BIG CONFERENCE OF FARMERS

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27664, 21 May 1955, Page 5

BIG CONFERENCE OF FARMERS

WOOL AND LUCERNE MAIN TOPICS AT LINCOLN The fifth and easily the biggest of ; the Lincoln College Farmers Confer- ; ences was held at the College this ■ week and once again provided a : valuable meeting ground for farmers and scientists from all over the South Island, and for some from the North < Island. The conference was held in the new refectory hall, and this time the ; attendance could be increased to 450. ; Dr. M. M. Burns, director of the college, hinted that in future it might be 1 possible to accommodate up to 600. The three main themes of the con- 1 ference were the wool industry, the place of lucerne in New Zealand farming, and the management of highproducing farms, which are giving rise to increasing problems. Contributions to the discussions were the usual judicious mixture of scientific papers, and papers from practical farmers outstanding in some particular aspect of farming, and as usual, while the formal side of the conference was valuable, just as much was gained from the informal discussions held after the conference sessions. Disappointments The opening day produced two disappointments. Although the conference chairman, Mr J. S. Hunt, of Wanaka, threw out hints which must be somewhere near a world’s record for broadness on such subjects as superphosphate supplies, meat storage space, and the location of the veterinary school, the Minister of Agriculture, Mr Holyoake, who officially opened the conference, refused to be drawn. His speech confined itself for the most part to a recapitulation of the history of Lincoln College. The Minister did also say that he believed the days of deterioration of .the high country were about numbered, and that he believed no worthwhile increase in production from the South Island could come without irrigation, but he gave no hint at all on Government policy on the livelier current farming topics. The second disappointment was the address of Mr W. Horrobin, chairman of the Wool Board, which was read for him by Mr B. S. Trolove, which was also as innocent of anything controversial as was the Minister’s. Nevertheless, wool did produce a very lively debate when Mr J. Boyd-Clark, who can usually make himself heard in places other than the wool saleroom, questioned the Wool Board’s wisdom in spending money to boost manufactured woollen goods overseas, and while doing practically nothing on research designed to improve the raw material in New Zealand. The wool discussion produced a number of very useful papers, of which the most notable were one from Mr A. A. Urquhart of Erewhon, who described his method of selecting and breeding Merinos for freedom from dustiness; and one from Dr. A. E. Henderson of the college staff, who rather shook his audience by showing them that only about 10 per cent, of the wool produced in New Zealand was of really first-class quality. The rest, he said, was of moderate quality, or inferior. Mr C. E. Iversen’s paper on his observations overseas of the large and vigorous amount of research at pren .t .going into lucerne was the most striking paper of the conference. Lucerne is gaining in popularity throughout New Zealand, and his findings show that there is a wide range of plant materials, overseas on which breeders can draw to produce specially efficient new typds for this country. Contributions from farmers, notably one from Mr R. M. Robertson of Hakataramea, who is using lucerne in his dry climate on easier land to take the strain off his tussock hills while they regenerate, filled the rest of the second day profitably. Crop After Grass Yesterday, the final day, started off well with an address by Dr. Peter Sears, of Grasslands, on the management of high production farms. He took his audience rather by surprise when as a North Islander he ragued • for cropping as the best means of cashing the fertility the new pastures put into the land. He came prepared to rely largely on lantern slides to make his points for him, but found that the only defect of the lovely college dining. hall is that it cannot be blacked out for slides. He is probably the liveliest speaker among New : Zealand scientists, and the setback did nothing to dampen his usual enter- , taming style. Three farmers, two of . them from Southland, contributed meaty papers to the discussion. Formal ' business closed with a description of the experimental irrigation sheep farm > Winchmore by the officer in charge of it, Mr G. K. McPherson. It was a highly successful confer- ’ ence. If the quality of the contribu- . tions varied somewhat, they were at their best outstandingly valuable. The l conference is now a very well-estab-c Jished event in the South Island farm--1 ing year, and it is a little disappoint- « ing that even with the new and much - more generous accommodation, not > nearly all those farmers who want to; 5 come can come.

CHILLER BEEF TRANSPORT A conesspondent who signs himself “No. 1. R.l>*, because his real name might, as he says, “involve his neighbours, writes:— In reading the various reports on railage versus lorrying for chilled beef cattle, I feel that everyone seems to have missed what is to me an all important point. The majority of boundary fences are not in a condition to keep cattle out, the boundary fences which line each side of our country roads, on the way to the railawy station. I should have liked the Bailway Departmental officer to have been with us on our last cattle drive to the railway yards. It would have opened his eyes as well as stirring his hunting instincts. We started off with as quiet a mob of hand-fed cattle as one would wish to see; an dogs well to the rear, and no stockwhips. The excitement began almost immediately on leaving behind our own farm. The neighbour’s fences are all gorse, threaded with occasional strands of very old wire, and frequently gaps occur where oxidation is complete. Through these poured our beasts Just out of usual bovine curiosity. Then from one paddock to another we progressed, sometimes gaining ground, at other times losing as they doubled back behind an enoimous fence too deep to scramble through. And all this time the high column of steam and smoke from our railway train drew steadily nearer. Would we make it in time? Then on past the next property, or rather through, as before, but this time with added interest. We gathered in a dairy herd! At last we arrived at the railway yards where the engine was puffing impatiently. At this juncture the Hereford bull which we were shipping off as well, being worked up by now, decided to have a go at us, right on the threshold, as it were. That's when I should like to have had Mr Railway Official present, as. well as a moment later when an idiot of a train driver chose to pull his whistle cord! You can imagine the result—a stampeding herd with tails aloft right into a large plantation of pines. Since then our cattle have been quietly loaded into motor trucks within the gates of our property, and can you blame us?

Midland Jersey Cattle were elected as follows at the annual meeting of the Midland Canterbury Jersey Club:—president, Mr J. H. Jones; vice-president, Mr R. E. C. Rossiter; committee, Messrs D. H. Jones, I. P. Hawke, L. D. Adams, J. W. Mitchell. F. J. McGuinness and D. N. H. Watson; secretary, Mr Duncan