Forty fine-wool Merinos grazed sown pastures and 40 grazed on weedy unimproved areas for 2 years. The sheep were dyebanded at intervals, and the weight of wool lost from the fleece tip was estimated from sequentially harvested sets of staples. Half the sheep in each group were fitted with woven polyethylene coats. In year 1, an estimated 4.2% of wool grown was lost from the fleece tip of unrugged sheep and 7.0% in year 2; losses from rugged sheep were 1.2 and 1.8 respectively. However, rugging had no effect on the quantity of clean scoured wool harvested each year, as rugged sheep grew slightly but consistently less wool than the controls. Rugging increased the percentage of clean scoured wool obtained from fleeces in the poor environment by 6 percentage points, but did not affect it on good pastures. Little difference in processing attributes was found in wool from rugged and unrugged sheep when assessed in bulk for commercial processing, although rugged wool was valued at 9% higher in one year. The length between bands on staples retained on the sheep for 32 weeks was shorter than between corresponding bands on adjacent staples that were removed from the sheep and stored for 32 weeks. The reduction was 13–22% on unrugged and 3–14% on rugged sheep. Attempts to use length or fibre diameter measurements to predict the weight of wool grown were unsuccessful. Theoretical considerations in the technique of dyebanding are discussed, and details of a recommended procedure are presented as an appendix.

An experiment to determine the effect of nitrogen, sulphur and phosphorus fertilizer, applied at sowing, on the growth and chemical composition of a hybrid sorghum x sudangrass forage, is reported. The factorial design was repeated at six sites in northern New South Wales in one year, 1976-77. Urea (50 kg nitrogen ha-1) substantially reduced plant populations at three sites. At the first harvest, dry matter production, after adjustment for plant population, was more than doubled by 20 kg phosphorus ha-1; yields were depressed by nitrogen where phosphorus was withheld. Hydrocyanic acid (HCN) potential (mean 0.04%), was increased 28% by nitrogen fertilizer, and reduced 34% by phosphorus fertilizer. Sulphur content was increased from 0.15 to 0.17% by nitrogen fertilizer, and reduced from 0.175 to 0.142% by the phosphorus treatment; it was unaffected by 20 or 50 kg sulphur ha-1 applied at sowing. At two sites, phosphorus increased the sodium concentration but the enhanced levels were still below recommended dietary requirements. The ratio of nitrogen : sulphur (after adjustment for potential loss of sulphur in the detoxication of HCN), was increased from 25:1 to 29:1 by nitrogen fertilizer. The response to sulphur was slight, and the effect of phosphorus was inconsistent. Similar but reduced effects on growth and composition occurred in the second harvest. Hydrocyanic acid levels were much higher, and the adjusted nitrogen:sulphur ratios were exceptionally wide. On the evidence available it appears that the direct supplementation of animals is the most feasible means of ensuring adequate levels of sulphur and sodium in the diet.

This paper examines the characteristics of sites where sheep camp or rest and explores the circumstances under which water. shelter, open space, rockiness, shade, elevation, aspect and contiguity were important in determining the location of such sites. From one to six camps were distinguished in all paddocks grazed by either Merino or Dorset Horn sheep. Camps were most conspicuous in lightly stocked native and natural pastures. A hierarchy was presented to show relationships among the various types of camp defined. Contiguous camps were a particular feature of small flocks of Merinos grazing small paddocks. In commercial flocks, Merinos mostly camped at or about the highest reasonably open locations with a north-easterly aspect. Water and shelter do not appear to be important in influencing the location of nocturnal sheep camps on the Northern Tablelands.

The effects of sodium application, growth stage and temperature on the mineral content and nutritive value of four forage sorghum cultivars are reported. The forages were grown in pots in glasshouses maintained at day/night temperatures of 23/16�C and 32/25�C with a 14 h photoperiod. The application of sodium chloride (equivalent to 41 kg Na/ha) increased the sodium content of plant tops from 0.014 to 0 018% but even the enhanced value is well below the minimum recommended for animal production. Sodium application also decreased the sulfur content of the forage and widened the nitrogen to sulfur ratio. Increased temperature reduced the in vitro digestibility, particularly of stem tissue (2.11 percentage units/�C). Age had a marked effect on the in vitro digestibility of the forage, which decreased by 0.3 percentage units/d.

The composition and relative acceptability to sheep of eight forage sorghum and three forage millet cultivars were assessed in two experiments at Tamworth and Armidale, New South Wales. Millets were consistently superior to sorghums in chemical composition, in vitro digestibility and acceptability. Japanese millet (Echinochloa utilis) which had the highest mean sulphur (0.45 per cent) and sodium (0.03 per cent) contents and a very narrow nitrogen : sulphur ratio (5.7 : 1 ) , was easily the most acceptable. Its disadvantage was its very early maturity with subsequent poor regrowth. In the second experiment, two pearl millets were similar to eight sorghums in terms of dry matter production (means 2.1 vs. 2.0 t ha-1 per cut respectively) but tended to be more acceptable to the sheep and produced forage of superior quality. The eight sorghum cultivars and one maize had very low sodium (0.008-0.01 7 per cent) and sulphur (0.09-0.20 per cent) contents and nitrogen : sulphur ratios (mean 15.9 : 1 ) wider than those of the two pearl millets (13 : 1). Despite quite low cyanide potentials (mean 0.015 per cent HCN) there was a consistent negative association between the cyanide potential and acceptability in the sorghums. The low cyanide cultivar Piper was generally the most acceptable sorghum and compared favourably with the pearl millets in acceptability. The application of 20 kg S ha-1 as gypsum failed to increase significantly the sulphur content of any of the forages, but significantly reduced the nitrogen : sulphur ratio from 14.1 : 1 to 13.3 : 1 in the second year.The solution to the problem of unsatisfactory animal production on summer forages appears to lie in increasing the dry matter production per unit area of millets or the quality of sorghums.