QUESTION ANSWERED.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 96, 16 January 1908, Page 2

QUESTION ANSWERED.

THREE GIRLJ3 ON A FARM"J. K. D.," Nowtown, ' Wellington, writes:—"Three of .my-girls have got it ' into their heads that ihey wouldilike tti'go . farming together, as they say women have proved themselves well'-able to make . a good living on the land.' What they propose' is to \oombino'fruitgrowing, poultry- . keeping,; dairying,v, : and, hee-koeprag together. 'I im willing" to give them a start ■if the idea is going to,turn out satisfactorily. Will, you kindly.. give .us your opinion?" .. It. is a good sign; when' tbo. girls take, practical ideas of this kind into their heads.; Bkt great care is necessary .'to'prevent .'therii from rushing into enterprises that are bound to provb. unsuitable. There is no reason why three girls, if they are ;not. too'. much enamoured of:tho luxuries arid gaiety of. the. city, : : Should not lead a very pleasaht oxisteneo arid make money on;the land. Young women! in the. past have farmed successfully,,.but a love of Nature' and of the . quiot . of, tho country is indispensable. .; Thero .are' health,, independence, happinoss, and money all waiting./to.; be' enjoyed. '.'Apparently . your daughters ' are : quite y inexperienced, i; They should therefore leave dairying alone for tho present. In any easo, dairy farming does not cpmbine satisfactorily;' .with; ; • the.: otlior' branches, and it involves, much drudgery, and a constant tie>. which aro not to bo recommended to beginners with other matters to look, after. Fruit-growing, bee-keeping, and poultry-keeping provide- ; an I abundance /of light' work,'; and mako an ideal combination for girls. The land selected should, be, close to a settlement for social reasohs; ! almost love!,' with a i slight slope to lower ground for easo of cultivation and security of dramago; fertile, for it is foolish to waste labour on unresponsive soil ; as free as'possible from stones or anything that would hinder cultiva- ' tion; with light instruments;. well-sheltered from' ieavyiMiwindSj'iT thoughii^iiotiir,densely ; shaded;'and' With; the 'residenco'close to • neighbours. Properties within close reach of j Wellington :would' probably,bo- too dear—at j least,' £100 an. acre. Farther up the lino in \ tho farming districts land can be got at .from \ £5 an acre .upwards: .T,werity i pcres. of .i2O ■] land could be got within easy ,reach of a rail- j way station,-and-it should.be-free from,;all j disabilities in the. way of gullies, trees, arid i stumps, dilapidated orchards/ etc.; for a , gully, means a. loss of ploughable land,.and j tho removal of the other obstacles to cultiva- j tion would involve heavy work, for which ( hired labour, would, have to bo got/ The < fences must be made secure, and'.the portions. j to bo planted in orchard next autumn' should , bo drain-ploughed three feet deep (by coiV- ( tract), and afterwards subsoiled to a' depth j of eighteen iticlios, as early from now as | possible—-before the wet 'weather, of wiriter. j arrives. To work the land .'in : wet -weather' i will do it permanont injury, j' < /Asv this will be the only chanoe of sub- i soiling the orchard, the required depth ( should be secured at any cost. Orchard trees may bo planted ,at any time 1 from tho "fall of tho leaves till'growth begins in tho spring. Tho. most suitable fruits for girls .to, grow aro apples';'and pears, because they require less hurry in the marketing. ' They are also just now tho most profitable. At least three- - quarters should bo ; apples. Good, ' healthy ; yearling trees ; can bo bought from nursery- ■ men at '£2 10s. per hundred.' All 'acre, , planted, for half-standard vase-shaped pruning at, fivo yards by six yards, would hold . about 150 trees; if planted for espalior train- j ing—a very profitable form of culture on i small areas of land—thoy can be set fivo . yards by four yards apart,; and will then take 1 about 250 trees per acre. .With trees so close , 'togother, however, very careful pruning will ] bo needed to prevent them shading ono an- \ other, and if this cannot .be guaranteed, . widor planting should be adopted. A bushel ! of first-class apples per trpo would not be an j unusual averago crop, although with all tho < mistakes that inexperienced hands would . make tho crop would probably bo less. With J experience, however, a crop of £100 per aero , is obtainable. The season's operations con- ( sist chiefly of the followingLato autumn, 1 ploughing; winter, a vcry.Timitod amount of , pruning, and tho nailing together of fruit- , oasos; spring, ploughing in of'weeds, spray- r ing for pests; summer, spraying, / repeated ; harrowing; summer and early autumn, prun- J iiig and gathering and dispatching of fruit. : AH , this work could Tie dono by healthy girls, Gx- s eept, perhaps, tho ploughing", andevon-for' J this a girl might loarri to keen a. good seat ( on a double-furrow plough. 'There-is money j for girls in orcharding well dono, and a good j doal of pleasure and independence. As to tho poultry and bees': these are well- ( known adjuncts, that would not- hinder tho ( orchard operations. A flock of 500 fowls s in a ten-aero orchard full of insects and ■ weeds, with a ten-acro paddock full of good j grass in addition, would not.entail a heavy . grain bill, and tho conditions would be ideal ■ tor big yields of eggs.'- Bee-keeping'is'coin- , ing fast to the front for girls, and £1. per , hivo'is regarded as a proper income. J Every ] help in theso departments can always bo , obtained from the Govornmont experts. ' ( : ■ 1