AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIII, Issue 129, 1 June 1907, Page 12

AGRICULTURAL AFFAIRS.

In an experiment made at South Ddkato station, United States, it was found that 4211b of pesc pioduteil 1001b of gain in pig-feeding. It took 4581b of maize to produce the same amount of gair. - It is reported that Mr. E. J. Riddiford 1 has purchased Mr. C4odfrey Pharazyn's 1 Tapjimi property, near Palmerston i North, of 1100 rues at £45 per acre. ; Mr. C. M. Jack-on, of Chertsey (siys, j . the Abhburton Guardian) nas already lipe 111 1 raspberries on his f.srm. The canPS, I ] which Mere planted last spring, are ri.r- | 1 ners from a new variety of raspberries ] j which was imported into the colony last I year. 1 A large number of cattle have been \ cold in tho Maheno clistiict lately, due to ; the shoitagc of feed (says an Oamani paper). One farmer leduced his herd . by over a hundred head. Most of the " cattle went to Southland. ! An American iarmer says : — There must be a national revolt against the ' worship of rpunufattureT and trade as the onh- forms of progies'-ive activity, and a clear lecognition on the psit of the [ whole people that the tillage of the soil j is the n.ituial and most desirable oecup.i- ] tion of man. The white grub, which has been so destructive in the North Otcgo district in ' past years (says the North Otago Times), ' is reported to have hid an effective check ' owing to the long-continued drought. In some parte numbers of the grubs arc to ' be seen dead on the surface. ( The substances from whiih alcohol may be profitably made aio moke, potatoes, ; rye, wheat, barley, ojts, and sugar-beet ; in fact, any grain, fruit, or root containing staich or sugar. It is estimated in the United States tint one acre of po- ' tatoci will produce 500 gallons of alcohol, and that a bushel of moize will produce | ] about 24 gallons ol alcohol The increas- ( ' ing demand for plcobol *or motor and other power can not fail to stimulate its manufactiue. j A Xebraska diiiymnn says he once t'sted tho milk of a cow nftcr she was ! 1 .suffering the f xcitemcut of being chased ( about. The Babcock lc«t2r Fhovrod 2.3 per cent, of butter-f.-.t; Xhc next morning , tho test showed 4.1 per cent. ; and in a 1 week, when she had regained her wonted | ' i tate of mind, she tested 6 per cent. Far- j ' , mers who allow a dog to rush and worry the cowp, because they do not move quits 1 ■ s fast as suits their driver, may study thi3 f^ct with profit. Reports from tiermanton, Xew South vViile«, with reference to the prolonged ■ spell of dry wealhci. r.t-ite that tiio out- , look for the winter months is anything but encourigiug. Hind-fettling of sheep is being done at Elleisiio. Jarrn, Kinio«« CaraboL-ola, and Little Billabong. In fact, ligbt through the distikt gratis 1 is very scirce, and tho Mipply of watsr I for stock limited. Reports from Tocijm1 ual state that sheep itvo dying by hue c!ra6*s Even in Gcrmanton pistoraliste ■■iro killing lambs so f;.vc the mothers. 1 l'loit^biug is at a standstill, md tho out- ; loo'c for the early crops «s tex-iou?. Only old land has been treited by the plough, nnu in some ir.stnr.co 1 !, io;d has had to be sown twice In an agricultural • contemporary wo ' read : " Beans and maize, when used as horoat'eed. should always be. crushed, as 1 tho grain is hard and olusive, and may j esca,pe proper mastication." And a few 1 lines lower down tho column : " Horses : , are quite equal to doing their own crashing and grinding, and tho extrq, mestica- , 1 tioft ensures a larger admixture of saliva j 1 which is essential to digestion." I \ An Australian paper cays that all re,-,, ports go to show that woolpacks and ' covnsaclcs will continus to bo dear, j 1 , Manufacturers tiro well booked ahe<ul I with orders. Another factor in the situa- ; tion is that, although the juts crop last J ysai- was a good ono, much of the jute ' I was damaged by floods, and a limit was ' I placed on tho supply. Large demands ' I .«•« being made fov bags for tho naw j Indian grain crops, which aro turning out well, and orders from South America have been very large. ' Tho heavy sheep-shifting occasioned ' by last summer's drouplit is strik- j ingly shown by the railway returns I (says the Dunedin Star}. For the year ended - the 31st March, ' 1907, ho fewer than 506,04& sheap were J trucked outwards at stations between I , Kurow and Clinton, whilo 335,351 wero railed inwards. During tho previous yer-r, when the traffic wns normal, the ■ figures wero only 280.259 outward and , 251,372 inward. , Farmers in tho 4shburton County \ (bays the Guardian) are bsing much < hampered in their work of ploughing owing to the dry condition of the sub- 1 soil. In the higher portions of the . county the ground is said to bo in first- , class order for agricultural work, which r is being pushed ahead expeditiously. A i good area has been sown in wheat, some { of which is already up, and looks well c and healthy. Several graziers complain c (hat the turnip crops are rotting,* tho ] result of somo form of blight said to t b:i previoualy unknown in the county. „ fu some localities (says the Timaru Post) water has still to bo carted for , stock, and for housshold use. This has \ been going on for aix months at least, i' and thero is every prospect that it will have to be continued for some time yet. It is an expensive method of getting the ° water supply. Tho wages of a man and v the expense of feeding two or three horses is not small in these days. If the P money had been invested in putting in |! underground tanks, or 111 digging wells, f it might have ensured a fairly lasting „ supply of water, as well as effecting a a , permanent improvement. The divining rod is still 111 übo in some quarters. a The subject of technical education in P country districts was introduced at tho , Farmers' Union dinner at Auckland !>y " Mr. H. Wily, who waxed somewhat nat- c elastic respecting the course of instruc- " tion in naturo study now being given at some of the country schools. Ho re w f erred to tho proposed form of certificate 5 lately put before tho Education Board, J 1 by which it was claimed that three " months' instruction would render a teacher competent to impart teaching in P all subjects from tree-pruning to as- J^ tronomy. lie also said that a country " teacher had lately stated tha.t it was not necessary for her to close her school " to attend tho nature study classes, in- '{ asmuch as sho had taken a three weeks' " coursa of instruction at Auckland dur- "' Jng tho Christmas holidays, and was 9.' therefore now " qualified to teach iu;ri- . culture in ail its branches !" ci s^ Speaking of a slight decrease in price oi of store lambs noticeable at the Ashbur- 11: ton stock market, tho opinion was given s^ that the lack of competition for this ki class of stock was attributablo to tho m fact that a large proportion of tho m yarding of lambs had exceptionally poor m teeth. " For some unaccountable roa- F son," said one observer, -" lambs this^ ai year are losing their teeth very rapidly ; gi and I have noticed that even those of is my own flock that have been depastured sc on gross alone, are in a bad stato as tl regards tho condition of their teoth." tl Some or the mouths of lambs yarded at it the sale were quite as bad as those o{- al " gummie "or " cull " owes. It is gen- ni orally recognised among gra/.iers that st the teeth of lambs will not Stand the test s\ of turnip-feeding iv the way that older tl sleep will, d