GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 770, 19 March 1910, Page 8

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Yesterday Mr. P. B. Watts, of Wellington, sent a consignment of 3i horses across to Sydney by the • Warnmoo. The. lot included two draught stallions, two light horses, and twenty-eight draught mares and geldings. The Woodville "Examiner" is informed that the Dairy Union is paying lid. per lh. for butter-fat for the present month. . The milk supply at the Kaituna Dairy Factory this season' has eclipsed its predecessors by about a thousand gallons. Thero is at present a heavy run on artificial manures in the Ashburton county, as they are being sown freely with 'early oats. . . A fairly large proportion of the Ashburton wheat crop is being stored, as .farmers who are in a .position to hold their grain prefer' to store instead of accepting current prices for grain that has been , exposed to. the weather. Some indication of the nature of the drought which has been experienced this season in South -Otago and portions of Southland has been furnished to . the School Commissioners in a number of applications which have been received from tenants of education reserves m those districts'asking- for assistance by remission of rent. The commissioners (says the "Otago Daily Times") have resolved to personally visit the Wcndonside district in connection with those applications.

Says the "Timaru Post":—"lt is surprising that more of the young people on t'aftns do not take up what might be called in the commercial sense 'side lines, and try to make them pay. Orchards and bees are both useful on a farm. A young farmer on the Fairlie lino had.2o hives of black bees last year, and obtained 9001b. of marketable honey from them. On learning that Italian bees were-more profitable, he raised a stock, and this year from the same number of hives of Italian bees he got two tons of honey. One-of the twenty hives-yielded 4001b." • ■ ' ■ ' . .

Mr, John M'Gregor, a native of Mosgiel, Otago, has been appointed instructor m wool-classing .under the Wangauui Education Board. .

Anticipations in the south as to market values for rabbits have been somewhat shattered by the cablegrams announcing that the London market was "ven- fiaf'-a position which has been brought about, it is stated, by the heavy quantities pouring in from Australia, where the rabbits : are evidently very numerous this year. The salvation ot New Zealand exporters from severe losses now rests, with the trappers, who will require to do their very best to keep the quality up,' and the rejects .as lew as possible. As it is; the proportion of refects, consequent upon warm weather, Has been something considerable,■ being in some instances as-high as 80. per cent, of the whole consignment..lmproved quality may bring about an improved market. The exporters are giving fivepenco per pair on the' ground. An indication 01 the number of men who are this year engaged in • the trapping' industry may bo gained from the fact that practically every Tabbit trap in the Dominion has been brought up \

' In yesterday's issue the amount of woolstoraiie accommodation which will be available m Wellington fol'.next seasons sales was inadvertently stated to be sufficient for "about 22,000 bales" instead of in round-figures about 20,000-bales., Tha. figure is only roughly approximate, as. tho quantity that can be shown at any, one, sale depends on the size of the lots pifered, small lots taking up .proportionately more room'than big ones. , The settlers on the Hatuma Estate held a ; meeting this week to discuss the question of jointly engaging a rabbiter to go over their sections, but the proposal was lost. : . . .: : ~..-■ ..;;•

. The Stratford-, Dairy' Factory-,will pay:] out to milk-suppliers this-month This is at the rate of an advance of' 10d. per lb. on butter-fat, a;rate rather lower than some factories are" advancing; Other payments to be made this month arb as under, the figures for the corresponding month of last year being given in' parentheses :-Cardiff 41662 : (jeiGs9),' Lowgarth £Wi (i 1394), ;Huiakama .£352 (.£458), ■ Hakahuv, J2q2':, 1 -'"'■'" . ;. "' ;" "' It has been decided to form a branch .of .the: Farmers'; Union at Waipukurau.' ■ 'Bush settlers around To' Awamufcu. are sowing their bush clearings, and farmers are busy getting their land ready for autumn grassing. The turnip crops are badly attacked with blight, and in the To Kore and Paterangi districts farmers contemplate ploughing the crops preparatory to sowinc oats. .■-..':•