FARMS AND FARMERS

Greymouth Evening Star, 7 November 1939, Page 10

FARMS AND FARMERS

ITEMS OF INTEREST

(By

“Rouseabdut”)

FOR WET COUNTRY.

SUITABLE STOCk HEDGES

Suitable stock-proof hedges for country which is inclined to be wet are described by the Fields Division in reply to a correspondent, W. H. M. (Bulls), in the October issue of the “N.Z. Journal of Agriculture.” the reply is as follows: — Acacia vefticiliata, a spring evergreen, does Well on fairly stiff country, and some good hedges of this species are to be seen on the heavier soils along the Wanganui coastal area. ■ Osage orange (Madura aurantiaca), a thorny deciduous plant, has proved hardy,jn fairly exposed positions, and will afford a stock-proof hedge similar in type to that of hawthorne if planted close (six .inches apart), and the ton trimmed back in Winter during the initial year of establishment in order to obtain good lateral growth. Other stock-proof species which succeed in coastal districts include the well-known African boxthorne and I-lakea Saligna, though the former is best suited by. well-drained soils, and the prolific spread of its growth and poisonous nature, of the strong thorns necessitate regular attention in trimming and the careful buTning of all trimmings. Plants of this species should be planted 12in. apart in the rows.

Hakea Saligna thrives well on the heavy, wet, clay soils of the northern

districts, and will afford a good stock proof hedge on land that is inclinec to lie wet in the Winter. For this purpose plants are usually spaced twc to three feet apart in the row. There'are several other well-knowr species, such as Cupressus Lawson iana, or C. Benthainii, on wetter soils which are excellent hedging plants and which do not give trouble from thorns becoming entangled in tht wool of sheep, as do the thorny spe cits. However, with such species it is essential that they be protected from stock at all times if their efficiency as a shelter hedge is to remain unimpaired. Of the above species, Acacia verticellata may be recommended to give satisfaction for your purposes, and while more reliable results are best obtained when protection from stock is offered, particularly during the early stages, it would be quite possible to establish this species without resort to double fencing. Prepare the ground hv rlizzlnz a snade-width strin alnri

the fence line, and, if possible, work in organic mature. A mixture of artificial fertilisers, such as superphosphate and bipod and bone, would also prove beneficial to establishment. The ground is best prepared some time prior to planting, particularly if the field is to be stocked soon after that date, as newly-turned soil has a special attraction for stock which, in the cohrse of their investigations, would bs liable to damage or destroy the young plants. Planting of this species is best deferred'until late August or September in order to avoid frosts in the initial! stages. establishment;. Space the }'plants 'IL’/tij 13 inches apart along the bottom wire of the fence, and make sure that, tire roots of the plants do not dty out prior to planting and that the ■ soil is linn around them after planting.. Also-ensure that, no smothering 1

growth affects them unt’il they are strongly established and able to take care of themselves in this respect. Plants of this species- should afford a good cattle-proof hedge within two on three years after planting, and only light trimming should, be necessary to keep them in order.

OUR GREATEST INDUSTRY.

A RATHER GLOOMY REVIEW.

The Dominion’s greatest asset, its primary industries, is definitely deteriorating is the expressed opinion of Mr. A. C. Cameron, of Dunedin, who in an 'address to the Grasslands Conference at Lincoln College yesterday ascribed the reason as being the drift of labour from the farms, the farmers’ inability to efficiently utilise the land, which meant it went out of production, and the fact that women (wives in most instances) were obliged to do hard agricultural work, thus under mining their health. “This Dominion has been able to maintain its primary production because of various factors such as increased use and knowledge of fertilisers and lime —-developments in laboursaving machinery—irrigation, etc. Most people with a. knowledge' of the facts realise that production is. not as great as it should be because of the lack of efficient farm labour arid be-

cause of the lack of the means of paying for and otherwise coping with

. same. “For the same reason the noxious j weed problem, the problem of erosion, i draining, and the rabbit problem were not being tackled as- they should be. i To illustrate this the speaker said that . a representative committee reported i recently that in Otago manuka was , encroaching on good sheep land at the rate of 1,000 acres a year. In certain . districts the rabbit problem was becoming very acute. Right throughout the country there was abundant evidence of the fact that fences and outbuildings were getting into a state of disrepair, and it was a very long time since a paint brush was seen in certain districts. “Side lines such as pigs and poultry, small orchards and bees are being neglected because of the farmers’ inability to employ labour. In many districts plantations are not being replaced when felled,” he said. "The unreliability of certain classes of farm labour is a verv real nrnhlem.

i unci the worry of employing this class is taking its toll of some of our best farmers. Because of the lack of young men, many farmers have had to employ old men over their sixties, and the feature of the employment, of inefficient farm labour is the increased number of accidents. “Several of the insurance companies report that the last few years have shown a very great increase in the number of accidents to farm labourers, and an analysis of the causes indicates that an increasing number of accidents are directly due to the inefficiency of the labourer concerned. There has-been a great increase in such accidents as men kicked., by horses, men falling off loaded wagons, teams running away, etc. “To sum up this section, J should say that production and quality are suffering, and will suffer more —farms vill become more over-run—-

and fences will get into an increased state of disrepair —the rabbit problem will become a menace —the health and general outlook of the farmers will suffer seriously—and the time will arrive when in a tremendous number’ of cases it will no longer be possible to do very much about it.”

MANY MORE ALLOTMENTS

FOOD-GROWING IN BRITAIN

LONDON, September .29

The Government aims at the cultivation of 500,000 more allotments. For this purpose local allotment authorities have been empowered to take possession of unoccupied land, and with consent, of occupied land. The part of the “little man with the spade” will mean providing potatoes and vegetables that will feed an extra 1,000,000 adults and 1,500,000 children for eight months in the twelve. The Ministry of Agriculture recommends that in urban areas with a population above 20,000, horticultural committees should be set up to encourage food production in private gardens and allotments. The Minister of Agriculture, Sir Reginald Dorman-Smith, states that some 260,000 acres of derelict grassland have been ploughed up. The grant of £2 per acre for inferior land brought under cultivation is to/ be continued to the end of the year and might possibly be extended into the spring.

Sir R. G. Stapledon, director of the West Plant Breeding Station Aberystwyth, the eminent authority on grassland, is a member of the new advisory panel on wartime food production. He is the scientific expert behind the Government’s ploughing-up policy.

Sir George, who looks more like a professor than a farmer (says the Daily Telegraph) is a. man of one enthusiasm. He will talk by the hour of his experiments at Aberystwyth. A few miles from there at Cahn Hillnamed after Sir Julien Cahn, who contributed £20,000 towards Sir George’s experiments—he has succeeded in developing the barren mountainside into rich pasture land.

THE FREEZING INDUSTRY

RESPONSIBILITY ON PRODUCERS

“We all know the gravity of the ' situation generally and the responsL ibility which devolves upon the primary poducers of this Dominion,” said " Mr. A. C. Leary, chairman of directors of the South Otago Freezing Company, 3 Ltd., at the annual meeting when, in 1 the course of his address, he referred to the war and its effects on the freez- ; ing industry. “I feel sure that each >iand everyone of us will carry his ' share of that responsibility to the best of his ability.” With another director he had recently attended a conference of repre--1 sehtatives of the frozen meat compan- ■ ies in Wellington when various mat--1 ters of irirportance were discussed • with representatives of the Govern-! ' ment. There was general agreement upon the fact that while the Empire Was at war. there must he a meriwnre

I of control of primary products required tor war purposes. "The Imperial Government has made arrangements,” he said, "for the purchase of all (ho exporiablo surplus <?• New Zealand meat, also of certain l:\-products, al prices and upon conditions yet to be announced. Freezing companies will be responsible for the drafting of stock and the processing and delivery of the products to the authorities. The considered opinion of The conference was that the interests) of the producers would best be serves! by those products not required by the Imperial Government being left with the companies to be marketed by them through the usual channels on their jwn. acconnt. Tn our opinion jt is p<;~ 1

sentiai that the business connections through which the products of the industry have hitherto been marketed should, as far as possible, be preserved so that normal marketing can be resumed at the conclusion of the war.”

GOOD BEEF CATTLE “SHEET-ANCHOR” OF FARMING “We must turn more to cattle — good beef cattle—as one of our sheetanchors, and our country will improve and our revenue will improve.” said Mr. L. A P. Sheriff, president, at the annual meeting of rhe New Zealand Aberdeen Angus Breeders’ Association, when quoting from a statement by a well-known cattle breeder.

The time might come Mr. Sheriff said, when more cattle than sheep would.' be carried on many stations. That would be when the chilled beef trade was fully develop'd, with prices round about £l5 a head at two and a half to three years. Cattle would pay then, but farmers must learn how to produce better calvings, how to feed them when they were horn, and the vital point of. starting with well-bred animals. Nothing could be made of a mongrel. When chilled beef came to be fully exploited, farmers would use suitable country growing it on scientific lines and keeping only enough sheep to keep the weeds down. The success or otherwise of sheepfarming as practised to-day depends on the price of wool, the statement continued. Wool fluctuated enormously. varying from £7 to £27 or more a bale. Beef prices would not fluctuate to anything like the same extent: cattle prices had on the whole held a better average over the last ten years than wool. The old idea of carrying cattle chiefly to keep the sheep teed in order was a thing of the past. Cattle —well-bred cattle—were and could be made very profitable, figuring largely on the returns of hill country balance sheets. What had been done would be exceeded in the future in spite of the talk of “synthetic beef” now being produced, which sounded very like buncombe. Beef had no rivals—wool had many imitations seriously interfering with its price and sale. Farmers must not forget that to make a success of the beef industry they must start with the very best bulls procurable.

SOUTH WESTLAND ENTERPRISE

STOCK IMPROVEMENT AT “DUART”

One of the most effective ways in I which New Zealand can assist the, ; Empire in its struggle against Nazi i Germany is by increased production I and one way of increasing production jis to improve the quality e of stock J and crops. The work that ’is being | dosie at Mr. Joseph McLean's well- , known farm of "Duart” at Ilari llari, * in the direction of improving the cattle herd and the pigs is. therefore, of more than usual interest, at the present time. Mr. McLean bought some time ago a very fine Milking Shorthorn bull from the Department of Agriculture. The bull is a registered animal named "Dominion Lustre .of Huakura.” and combines some of the iinesi. blood in the Dominion. Dis sire is "Coldstream Quality’s Goldmine" ami was winner at the Cambridge Show of the Milking Shorthorn Associations’ special prize for bulls judged on type and butter-fat backing. Junior two-year-old Class Leader, C.O.R. 14,572.8 Milk, 591.8!) Butter-fat, was the record of his Dam which was bred by Ranstead Bros., Matangi, Waikato, and her record at four yearsold was J G,281.4 milk and G7GJJI but-ter-fat, an old World record. i This year importations include ten' registered Milking Shorthorn heifers and cows in calf, (Darbalera and c Ilkiw.’ii-i Slrqhp.

Lily” by “Matangi Ace.” This, bull’s dam at four years old produced 978.47 butter-fat C.O.R. tested. Several of these cows have already calved and are giving splendid returns. Mr. McLean purchased from Sir Fleaton Rliodes of “Otahuna,” a Red Poll bull “Otahuna Winalot” Al4ll by the imported bull “Woodburn Waterline” Alll4, and his dam is “Otahuna Daisy Girl 4th” 8368, also 16 selected Red Poll heifers in calf to registered bulls which comprise, in addition to being dual purpose cattle, a very fine butter-fat backing, the bull’s mother producinng 4301bs of in 270 days, and 4631Ws of butter-fat in 305 days at the age of 14 years. In commenting on the Red Polls, the stud manager states that the Red Polls seem to wear and maintain their production better than any breed he had experience with. The heifers were in calf to a registered bull whose mother was a champion cow and won at the Royal Show in Invercargill for the best Red Polls producing over 3501bs butter-fat in 305 days. Another recent importation was a registered Danish Berkshire boar, “Fairview Baron Dandy,” selected by Mr. Hector Mclntosh of the Pig Marketing Board'. This boar won the championship at the Royal Show in Christchurch. He is being mated with registered Danish Berkshire sows. Recently one of the sows was despatched to Lincoln College as she more than favourably compared with anv available in New Zealand.

The foregoing gives an idea of the endeavours being made to improve the class of stock on the West Coast and progeny of the foregoing will be available to farmers who are keen to introduce new blood, as cattle acclimatised appear to do much better than a number of those imported. The practical part of the farm is managed by Messrs. A. and D. McCurdy, two experienced farmers who take a keen interest in breeding and development of the land.