CAB129-37 — Page 172

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176. The main varieties and acreages of Sunflowers sown were as follows:

Dwarf Hungarian

Mars

Pole Star

Jupiter

Unit 1

11,157

760

Unit 2

600

1,730

1,313

Unit 3

•

1,115

285

345

2,221

12,872

2,775

345

3,534

177. Fertiliser was used over the following acreages:-

Unit 1...

Unit 2...

Unit 3...

...

(b) Rotation

Groundnuts

•

590 4,004

4,594

Sunflowers

3,672

413

4,085

178. As this was the second crop on a relatively small proportion of the acreage planted and the first on the remainder, no rotational sequence could be arranged. Where possible, suitable land under crop to nuts in 1947-48 was again put to nuts; all suitable first year land also went to nuts. Land not considered suitable, for any reason at all, for nuts was put to sunflower.

179. The land two years under nuts (1947-48, 1948-49) would next season go down to sunflower. Land down to sunflower in 1948-49 would, wherever desirable, go down to nuts, bearing in mind that the total amount of land sown to nuts should generally be restricted to those portions presenting no difficulties in the harvesting of this crop.

Lessons Learnt :

180. Among the results gained through experience in the year under review

were:

(i) Much information regarding the potential of the three Regions; (ii) The policy of limiting Kongwa to three Units at present. A decision. (a) to progress north of the railway at Urambo instead of south as was originally thought best, and (b) to work steadily in the eastern section of the area chosen in the Southern Province before attempting any land-clearing in the western section.

(iii) The chief contributions resulting from reconnaissance work, that were made to land-clearing and subsequent operations, were:- (a) The decision to limit flattening to the moist season of the year, thus reducing the proportion of roots and stumps left in the soil; (b) The improved chain-cable method; (c) The use of the heavy disc plough as a root-cutting implement, in the Urambo Region particularly, and to a lesser degree in the Kongwa Region.

(d) An improved method of piling or windrowing as practised at Urambo, and an improved method of piling thicket debris

at Kongwa.

(iv) There were, of course, also the gains in knowledge and technique affecting many other kinds of work, and of future co-ordination of efforts and utilisation of labour.

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