Rain Gives Some Relief To Farmlands

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30575, 19 October 1964, Page 1

Rain Gives Some Relief To Farmlands

The rain at the end of last week has brought some relief to Canterbury’s dry farms. The combination of mild weather and rain has caused immediate growth in some areas, but the falls have been very patchy, and some districts have still had little rain.

“At the moment it is a very great relief, but it could be that people will be crying out for rain again in two or three weeks,” said Mr C. P. Whatman, senior farm advisory officer of the Department of Agriculture, in Ashburton yesterday.

Like other departmental officers, Mr Whatman had only limited information about the extent of the falls in his district at that stage, but he said that in one inland district of Mid-Canterbury more than an inch had fallen. Falls along the coast were likely to have been much less. Mr Whatman said that the rain would be excellent for barley, would help wheat and peas and areas of grass closed for seed and areas to be closed for clover seed. Mr R. A. Milne, officer in charge of the Rangiora office of the Department of Agriculture, said that around Rangiora there was already a response from pastures to the rain, which seemed to have penetrated to some extent. So far as he could gather the rain had given some relief from drought, and some areas had had quite heavy falls. He understood that in a thunderstorm last week some parts of the Culverden district had had about an inch of rain. “Valuable Contribution”

South Canterbury also benefited. "It has been a very valuable contribution—there is no question about that,” said Mr M. L. Cameron, a farm advisory officer at the department at Timaru. As in Mid-Canterbury, falls were probably heavier inland than along the coast, but with the even temperatures, even at night, accompanying the rain growth had been greater than might have been expected, and this would allow farmers to carry on. Paddocks which had been getting dirty had freshened up nicely. Lambs were doing very well in the district, he said, and he expected that in 10 days to two weeks there would be quite a lot ready to kill out at about 281 b.

On the dry downlands around Fairlie the fall varied from under half an inch to nearly two inches in the Clayton area. Mr D. G. Reynolds, a farm advisory officer at Fairlie, said that there had been an encouraging response from pastures, but in their bare state there was no prospect of a surplus for hay or for small seeds. The rain would allow forage

crops, including rape which would be needed for lamb fattening feed, to be sown, and would ensure that wheat came to head and yielded reasonably, even if there was little more rain. It would also give barley crops and the small area of linseed a start.

Little In Marlborough The drier areas of Marlborough do not appear to have benefited much. Mr J. P. Beggs, a farm advisory officer of the Department of Agriculture at Blenheim, said that the Awatere valley and down the coast to Kaikoura remained pretty dry. These areas were at present just hanging on, but they had no reserves of moisture underneath. Unless there were rains soon, he said, farmers in the Seddon area might have to draft lambs at light weights. From Blenheim northwards, however, he said, the situation was better. Where there had been falls of only half an inch farmers would now be able to sow lucerne, rape, and fodder crops, said Mr J. H.,Oldfield, a farm management consultant, last evening. Up to an inch of rain at this stage, particularly where it was followed by overcast conditions, would enable farmers to avoid drafting lambs at unduly light weights and take them on to a more reasonable 261 b or 281 b dressed weight. He under-

stood that lambs had already been drafted for slaughter that would kill out at only 221 b or 231 b. At least one to two Inches of rain would be needed to bring away lucerne closed for hay, which had recently been more or less stationary at a height of six inches, to a length that would be suitable for cutting for hay, to benefit other areas closed for hay, and to give farmers who had not been able to close paddocks for hay a chance to do so. Stock Affected

Mr Oldfield said that stock generally had been showing the effects of the weather, and this was particularly so with ewes with twins. If farmers still had to face dry conditions they might bear in mind that it was possible to wean lambs from eight weeks of age onwards and give them the best of the remaining feed. Wheat crops had been looking well after the fine winter, though there had been some signs of yellowing lately. With an inch or two inches of rain this month and a little more in November and December good yields would be possible. Spring-sown crops had not yet suffered, apart from a little irregular strike attributable to a dry seed bed, and with rain from now onwards would develop into quite good crops.