fibre diameter from four regions of the body (mid-shoulder, midside, hip and britch).

(6) The mean diameter of the wool fibres obtained from four different parts of the tail was correlated with those of the britch regions only.

(7) The diameter and variability of fibres increased from shoulder to britch in the body and from base to tip in the tails.

(8) The britch and tails of two groups of sheep, one group characterized by coarse and the other by fine britch and tail wool, were studied histologically. There were significant or highly significant differences in the following characteristics in the britch of the two groups: (a) total number of follicles, (b) primary follicles with no medulla, (c) total number of secondary follicles, (d) secondaries with no medulla, (e) secondaries with large medulla. The only type of follicle where a significant difference was found in the tail was in the number of secondary follicles with no medulla.

Triple superphosphate (21.6% P), potassium metaphosphate (25.0% P) and magnesium ammonium phosphate (19.0% P) were compared as phosphate fertilizers alone and in combination, and as powders and granules, in two experiments on acid soils. Basal nutrients were adjusted to allow for the amounts of N, K, and Mg in the test fertilizers. Immediate effects of the fertilizers were measured by early potatoes and barley, and residual effects by radishes and ryegrass.

All powdered fertilizers, alone or in combination, were equivalent to powdered superphosphate for early potatoes. The value of granular fertilizers for potatoes increased with the proportion of superphosphate in the mixtures. Superphosphate equivalents of the granular fertilizers were: magnesium ammonium phosphate, 14%; potassium metaphosphate + magnesium ammonium phosphate, 36%; potassium metaphosphate, 53%; superphosphate + potassium metaphosphate + magnesium ammonium phosphate, 54%; superphosphate + magnesium ammonium phosphate, 60%; superphosphate + potassium metaphosphate, 81%.

Residues from powdered fertilizers, applied to potatoes, were equivalent, for radishes, to residues from powdered superphosphate. Residues from granular fertilizers were more effective for radishes than residues from powders.

All powdered fertilizers were equivalent to powdered superphosphate for barley cut green. Granular magnesium ammonium phosphate, either alone or mixed with potassium metaphosphate, was slightly less effective than powder.

Residues from all powdered fertilizers applied to barley were equivalent for ryegrass. Residues from granular fertilizers, especially potassium metaphosphate and magnesium ammonium phosphate, produced more grass than residues from powders.

Apparent recoveries of P by the four crops ranged from 24% to 32% and were more from granules than from powders. Residues from all fertilizers increased 0.5M-NaHCO3-soluble P in soils, and mean yields of ryegrass, the final test crop, increased by 3.2 to 5.1 cwt dry matter/acre/ppm NaHCO3-soluble P in the soils.

1. The data summarized in this paper relate to the live weight at killing, the carcass weight, the skin weight and the loss in dressing of 813 males and 289 females of various breeds and varieties of rabbit.

2. The age at killing varied with the moulting process. The extent to which variation in age contributes to the variation in weight and accounts partly for some of the differences observed is not dealt with.

3. Significant differences were noted between the live weights of the various breed groups, in both sexes.