BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

Evening Star, Issue 16662, 19 February 1918, Page 8

BOARD OF AGRICULTURE

The Board of Agrioulture hold lengthy meetings at Wellington on Wednesday and Thursday, when many matters of national importance were discussed. There was a \ full attendance of membors at the meeting, and the president (Sir James,G. Wil- : son) waß in the chair. 1 The board had a lengthy conference ' with the National Efficiency Board, and discussed with them the provision of accommodation for married men on farms and stations; the training and settlement of returned soldiers on the land; seedgrowing; and reafforestation. The question of forestry was disoussed by the two boards, and it was decided to again address the Prime Minister on the necessity for the creation of a separate Forestry Department under a sci(jntifically trained forester. It was pointed out that the great work in front of him would be to develop a policy of conservation of the small remaining area of native forests to be left in New Zealand, and the regeneration of such portion of land which had been bush, and was now useless for settlement; to nnderplant bush where suitable areas are available, and to continue the planting of other areas suitable for the purpose. At the close of the meeting a joint deputation of the Board of Agriculture, the council of the Forestry League, and others waited upon the Right Hon. the Prime Minister to urge that something should be done on the lines suggested. The question of providing better accommodation on farms for married men, with the view of reducing the drift of farm labor from the country to the town, was very exhaustively dealt with. It was pointed out that', owing to the large in- I crease of indebtedness and other burdens ' that have been taken by the Dominion, the only chance of maintaining the standard of living would be by a rapid and sound expansion in the productivity of the country, and that a married man provided with a suitable house with moderate conveniences, having a plot of ground sufficient for a vegetable garden, ancl land sufficient to keep a cow. pigs, and fowls, is comparatively well off in rural districts even if only earning a small actual cash wage. A scheme to facilitate the erection of cottages for married men on farms, which had' been drafted by .Mr limit on similar lilies to the provisions as to workers dwellings in the town, was adopted. A further proposal to initiate some small village settlements in the backblocks was formulated, with the view of securing advantages of friendly intercourse and mutual assistance between the families living in the village, and so that the individuals occupying these cottages would not feel tied to> a single empiover, and would within moderate limits, "be able to carry their labor to the best market, or.' at an'v rate, would have, the feeling that tliev could. Village communities of this class might have the advantages of haviiv a cooperative store, school, and hall accommodation, and other facilities which would not .be obtainable bv those resident* in detached cottages situated on their employers' properties. The joint boards also discussed the opening up of. Crown and native lands, the cutting up of private estates, the best tenure for leasehold lands, and the pur- , chase and subdivision of suitable land for tne settlement of returned soldiers. The question of how to meet the case of returned soldiers who prefer to- live in the country, and who were willing to take up some light farm work, but were unable for health reasons to undertake verv heavy work, was also carcfullv considered, various suggestions as to the best methods of helping men of this type were put forward, and it was finally' decided to make a strong appeal to the farmers through th-e National Efficiency Boards of Trustees and the various Committees of Advice throughout the Dominion, to take returned soldiers without farming experience, and enable them to gain a knowledge of "general farming work. The question of growing seeds in the Dominion was also discussed at nreat length. .Mr Brown (Director of the Field* Division) and Mr Cockayne (Biologist. n f the Department of Agriculture) joined in the discussion as to what might be done in this direction. Mr Cockayne pointed out that the practicability- o'f obtaining seeds depended largely on the duration of the war and the unsettled period that might follow ; but it was evident that the difficulty of securing adequate supplies at the present time was verv acute: and it was quite likely that prices for such seed would remain high for some time after hostilities had ceased. Various members of the Board of Agriculture detailed their experiences in the growing of seeds, and expressed the opinion that, in spite of tha competition of Europe, this branch of farming may be made a verv remunerative one. It was decided to request the Department of Agriculture to publish some more information in the 'Journal of Agriculture' as to the best methods of growing and collecting the particular kinds of seeds for which-there was a demand in the Dominion. It was also agreed that the C4overnment should be recommended, for the purpose of encouraging the growth of red clover seed, to import a number of the very best class of humble bee, particularly the red-tailed bee and one known as the bronze bee. It was reported to the hoard that, as the,result of inquiries which had been made in regard to the shipment of woolpacks and com sacks to the Dominion the Union Steam Ship Company had written stating that a vessel had already left Calcutta, this year with corn sacks and wool-packs; another was leaving at an early date; and that altogether there would be six sailings during the vear: so that there was every reason to* believe that there would be an ample supplv of both wool-packs and corn sacks for New Zealand requirements. It was hoped that nothing would interfere with the arrival earlier than last- year of wool-packs. The question of ear-marking and branding stock was also discussed, and a subcommittee was set up to report on the scheme submitted by the ive Stock division ot the Department of Agriculture for the ear-marking and brandinc of stock