MIXED FEELINGS

Evening Post, Issue 13, 16 January 1936, Page 82

MIXED FEELINGS

FARWERS AND WEATHER

FOOT-ROt AMONG STOCK

(Special to tho "Evemna Post.")

JKASTERTON, January 15.

District farmers regard with mixed feelings the unseasonable weather of the past week or two. Some, particularly those in the hill country, are rather jubilant. Others, with late lambs, delayed shearing, and uncut crops; take an opposite view of the soaking rains. While the bulk of the shearing in the Wairarapa had been completed' before the weather, broke, there are still a number of sheds held up. Farmers who make a point of breeding black-face lambs for the early market delay their shearing operations until they get their drafts of fats away. Usually they strike good weather, to complete shearing, but this yearj the weather has been most contrary. ' . . : . : The wet weather has given rise to more foot-rot in flocks than for a number of years past. "We are having a bad lime of it.with foot-rot," a prominent Gladstone farmer remarked last night; The very dry autumn, he added, saw many ewes with scalded feet and the wet weather which followed the winter had'resulted, in a fairly, serious outbreak of foot-rot. Masterton stock-agents last night confirmed his remarks regarding foot-rot, which apparently is fairly widespread. Generally speaking, lambs are hot doing too-well under the prevailing conditions/as' they tend to lose their bloom and. condition in continued wetweather. Up to three weeks ago lambs vhad been doing exceptionally _ ■well.' . •' ■' ' ■' ■..'■ '•/■ • ■ ..' In most cases haymaking operations have been completed* but. where the hay or oats is still uncut or in stooks, the wet weather will have, a detrimen-. tal'effect, as the heads will-start sprouting again/ On the other -hand, root crops are doing wonderfully well. The flush of feed is said to be abnormal, and'w.a:s reflected in the prices for sheep, particularly stores,' at the Mastertbn stock sale yesterday.. Prices for stores were the best, for years,. and the demand was particularly keen. "It is the most unusual weather- I have ever seen in the North Island," remarked a stock agent last night. ''While "• some- farmers like it, others don't," he added. "It all depends on what their, particular line is." Recalling the dry seasons experienced since about-1928', he said .that, in his opinion, the warm rains should do-the cbuntry good1 in the.long run. Farmers on hill country were well pleased with the weather, as pastures, burnt out by: successive dry. spells, would now be given a chance -of renewal: On the; other, hand,, should -the rains be followed by a month or six weeks of hot, dry weather the grass/would wither and the seed would.be lost. -■--.•■-. ;._■:■:' Gardeners who planted seeds within the last week are delightedly 'Watching the plants grow, but players of sumfnef sports and holiday-makers regard the Break; in'the. weather in an altogether different light. £■