THE SEASON IN AUCKLAND.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 773, 23 March 1910, Page 10

THE SEASON IN AUCKLAND.

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! '.-. Speaking to a Dominion > roprese'ntal : .tive '.yesfarday,. Mr. W.'r..F. Mass'ey, !:.'■ leader-.of the Opposition," saidthe- soai.-." . spnV for,- farmers ,m'. Auckland province, : "'.. as' elsewhere, Jia'd-been a : 'very good ; one. ';■ The : . growth of - glass- througlibut ■ tho "summer had been remaikable, ■ and I : V was, : cnabling'dairy farmers .to piit up ;■■ B6m.e : thing' in; the ..way :of, .'a> record,, , ' '..'" : whether ho considered the wheat :" .crop, in tho-fprovince would produce tho ; ■■;:■■. bushels' set down , /in/the- lat- ■■':'-. cst'..Govern ment .Mr,.;Massey ~\;'. thought not. lie was the owner of a i.; threshing miUy- and this /naturally. ;en- [ abjed him to form -a--'pretty accurate ),.■■'■■ opinion od the subject. The wheat crop ;, was, of course, only a small affair in i ; Auckland, for. they could never'.depeild: ['•'.'.';.-'. on the 'weather in the north being suit-" ii; ■ able at tho right time to-make the )■:■:■. heads-fill, but so far as it went it was f.;'-: , absolute nonsense to talk about an avi'j : .eragc of thirty-six bushels, to the acre. •;'-.: From what he could see the crop would F'. ' provo to. be very. littloover;a j .bushel -. average,-' Of.■; course .'.crop '(.:■■ estimates ' were always guess;/'vwork. ' They could iiot■ ;,;be. : any.i- ■■■. thing else, and many an experienced ; ■": farmer before to-day had found a crop ('■ that he had estimated as '.a: forty-bushel ! ■ ;one give him a bare twenty bushels ;. when put through the. mill.. :,. ..:• .' I . The caterpillar, , which, has'.been ; -..•-. ported' to have done much : in |; - the.bush;country in the norths' did iiot/ p.. according.'to Mr. Massey, attack /tho [ crops to any extent. Crickets have been !. '.■';.' much. in /ovidenco, and,, from .what j"-' , / ;Northern AYaii^a..farmers, [. / eateh off the grass thero to an'incfed-' T iblo extent. They were about in largo •■;-.;'. >numbers right through the'district this j-:'; summer.' -. ! ■;.-■ ''.".'■ ■■ :'-..■". "-■ -~•■■ j." ■■ Maizb'is'now being largely'grown .for. :'"•■.' istock-fecding purposes" througliout- the , ■/Auckland province, and ; Mr.' Massey -: ;Bays that; almost ov-'ry'fanner; in,w- .;'■■ 'adays has a patch of this popular.crop |. ! for fodder. At Tauranga, Te -Puke, !■:..-;. -"and . along the East Coast, maize-' ;■■/- -growing is being taken up is a,regular. !■-' . -industry,'.the 'area under crop is .in-' ;''-': i creasing, and it will no doubt become a ! '.big thing as settlement extends iii this '"/ fpart of ihi province, where the cond'- !.: itioiis are particularly favourable..'.■',•' { '..-' In reply to questions as to.nasal bot, ; vMr. Massoy said he had, heard nothing I of- any trouble in this, respect among ;/ ■sheep-farmers. in his -own . distrrk [. ;■'.- Spealcirig on stock matters • generally,; • Jlr. Mass;y said the new- saloyards at ;..-"'. Otahuhu were likely to. develop into ■'-. -the Addington of the north. The yards 1..'- :had only been elected a fow months, ;■ and-it'/was-claimed, though he did not i know whether, this was true 'or not, i •/. that .they ■ were the finest and-largest [; ; -iii the. ■Dominion. The -Otahuhu- sale" }'..'...'.. was now undoubtedly established as far ■ ..-■■; and. away. the. most representative ;in ;/ '■' the province so far as beef and mutton . were concerned.. . ... . •'•.-' '•'/'