EDITORIAL FARM NOTES.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 9991, 22 March 1898, Page 2

EDITORIAL FARM NOTES.

" Weekly Press and Referee.

AGSS OF SHEEP FOR PROMT.

The early maturity principle in regard to fat stock is, as we recently pointed out, receiving much attention at Home just now, and an article contributed to the Lire Stock Journal Almanac by Professor John Scott points out in a practical manner the financial advantages of the principle to the flockmaster who adopts it in practice. Since the inception of the frozen meat trade in the colony the production of sheep that will mature early has been one of the principal aims that breeders have had in view, but they may nevertheless learn something from Professor Scott's practical paper. It is generally accepted, he saye, that the grazing of five two-year-old sheep is equivalent to the grazing of six hoggets. Therefore the food that would be required for 100 aged sheep would be sufficient for 120 young animals. Then as regards the effect produced by the food, he quotes the Smithfield figures to show that the twenty-four months sheep may add about "401b per head daily to their live weight, while the hoggets are capable ot giving a corresponding record of •601b, or 50% more increase. From these assumed facts, which prove the younger animals to consume 20% less food, and with that to give 50% more increase in weight, the professor makes out that; the week's food necessary for 100 head of 4-tooth sheep, and which utilised for them would produce 2801b of mutton worth £3 10s, or B|d per head, would, if fed to hoggets, give a return of 5041b of mutton equal to £6 6s, or Is o£-d per head. There is certainly a striking contrast iti the respective returns from the same outlay, and yet the comparison is, perhaps not an extravagant one, nor the better results attributed to the younger class of animals unattainable. On the contrary, if accurate accounts could be procured from farmers who pursue the two systems it is by no means improbable that the foregoing calculations would be fully confirmed by present actual experience. Iv explaining the more rapidly progressive tendencies of the young sheep, the professor says the law of growth is the same for sheep as for other animals, that is to say that the older the animal the greater the percentage of food required for support and the less available for increase. Where animals are highly feel from birth, as in the case of show sheep, the .law becomes quite obvious, but when animals are kept on low diet for the first year or so ol their lives, aud are only highly fed for a few months before slaughter, it ia not so to observe the operation of the law. All the same the law prevails, and the farmer has nothing to gain but everything to lose by working in opposition to it. The application of these observations is unlimited, and they contain much meaning to stock owners in general. If the animals cannot be brought to maturity and sold within the compass of one year, in which direction our New Zealand frozen meat trade-is largely tending, it is certainly to the owners' interest that they should be finished and disposed of with as little delay as circumstances will allow. In other words, the most economical of all method* of management prescribes that the animals should be maintained in a steady progressive state from their birth onwards. early MATtrarrr and wool bearing. In wool bearing, as in the production of mutton, the early maturity system is ot sufficient economic importance to merit the consideration of sheep owners. Professor Scott : s view is that it cannot be too strongly impressed upon the minds of sheep owners that wool from young sheep is a very much more economical and profitable production than wool from old sheep. Young wool he points out, like young mutton, not only costs 20 per cent less to grow, fleece for fleece, but hoggets clip 25 per cent more wool than older sheep, and moreover it is worth, an extra Id perlb. This argument regarding the price will scarcely hold good, however, with our finer colonial woods, the ewe wool generally topping the market. He points out, however, that as six hoggets' fleeces can be grown afc the same cost as five older sheep's, the food that would produce £15 worth of wool from old sheep would be equal to yielding wool to the value of £27 from shearlings. The wool product of young, vigorous animals is doubtless more abundant and of greater value than that of old sheep, but the difference is surely somewhat magnified by the foregoing figures. tCCKBKB IK A DROUGHT. Under the above heading V Bruni" gives in the Australasian some interesting information as to the manner in which lucerne has withstood the severe drought of the past three seasons in Victoria. With a single dry season there is always sufficient moisture in the subsoil to fnrhish a fair growth of lucerne, but when the drought extends over three seasons the soil becomes so thoroughly dried that even a deeply rooted plant like lucerne must suffer. It was frequently rumoured this season that lucerne had failed in Victoria ; that it would not stand stock : ng, and, that it was of no use in a drought; but says Bruni:—"Up to the present time lucerne still maintains its right to be called the king of fodder plants. Under the most adverse climatic conditions and with negligent management, it has proved a valuable stand-by lor those eheepfarmers who have had the forethought to plant it largely. Though the growth of lucerne has been scarcely one-third of what it is in an ordinary season, the lucerne fields have not only materially assisted in keeping large numbers of sheep and cattle in healthy store condition, but they have fattened many steers and wethers. The necessities of some sheep-farmers have made them greatly over-

stock their lucerne fields till the root 3of the plants have been eaten well below the cvown. This does not prove that lucerne is of little use in a drought", but that the beat of plants may be destroyed by unfair treatment." A Riverina proprietor, who was one of the first to grow lucerne on a large ecale, informed him that, while the dryness of the subsoil renders a luxuriant growth impossible, an inch of rain in summer, which would be useless to the grass, brings the lucerne away at once, and this constitutes its great advantage over grass land. On the Collendina estate, where there is a large Tirea under lucerne, it enabled the manager to keep 10,000 sheep on the place that without it would have had to be sent away. To keep the sheep alive they were crowded heavily on to the lucerne paddocks, and the result has been that the crowns of the roots have been eaten away, and most of the plants probably destroyed. Mr A. Wilson, of Ringwood, holds lucerne in high estimation as a fodder plant for stock. Ho J has found it very helpful in keeping his sheep in healthy condition. Some of his paddocks were laid down about fourteen years ago, and, though they have never been assisted by any cultivation, the plants are still quite healthy. He is of opinion that with good treatment lucerne will last for any length of time. In order to see for himself how lucerne had withstood the drought, "Bruni" visited the Quat Quatta estate in the Rirerina, and he says : _« Five days before the time of my visit there had been a fall of a little over 2in of rain, so I had a good opportunity of seeing what would be the effect of a summer rain on the plant. The result fully bore out all the representations that had been made to mc. In all the lucerne paddocks there was a decided spring in the plants, providing a good bite for sheep already, and in another week there would be good cattle feed. In most of the paddocks the lucerne was hidden by the long white grass, showing the unfair handicap to which it had been subjected. In no part did I see any indications of any spring in the grass. Where the fields were bare of grass there the lucerne was growing much more vigorously than where the grass was long and plentiful." HOW TO GROW LTTOERNE. A correspondent "C.J.T." writing from Grey town North says :—"I wish to grow lucerne. Can you inform mc, through the columns of your paper, what quantity of seed per acre is required ; what preparation the soil requires ; nature of the soil best for same ; if ground to be manured, and if so what manure most suitable ; best time to sow, in the autumn or spring ; what time to cut afLor sowing, and how often can it be cut; if crop can be renewed by allowing it to seed, and how long before it runs out ? The growing of lucerne is comparatively new to this district, hence my troubling you with so many questions."

[It is satisfactory t<) notice that more interest is now being taken in this colony in the growing of lucerne, and every farmer would do well to sow a plot. The more trouble that is token to prepare the soil before-sowing the better the result will be in the growth of the plan! s. Lucernedoes best on a free, loamy soil where the roots can get well down lo permanent moisture ; and cold, wet soils are nnsuited to it. The ground should be sub-soiled when preparing it for sowing. Where a large area is being sown it will of course be necessary to do this work with the aid of a plough, but when a small plot only Jβ required the 9ub-soiling can be done with a spade. The soil should be brought to a good tilth before sowing, and the seed, which should be sown at the rate of 151b to 201b per acre, should only be lightly covered. If drilled the smaller quantity of seed would be; Sufficient Tbe seed may be •>. sown in either the autumn or spring. Mr M. Murphy, tary of the Canterbury A. and P. Association, in a letter published in our issue of January 19fch, states that he sowed his plot in September, 1896, and cut his first crop in November, ten weeks after sowing. This season he has already out four crops, and the fifth is now ready for cutting. As we pointed out a few weeks ago, the seed should be carefully screened to remove dodder seed, and if this pest should make its appearance in a lucerne plot, steps should be taken at once to eradicate it by means of the methods we recently advocated. Lucerne, bein# a perennial, should not require renewing if given fair treatment, and the land is suitable. Not much could be expected from renewal by seeding, as the young plants require the ground to be well worked to enable them to establish themselves. If the ground is in good order it will not be necessary to manure it at the time of sowing the seed, but for top dressing a lucerne plot in the autumn, farm-yard manure is very suitable.— ED. J , .] A SHOW HtNO QUESTION. "T.E.C.," Masterton, writes ahors* taking a first prize in a show ring is protested against for being led in the ring by the owner, contrary to the rules, and the protest is upheld, can the said horse compete for the championship.

[If only prize takere are eligible for the championship then the disqualified horse cannot compete.—Ed. F.]