§ Captain Duncanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will make a statement about this year's harvest in Scotland.
§ Mr. J. StuartScottish cereal crops, though short in straw, were of good quality and the estimated yields per acre of wheat, barley and oats are the highest on record.
While the hay crop, particularly seeds hay, was on the light side, its condition and feeding value are above normal.
Prolonged dry weather adversely affected the growth of potatoes and turnips and swedes and yields of these are below average. The potato crop was practically free of blight and is of good quality. The yield of sugar beet promises well. Growth of pasture suffered from lack of moisture although moderate rainfalls in the autumn brought some improvement. However, the quality of grazing was generally good.
Estimated yields per acre of the main crops in Scotland in 1955 are shown below together with comparable figures for 1954 and averages for the ten-year period from 1945 to 1954 inclusive.
— 1955 1954 Averages 1945–54 Wheat (cwts.) 27.1 25.1 23.0 Barley (cwts.) 27.4 25.1 21.7 Oats (cwts.) 19.3 18.6 17.1 Rye (cwts.) 13.9 13.6 11.3 Potatoes (tons) 7.1 7.6 7.5 Turnips and swedes (tons) 15.9 18.7 17.3 Mangolds (tons) 20.1 20.0 21.0 Sugar beet (tons) 9.7* 8.8 9.0 Hay from temporary grass (cwts.) 29.5 33.5 31.7 Hay from permanent grass (cwts.) 20.6 22.2 22.8 Hay from Timothy meadows (cwts.) 40.2 41.4 42.3 * Preliminary estimate.