FARMS AND FARMERS

Greymouth Evening Star, 16 April 1940, Page 9

FARMS AND FARMERS

ITEMS OF INTEREST

(By

“Rouseabout”)

CHARGES ON LAND HEAVY CALL ON FARMERS. People in New Zealand did not realise that the farmer had been called upon to provide a standard of living that' could not be justified, said Mr. A. P. O’Shea, Dominion secretary of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, in an address to farmers at Waipukurau. In providing this standard, he said, the farmer had been drawing on the fertility of the land which had been stored up for centuries, and this could not go on for ever. It had to be i ealised that it was going to cost more to produce the same quantity of pastoral wealth.

Although his remarks might be construed as an attack upon the policy of the Government, Mr. O’Shea said, he was compelled to point out that any blame attaching to any Government applied right back to the time of Seddon. “The only time during our history that there has been a conscious effort to ease charges on the land,” Mr. O’Shea said, “was during the slump when national safety made it imperative that the farmer should continue to bring home bread, butter and clothing for New Zealand. The blame, in my mind, attaches not to the Government but to the whole community, for it by now should have realised the necessity for looking after our greatest asset —the land.” There had been a great deal of nonsense talked about purchasing power, Mr. O’Shea continued, and, while there was much to be said for some of the arguments put forward, it had to be remembered it was essential to increase purchasing power of the farmer also, especially if the poorer hill country was to be farmed properly. “Every Government from the time of Seddon has lowered the farmer’s purchasing power by depreciating his currency through borrowing or some other means,” said the speaker. “This policy has made it necessary for farmers to get 1/4 per lb. for butterfat.” The only real and permanent way to increase purchasing power, he added, was by making things cheaper. The prosperity of the farmer was essential to the prosperity of the country and it was useless the farmer, making for greater production if others in the community did not pull their weight.

RETURNS FROM PIGS

RESULTS OF CENSUS

Interesting information has been collected by the Department of Agriculture from a pig census returned collected from 280 farms last year. A total of 95 farms were found to produce less than 8001 b. of pig-meat per sow, 90 farms produced between 801 and 12001 b. per sow, and 96 held a production exceeding 12001 b. per sow. There is considerable significance from a breeder’s point of view in, the above classification, for to produce 12001 b. of pig-meat means that the sow would litter, say, 10 piglets, each of which would have sold at 1201 b. carcase weight. If the sow produced only eight piglets, then the carcase weight of the litter would have to average 1501 b. Where the sow produced only 8001 b. of pig-meat she is obviously of an uneconomical type (either a. poor breeder or an undesirable mother) or else the feeding practice, housing and management of those farms was woefully inefficient. Contrary to the general belief that pigs are most profitable on farms where only a few cows are kept and where, in consequence, the number of cows per sow is low, the census shows that in the group producing less than 8001 b. of pig-wheat per sow, each farm ran an average of 36 cows to five sows, or seven cows to every sow. On the higher producing farms the average herd consisted of 55 cows and the average number of sows was only 3.8. This works out at 14 cows to each sow. It would appear that the owners of low producing sows in the first group have lost the advantage of small herds any many sows by failing to acquire the right type of brood sow. They obtained an average of 11.6 pigs born per sow while the higher group secured an average of 15 pigs born. The census also disclosed a poor system of feeding by the first group. In commenting upon facts revealed by the census Mr. M. J. Scott, superintendent of the pig industry, said it would seem that, as was the case with the number of sows per cow, the stage was 1 set for high production by the first group, but inefficient use of feed offset all the advantages of such feed. The men who produced baconers usually had better facilities, and there was evidence that more thought was given to the job by them than by the men producing porkers alone or porkers and baconers combined. DOG’S INTELLIGENCE) In the possession of Mr. J. O. Jones, president of the Hawera Welsh Society, is a dog named Zulu, whose intelligence is little short of human. Master and dog have worked out a system of car horn signalling in the droving of stock which saves whistling and signalling. It is no uncommon matter for Mr. Jones to sort out the stock to be shifted, drive them on to the road and then leave them solely in the charge of the dog. Zulu is capable of looking after stock entirely of his own accord. Such performances are a mere bagatelle, however, his crowning effort being to take stock to the farm of Mr. Jones’s son at Tirimoana, which is thirteen miles away from Mr. Jones’s property. Not a small part of Zulu’s duties is taking stock to and from the Glover road sale yards, over a mile from his home. He takes any class of animals and any number to the sale, and he is not worried if other stock are on the road. He keeps his together and on arrival at the saleyards will hold them at the gate pending further instructions. He understands orders in both., Welsh and 1 English. 30,000 MILKING MACHINES In an address on the development of the milking machine in New Zealand given to members of the Palmerston North Rotary Club, Mr. 11. 11. Johnson said there were in New Zealand 30,000 milking machines, representing 31 different types. Each year 1000 new machines were added to the number in use, representing a turnover of £lOO,OOO. “Milk is,one of the most important articles of food and it is the most susceptible to contamination,” he said. “Yet we find that,, while plumbers and electricians and other tradesmen have to pass examinations before they can pursue their occupations, no qualifications are needed to manufacture, ' sell or fit a milking machine.”

HAYMAKING METHODS OF HARVESTING A bulletin of the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce compiled by Canterbury Agricultural College, Lincoln, deals with haymaking, and is as follows: — Old grass shut up in spring makes good hay, but the yield is comparatively low. Young grass, such as Italian rye and red clover, cut .preferably in the second year in order to get a larger percentage of clover, gives hay of good quality and high yield. Hay made from paddocks which, are normally intensively grazed is usually very good as regards quality, having the correct proportion of grass to clover, but the yield is somewhat lower than with young grass. Lucerne is a very heavy yielding crop on good land, where it can be cdt four or "five times a year. Oats and vetches or oats and peas provide a very heavy crop of hay of good quality. - Red clover alone makes very good hay, but it rather difficult to cure owing to its high water content. Oats cut for hay give a very good yield, but it is doubtful if this hay is superior to good chaff. Wheat which has failed to head is sometimes cut for hay, making second quality hay. Although wheat is not recommended as a hay crop this is probably the best method of dealing with such wheat.

Grass should be cut when just coming into flower, fbr if cut later the stalks become fibrous and the pasture may be seriously injured. Oats and vetches should be cut when half of the vetches are in flower. If left until later there is a danger of the crop wasting to some extent owing to the vetches lying and the lower stems becoming rotten. In some districts also a black aphis makes its appearance about this time and, multiplying very rapidly, soon ruins a good crop.

So as not to allow the stems to become woody, lucerne should be cut before the flower heads develop. Since .the leaf is much thinner than the stalk the cut material should, as soon as possible, but put in small cocks or windrows to assist even drying. Red clover should be cut when the flowers appear on half the plants.

Oats for hay should be cut when they are in the milky stage. In districts where rust is troublesome, however, they should be cut before the rust becomes general. Wheat may be treated in the same manner at oats.

The particular method adopted depends on the implements and ' plant available, the type of hay It-is desired to produce, the type and density of the crop grown and the soil and climatic conditions. Some of the more important methods and operations will be discussed in detail. Mowing may be done with one or two horse mower or power mower, the amount done by one man per day varying from under six acres to over 20 acres. Some difficulty may be experienced when mowing tangled vetches. This difficulty may be overcome by attaching to the outside divider a short pole to lay the uncut vetches back on the crop, while the pole on the inside of the dividing board lays the vetches on the swathe. Raking Rain, the enemy of hay, may damage a crop so much that under damp conditions it may be better to stack at once. In the case of very heavy crops the hay may be left in the swathe but with, medium and light crops too much exposure to the sun bleaches the hay and reduced its food value. As soon as possible the swathes should, therefore, be raked into windrows with a siderake. If necessary the windrows can easily be turned with the side rake or the side rake may be used as a tedder and the windrows exposed to the sun prior to stacking. The dump rake can be used instead of the side rake, but there is likely to be more loss of leaf and treading of the hay. In an average crop 2i acres may be raked per hour. To make the best quality hay the material should be cured in the cock rather than in the swathe or windrow. This allows even curing of stalk and leaf. Small cocks made by the fork from windrows are best. Larger cocks can be made by the use of the dump rake or sweep, but these usually allow moisture to collect underneath and therefore require turning. In the case of oats or heavy crops of grass hay large cocks may be made watertight so far as rain penetrating downwards is concerned by topping off the cocks with the fork. Large cocks of clover and lucerne hay will not turn the rain and if wet are difficult to dry. Therefore lucerne or clover should be kept in windrows or small cocks. In order to reduce labour requirements most hay is made from the windrows without cocking.

Fitness for stacking or baling hay is largely a matter of judgment and experience, but quite a good test is to take a representative sample in both hands and twist it lightly. If no sap is squeezed out, the hay is usually fit to stack. When overdry, lucerne should be handled only in early morning and evening. Gathering in the heat of the day causes severe loss of leaf. Stacking is by far the commonest method of storing hay and whilst this method is cheapest in first cost, other methods such as baling or storing loose in a barn have much to commend them. Stacking was formerly done by means of hand labour, the drays being loaded in the paddock and unloaded on to the stack by forks. Various labour-saving devices have been invented. The travelling hay loader may be used for loading from the windrow on to motor or horse lorries. Ropes may be placed underneath the load and the load hauled off on to the stack. The hay may be dragged to the stack direct from the cocks with ropes or chains or it may be swept in from cocks, windrows, or swathes by means of a gate tumbler or large two-horse, ] tractor or car truck sweeps. In the (case of motor trucks the sweep may| j be attached to the rear instead of the I front of the truck so that the sweep 1 , I is hauled out in top gear without turni ing- and the load is pushed jn without I turning by using the reverse gear. At I the stack a belt elevator may be used I or the load may be lifted by means of ja sweep or grab stacker. The stacker I may be worked by means of an engine ! sucb as an old car engine and winch, l by a horse attached to a wire, or by ( I the direct pull of a tractor or car. , , Baling I . ; - ' ' ■ , ; . ■ ' There are also' several variations of methods by which the hay may be

baled in the paddock. The pick-up baler may be used to pick up the hay direct from the windrow. The tractor hauling the power pick-up baler may have attached to the tractor and in front of the baler, a side-rake to rake or turn the hay as it is being baled. A small baler may be moved from large cock to large cock and the hay baled direct from the cock. One or occasionally two sweeps may be used to sweep the hay in from swathe, windrow, or cocks to the large baler.

Balps dropped from the pick-up baler may be stooked or stood on their ends individually for a further curing period. Such bales may be collected immediately by attaching a trolley behind the pick-up baler in which the bales are placed and as one trolley load is hauled away for stacking a second trolley replaces it at the baler. Baled hay should be stacked on the permanent site as soon as possible and every care taken to protect the bales from rain. The site of the stack should, of course, be as near as possible to the land on which it is intended to feed the stock in winter. The use of salt sprinkled on while the hay is being stacked or baled will improve the haj’ and also help to cure the hay and absorb any excess moisture. Molasses may be mixed with a little water and poured on to the hay to improve its palatability prior to feeding out. The weather, however, is the major difficulty encountered in making good hay. The principles are simple: the material is enabled to be stored without loss of nutritive materials by just sufficient and even drying of the stem and leaf. This curing process necessitates avoidance of exposure to rain or too much direct sunlight.