FARM SURVEY

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 56, Issue 99, 7 February 1936, Page 7

FARM SURVEY

WORK IN ASHBURTON COUNTY. PROPOSED PLAN BEFORE COUNCIL. Detailed plans for making an economic agricultural survey of the Ashbur-j ton County with the assistance of graduates of Lincoln College and a grant of £530 from the Unemployment Board were placed before the Ashburton County Council at its meeting today. A copy of a letter sent to Wellington acknowledging a special grant from the Unemployment Board made to the Scientific and Industrial Research Department for Ashburton farm management researches, and detailing the research workers available, was received from Dr. J. W. Weston, • farm economist at Lincoln College. “I propose at this stage merely to inform the committee through you, provided that method is convenient to you, of developments to date, as detailed in the copy of the letter to the Scientific Industrial Research Department,” Dr. Weston wrote. “At a later date when presumably the committee will be more at leisure and the graduates all back at the College and ready for further guidance, I propose to meet the committee and fully discuss the work to be done, and! to get the committee’s assistance and backing for the work suggested.” “For students in agricultural economics, I propose to be responsible for the work, but Dr. Hilgendorf has agreed to father the survey of wheatgrowing methods and practices for the County, whether he is an economic or a plant husbandry student. As with 1 all economic research work, the cooperation of other officers wherever special aspects of agriculture are being dealt with will be secured. For example, Dr. Hilgendorf and Mr Calder have agreed to direct on the technical side of the cocksfoot research. “Within a week Mr J. Fleming, B. will have completed! ready for typing his preliminary farm management and land utilisation survey. This will provide a skeleton foundation for future work, comprising as it does a description and delineation, based on the soil types, of the main types of farm land, together with details of productivity, carrying capacities, methods of management and farm income and expenditure to be expected from average farms on the main farm types. “On the basis of this survey, Sir Fleming will this year secure the cooperation of groups of 10 or 12 farmers representative of each main soil type and check over his previous years’ records and on the basis of the actual average carrying capacities, productivity and farm returns for these farms set out full details of the best methods of management, most profitable types of stock carried, most profitable methods of manuring, etc. Mr Fleming will also pay special attention to and make a special survey of the area to be irrigated so that the farmers in that area will be able to have then land in suitable order for making best use of the irrigation water when it becomes available. “A bulletin showing the results 01 the work will be made available. . “Special surveys of particular branches of farming will assist to make the above work more detailed and thorough, are as follows: A survey' of mountain sheep raising in Ashburton County] a survey of cocksfoot growing methods and practices] a survey oi wheat-growing methods and practices; and a survey of hogget rearing and fat lamb raising methods and practices. “The following is a summary of the direction of the work, the research being mentioned first, followed by the name of the graduate and lastly the name of the guidance officer:— “General management, J. Fleming, Dr Weston; mountain sheep, C. ii.. Ballinger, Dr. Weston] cocksfoot, M. C. Armstrong, Dr. Weston and ir Calder; wheat-growing, A. F. Wilkie, Dr. Weston and Dr. Hilgendorf; hoggets and fat lambs, 0. S. Hams, Dr. Weston.