Farming & Commercial

Feilding Star, Volume 7, Issue 2177, 6 April 1929, Page 7

Farming & Commercial

ON THE LAND

NEWS, VIEWS AND COMMENTS Generally speaking, sheep cowing from a wet toi a drier climate do well but it is wise to buy rains irom a countiy and climate as nearly similar to your own as possible. 'Never discard'an old scythe blade. Kited down and given a handle It makes a. good rough brush look, and it can’t be beaten for cutting corn and sorghum il it- is kept •sharp. There is no doubt That the present dairying season will be a, record one lor Vovcrty Hay. for the production to date is now little behind >ho tot: d lor last season, which was a. loctiid one. Tor era diction of all insect pests, try an ordinary painter’s biow-lunip The beat that is generated kills all insect eggs. The cost is light for a. small one, and fl-.e thing conics in very handy when repainting farm machinery and 'bindings. If the cockerel has the' condition, .sell him before the spurs set hard to the leg. While they are soft and pliable he is sure to command a lair price as a roaster, but when the spur is set hard, no matter bow old he is lie is a stag and bis value has gone. Both in wool anti mutton breeds, ..shorts legs are a desirable feature. A comparatively short-bodied, compact ram is best for wool and a. longer body au advantage for mutton-breed-ing. A rain should have a bold, fearless walk, and be quick and decided in movement.

Hero’s the recipe lor the best axlegrease I’ve ever used: Castor oil, lqt linseed oil, lqttallow '2lb; resin 21b: beeswax, lib. Heat all well together, stirring to incorporate, and stirr till cold. If too hard, add a, lititle neatsloot oil; if too soft, a. little more tallow. A flock of 13000 sheep passed through. Waipukurau during ti le week-end, reports the Hawke’s Bay Herald. The sheep are being moved from Gisborne to Akitio, and wi!l~bc on the road for approximately .six weeks. They are under the charge of three drovers and no less than 21 dogs. Faulty germination of turnips is not always the fault of the seed. Experiments have proved that a heavy dressing of fertiliser will cause a. 50 p.e. failure. To get over this, apply the fertiliser in two doses—lew! super to the acre with the seed, and a further Icwt, when the ; loots are two months old. Some remarkable root clops have been grown in the Raetilii district this season (reports a Wanganui correspondent). One grower finds a ready market in Auriralia for swede turnips, and ij|h sends fortnightly shipments from Auckland. The results have so far yielded from £24 to £32 per ton.

In selecting rains, whether the buyer’s object is to produce wool or mutton, the first consideration its sound constitution. Choose .rams with big noses, roomy nostrils and broad across the snout . Width under the jaws and neck are good. Breadth between shoulders, forelegs with a prominent brisket, and a deep chest tU’e iurthr signs of good constitution.

Cows ivitli diseased udders often give a slimy, lumpy and bloody milk, wiiich, if it is allowed to -stand, will sepaute into two. layers. The top layer will be thin like whey, and the bottom layer quite thick and yellowish. The slimincjs of milk from diseased udders is due to pus, and such, uiidk, it mixed with other milk, will not cause it to become more ropy.

The private secretary to bis Highness the Maharajah of Mysore has written acknowledging receipt of a special report from the Canterbury ,/iihcep Owners’ Union dealing with the question of the improvement of flocks in that State, and expressing the deep appreciation of bis Highness to the union for the trouble they had taken in this connection, and’ stating that valuable results were expected to follow the application of the proposals made.

The University of Edinburgh, has decided to extend its animal breeding research departmnt. A new building rsearoh department. A new building is to he creeled at a. cosh of £30,000, and it is expected to be ready in a year . Towards the cost of the building, and its equipment and also the endowment cf the chair, the university has 'ln Land the following contribution's: £20,000 from the International Education Board, New York; £16,000 and annual grant from the Development Commission; £IO,OOO

from Lord Woolavington • and £lO,000 from tne Empire Marketing Board.

Says a Canadian journal : Farmers never been in a ,more comfortable condition, with more sanguine outlook. There was, during 1.028, an increase of 10 per cent, in the employment of persons by Ui L > larger manufacturing iml us trie,, and there is virtually no unemployment to-day. In spite of a tendency towards speculation, private savings in chartered banks have reached an aggregate never before attained, while there has been a corresponding increase in the amount of life insurance written. Taken all in all, Canada stands out at the present time thriving and prosperous.

Recently a blockage occurred in the Wiu.er race at Mount Horrible, South Canterbury and exaggerated reports concerning the incident were circulated. 'Reporting to the meeting of the Tiinaru Borough Council the other night the engineer (Mr T. O. Fox) stated Fiat the cause of Ihe trouble was a steer, belonging to a neighbouring property owner, which had fallen down the hillside, .nto the irate, where it had become tightly wedged. The flow of water was interrupted, and although step; were taken to turn off the water, the animal was drowned before it could be.l,aided out. The water was turned to waste until the race was cleared.

Mr 1). Bruce, a director of the New Zealand Cooperative Dairy Association, recenty made a compmlie.w'ive tour of the Northern King Country, ami was astonished at the large- areas of ploughable land's in the territory (reports the Waikato Times). He expressed the opinion that the lvmg Country pastures never looked better at this time of the year, and attributed their present satisfactory condition to the gencoms use of suitable manures as top-d res ring. Air Bruce considers that this region must eventually become one of the most prosperous in the whole of the Dominion especially if the present large dairy farms were reduced by sub-division and run. as one man farms. .Mr Bruce is of the opinion that the State should concentrate oil small -Holdings in this favoured locality, and give a more generous measure of assistance to struggling farmers, instead of buying highprieed lands for settlement purposes—or lands that are likely to be isolated from railways and good roads for many years to come.