RURAL RIDES.

Press, Volume LXVI, Issue 20038, 20 September 1930, Page 10

RURAL RIDES.

A DAY IN ELLESMERE DISTRICT. (CROP AND STOCK CONDITIONS. (By H.A.M.) . Each Saturday 011 the Farm - Page an article will appear ' under tho above heading dealing with farm activities ;in some particular district, and on general- matters affecting the .. farming community. . There are many subjects outside the ordinary channels of publicity that concern the farmers' miindß, and which they discuss among themselves, and it is to be : hoped that a column of notes and observations on such and kindred matters will b? found useful _ ' . (No. 10 ,In commencing a column such as indicated, one naturally selects a .district where, to use a sporting phrase, the "odds are.on his side" —i.e., where there is something to. write about. Not much mental exorcise is - required -to single out the Ellesmere district as one of the most favourable in this respedt in the province. It is an "all round" agricultural district. No other excels it in the diversification of its farming. An extensive grower of . wheat and oats, the leading barley and pea raising area in the Dominion,..a substantial producer of potatoes, the home of a number of the leading breeds of sheep, a moderate producer. of milkj the Ellesmere county; and much of the contiguous country represent the most profitable type of farming in the province or the Dominion. Tho eggs, in effect, are in quite a number of baskets. The following 1929 statistics 'indicate the extent:—' •

• . ..A Backward Season. • .V.f 'in. ."lost liistrit't's. in mii!'Caritorbnry, girowti;*is very; fcackward. Pasture is making fclow head-way 011 the ' heavier land, • the"'..excess ..of rain "this last jd* Wpeks witlj tup periodical frosts' and cold ' wiiids" stopping growth, just when a few fine days encouraged the .belief that it would rabidly come away. Ellesmcre, however, is not what migl't bo. called, an early district. The.grp.und. is'for .the most part heavier "than elsewhere, and takes longer to recover.from' cold'and wet conditions'.in the spring, just-aa it- is the last to' go off- in. the autuofiu. _ '{'lie-farmer cannot have, ft "both wayp,and, : perhaps the ability' to carry -stock well through the "autumn and to postpone winter feeding'as long as possible is 'be more desirable. In the .Spningstoh district the. has damaged a few of tlie. wheat crops,. A clay subsoil on some of the farms lias delayed the surface water getting away, and drowned out wheat :n the depressions and a waterlogged condition of tho -soil! indifferently worked up, is to be seen occasionally. Except for the drowned out patches a good .stretch of sunshine . would. soon remedy! matters. . On tho. Leestmi side, of Doylestoii t)i<? young crops look better, but the effects of the rain there are also apparent," and j warmth is badly required.-- This con- ] •dition. of affairs is also noticeable on the ! heaviof land below Leeston.' However. ] a /ridge, through which runs the road froni So.it to- Lakeside e-hows a moro" - • forward • condition of growth. A most--promising crop of autumn sown wheat is to be seen on Mr J. Ludeman's farm near the township. On the heavy land through-Lakeside to'the Trani road, farmers'iipp'ear to befortunate in ' possessing "' crops forward enough to 'put the sheep on.' This- well-farmed district' looks particularly' w&H*' rtnd more forward than most of the locialitics'observed on the run. Tie: Cropping Programme. The wet weather' delayed the" wheat sowing programme, but there was up to the average got in-by June.; ■ It is now on the late side to. risk wheat, but', spripg-sown wheat last season, did. well generally, and with the saturation the. soil, has received .jt. is possible that a" few farmers'-may'-risk eiid. of September. sown ..wheat, shoulda little more working of the soil be. possible.- . ". ..There. is. a. good deal of land turned over,, and. tractors, and teams are busy. A' good . proportion.' of this area will be devoted .to barley, which,' generally, iSt, grown on contract at abont 4s 6d a bushel on trucks. These contracts are- not- easy to secure, .and., as- a rule, there is a limitation. to the acreage contracted . for in. most of the individual cases. Tho Ellesm'ere. County i grew 5236 acres of barley 'in' 1929 of a total of . 9561 in- the province and' 19,5.Q0 acres in the Dominion. Being a -crop-.that--is sown- in the spring, it ia especially; suitable for -the district. Oats provide a substantial; area-, each season, and .although the . collapse of the Home demand- for peas. : restricted the acreage last season, an area of 5200 acres' was cropped in the, two counties out of 10-,827 in the province - and 17,893 in tlie_Domji)ipn.-. In 1928 the respective figures were 7956, 16,520 and "25,128," but' a small area of.-.beans was included in . these , figures. Some farmers are rueful over the turn of,-the potato market. A' large area was grown—slightly: over 2QOO acres—in the two counties, and there are still "stocks on hand that will find a market with difficulty. Most of the holders lost" a moderately profitable market earlier' in - the year, but this holdipg on is a general experience, and always- -will be..-with a section of growers. . • ; ' : Stock Hatters. The - district '■ is practically, in ." the middl# of the - lambing. Soma - flocks

are about finished, and, others have justcommenced,. "A large hymber of twins" is a stock observation at lambing time, but it certainly idoes ieem tlxe case this year, and particularly so in the Ellesmere County. Ewes 'here .are. generally in gfood'condition iii . the autumn, and good percentages are the result. The district was exceptionally fortunate in escaping the. .. losses, that affected other localities' by the storm of. last. week, and, mortality was no worse* than in a normal .year. There were a few. bitter, days, l>ut good tree and hedge shelter;is w®ll. provided,.on most -farms, and flock-owners made : a practice -flf taking out,, the. dray ; andbringing in the dropped .lambs as soonns possible. But for: this substantial' losses would have been recorded. The lambs are doing, well, as in most cases good fresh feed for the' ewes -is. available in the lambing paddocks. - :The .ewes are looking well considering the early and severe winter. There is generally a "picking'' up to July,' but this year hapd feeding had to be resorted .to -in June. An earlier call on the hay and mangels a correr spoiidingly quicker- consumption, and this" ]{Vst„ few weeks -have brought a bare supply. - The Grass Grub. It, is unusual for Ellesmere* farmers to have to sell in-lamb ewes as late as August, but a few have had to do this, , not so. much on account of -an inadequacy of hay. and root' .feed," but of'the grass, grub, which has been particularly. had in certain localities this, -season. It has eaten out portions <jf. Old pasture,' and seriously diminished, feed' resources in a season when the .latter• were at a. minimum.. Most of the farmers affected have put the plough in,: ancL' with ai few' white and root crops and new pastures on the affected areas-a recurrence of the trouble is not expected. Dairy Herds. Dairy herds have had a rough winter in most parts of the province, but where dairying is • a major .activity .in the. Ellesmere CoUnty-they appear' to have been well prbvided for. la.", the Lakeside district, where there- is scope for extension,' some |*ood conditioned herds are to be-seeri grazixig on green feed. Just on 7000 cows come under the dairy heading of the two counties. The Better-Lambing Percentages. . It is a fact, that lambing percentages have improved markedly in recent years—this altogether apart from influences of climate and feed.. Various reasons are ascribed, but one suggested the other day may be a greater' factor than given credit for. We .are gradually getting more longwool. sheep' into the. Plnins flocks, principally Romney cross, and this breed stands out .'for its. maternal qualities. The Romney is a "better feeder, if the v feed is about, and: is generally in better condition* than' tho down or hill' braeds when put to the ram. JCMs tends

tloa of niOrs: twins, and the Bonrney ewo is, moreover, under favourable conditions, \an unexcelled milker. The l environment of line wool ewes is not so favourable for high percentages of lambs dropped.

Springs County Ellesmere County Acres Acres Wheal ' . 4109 12,281 Oats S10 1930-: Chaff . 2061 3377 ■ ' ftarle r 7s;.; ' .5230 Peas . 1180 4065 Ryegrass •. ■ 1 S3 ' 24 C Western Wolths . '209 378 Cowgrass 332 ' -7-20 : White Clover S4 726 ' Hay or Ensilage .■ 72") ■ 1749 Potatoes . -.48:; 1542 .Turnips 949 1993 Mangels • . 226 247 Xumbor ■Number Horses • : 1217 2C30 Cattle (including dairy) .. .• 4514' 8435 Dairy Cattle . - 2306 4620 • •^Slifeep . B.t.701- . 100,704" . 2511.:; . 5991 .