RUAKORA SWAMP

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 10, 13 January 1932, Page 10

RUAKORA SWAMP

POSSIBILITY OF USE

SETTLING UNEMPLOYED

"NO MONEY AVAILABLE"

In these days when much, is heard about maintaining production, from the land, the suggestion made by the "WaiIcato Social Welfare League, that unemployed could be settled on Ituakura swamp land, which 'is said to be capable of development into pasturage, should command a considerable amount of attention.

The suggestion was made that the Unemployment Board should purchase and divide laud for the settlement of twenty or thirty families, but the board's reply was that all its funds were being exhausted in providing bare relief, and that there was no money available for loans or purchase of lands. Describing the land, the ""Waikato Times" states:—"The area, distant two miles from Hamilton,- is reached by good roads, and is only half a mile from the main State Farm road. The Kuakura railway station is on. the property, through which roads have been formed. On the fringe of the Euakura Swamp the,whole area, including the swamp, is said to be capable of development into pasturage. In the original, it is covered with dense masses of ti-tree. The section specially referred to, comprising 12 acres, was purchased in July, 1930, in its native state. In the interim, the purchaser has, single handed, cut down, stumped and fired eight or nine acres. „ After working it well with a harrow, he expects to sow grass and: have pasture ready for use in the coming season: He has dug drains to ensure that the land will not.bo flooded in winter. Looking at the; place to-day ; it is hard to realise that but a short time ago it was a wilderness. Six months ago a stout bungalow was erected. Surrounding this is a vegetable and flower garden which would put many a longestablished one to shame. Cabbages, cauliflowers, and peas have done especially well, while beans, carrots, parsnips, and onions has done thoroughly satisfactorily. Mangels flourish on a quarter-acre plot. Surrounding the garden a line of lawsoniana- has- been planted. Those are doing- exceedingly well. The owner's idea is eventually to run several cows and a herd of pi«a specialising in : the latter,.on the mam part of the farm, leaving an area for Ins wife for the raising of poultry ■ Already a nucleus of the poultry farm has been established." ..

: "That, then, is the result of seventeen months of intermittent work. The owner, not having the available capital, has had to seek work-with others to enable him to earn his running expenses with a result that he could only devote what little spare time lie could to his own property. Had he had the wherewithal to have kept him steadily breaking in and improving his own 12 acres the area would by now be down in grass. On nearby farms, established on exactly the. same class of laud, a cow to the acre is run.' An;adjoining field which twelve months ago was covered with tea-tree has now a splendid thick sole of grass with cows grazing- on it. . One area of 40 acres which was in a similar state a year ago is now carrying 100 ewes, ana was up to a short while ago carrying 100 lambs in addition. The ewes in lamb were purchased for 13s and the lambs by themselves were sold for 14s apiece. "The land now occupied by the Kuakuva , State Farm was, originally similar, to the area inspected. When all the facts ; are taken intp consideration there remains no doubt that the area is capable of development into the finest pasture at a very reasonable cost." , -./ ■■ •. " EXPERT'S OPIHTOH. An inspection of the land was made by Dr. H. E. Annett, an agricultural expert, who expressed the opinion that the land was;.good quality peat land, easier to bring in than most land of that type in New Zealand. ■• ■ > .''Bff* better, "he stated, "than land being;brought in rapidly at the other side of the Tacpiri- swamp. Land such as this, within easy reach of Hamilton, appears.to ofEer nr'ch better facilities for,settlement than areas off the beaten, track to which access roads have to be made. It, would be an excellent idea to establish unemployed families on it. In a short time a very good sole of grass could be obtained, and in the meantime the. Unemployment Board, working in conjunction with other Government Departments, should find the means to ke_ep the men: working on the laud until it is'.procl.uctive. That would be far better than frittering money away in the manner we see so much of. Much of the broken-in swamp country has" turned'out" to <be.the highest producing lanjl we have in the country. The area proposed by tho Welfare League is peat swamp of a consistency which will not take long to consolidate, and the clay is near the surface. "Nearly all peat swamps are very poor in. potash,; but this is "W. matter easily rectified. Outside of the essential superphosphate the outlay on manures should be small. Peat swamp soils have been laid down in water, and the continued soakings has washed out all the soluble potash and: soluble nitro.gen. • Such soils readily, respond :.to potash manuring; and almost always give great response to nitrogen. Soil analyses arc misleading jin this connection, because the nitrogen content of peat soils is always high, but this nitrogen is in such an insoluble form that it is of no use to plants. I see no reason why the area under review should not prove of the greatest value for dairying land." .