ON THE LAND

Gisborne Times, Volume LI, Issue 5245, 9 August 1919, Page 7

ON THE LAND

By The Gleaner

Prices rulin'' to-day, as supplied liy a loading grain and ■'induce merchant, are as follows: Potatoes quoted at £lu 10s in southern ports for forward delivery. Local retail prices Ins per cut. and Ills wholesale. In unpicked lots per sack 235. The supply is plentiful. ■Sued potatoes ruling at 13s <»d per cwt. Chaff (local) supplies are good and prices rule at £l2 10s per ton. Blenheim at ,£l3 per ton. Oats: A big shipmem, has come to liancl per the Tannvera. Prices are: Gartons 3s 10(1, Algerian (seed) Os 9d and Duns Gs 9d per bushel. .Maize: Coming in freelv and retailing at 7s 9d per bushel. Barley: Retailing at 7s per bushel. Onions continue to be very scarce and arc retailed at Gd per 11). Bran: A scarce commodity, and very difficult to obtain. Tbe Gov eminent fixed price is .£3 10s o.b. Pollard is retailing at 21s per sack.

LIME AND PASTURE

In dealing with more or loss sour or acid soils, where lime has been applied in connection with a crop in the rotation, it frequently happens that the growth yielded by the treated paddock is greater and larger hay crops are harvested, duo in a measure to the sweetening process of the carbonate. The greater bulk of feed will be duo to the greater growth of clover-growing with the grass rather than more grass, although they will obtain an indirect, if not a direct benefit from tho lime. It is a noticeable fact that grasses growing in association with a legume often make rapid growth, and contain a larger proportion of protein than grass growing in a similar soil, but not in mixture with a leguminous crop. The need of lime on any soil is likely to bo indicated by tho failure of clover to make a satisfactory growth, so whether good crops of clover are obtained one may rest satisfied as to the soil’s lime-content. In practice it will bo found that if finely-ground limestone is used it will be necessary in order to supply as much lime or calcium as the burned limo, to use twice the quantity of the former, and in general to make use of the finely-ground lime-stone or chalk on lands containing but a moderate amount of vegetable matter in the form of humus. Messrs W. Dennis and Son, of Kirton, Lincolnshire, who grew some 20,001) acres of potatoes, are amongst the largest potato growers m tho world. . This year they have instituted a scheme of profit- sharing in which all their employees, including women and part-time workers will participate. Tt was to come into operation on April Ist. > Europe is hungry for truit either dried, canned, or fresh, and there is a shouting demand for prunes and apricots, according to several reports that have come by mail. Dried fruits were especially conspicuous by their scarcity at Christmas time in the British markets. Wait till we show them what can be clone with evaporated loganberries, etc., for winter use, says an American exchange. ! TESTING SOILS. j A notice to farmers appears in the Journal of Agriculture in respect to testing soils:—‘‘In view of the great importance of lime on New Zealand soils, the present shortage of phosphates, and the fact that the use of phosphates may be economised by the use of lime, it has been decided to examine any soils which are properly collected by a Fields officer of the Department, for the purpose of determining the amount of lime which such soils actually require. For this purpose it is desirable that groups of farmers, such as those ‘ forming the branches of the Farmers’ , Union, or other farmers’ organisations, should approach any one of the following Fields officers and get him to appoint a date for visiting their district and for collecting typical soils for testing.” j In the Wanganui district Mr J. ' W.. Deem is available, and we honestly think that no district in New Zealand is more favoured in the ' type of man placed at the disposal of the farmers. Air Deem is dis- ■ tinctly courteous and willing to give all tlie information within his power,' i so that farmers should have no. diffidence in approaching him upon • this important question. Farmers will note that —tl) It is. essential 'that the samples should be ; collected by an officer who lias been | specially instructed in the correct, methods of soil-sampling, in order that the results of the test may be

NOTES & JOTTINGS FOR THE FARMER

dependable. (2) The testing of tliesi samples, in order that it may b expeditiously performed, must b . limited to the question of wha amounts of lime are required pe acre. MONEY IN COW-TESTING. A Vermont correspondent, writin: in Hoard’s Dairyman, says: '•Dining the year 1916 cow-testing association figures showed Mr Walter (' Fuller, of Addison County Association. Vermont, that bis herd of U grade Holsteins averaged 45001 bo. milk and 157.91 b of butter-fat. Tit realised that there was something wrong, so lie observed the productioi of each cow in the herd verv closely month by month. Before tho end ol the year lie concluded that 10 of his cows were not worthy of the feed they ate. and they were sold to the butcher. At the end of the year lie saw by the records that 17 cows , stood dry for three months, seven for ; four months, five for five months and two for six months each. Air duller ■ now keeps a eoinpleto breeding record of each cow. owns a purebred sire, and feeds each cow an amount of grain in proportion to her production. “Are these factors worthy of extra care?” you may ask. Let us see. _ Last year a more careful cow selection was made, and 10 cows were taken from the herd. Registered animals are replacing them. The average production of the 40 remaining cows was 54261 b of milk and 192.41b of Butter-fat. In other words, the average milk production in this herd had increased almost 10001 b in the three years. Notwithstanding the abnormal riso in feed prices during this period, the average income per cow above feed cost had increased by 44 dollars. I will leave it to your judgment. Is it worth while to buy a purebred sire, keep a complete record, and feed according to production ?” VALUE OF TESTING AND CULLING. The value of testing and culling has frequently been stressed in those columns, and additional proof of the assertion that “it nays has been furnished by Souiii Taranaki. ’l’llis year Air AY. A. Guy’s (Alatapu) Jersey herd has beaten all previous records. Fifty-seven cows on a hund-red-acre section made over 18.0001 b butter-fat, averaging 3161 b of butterfat each. One factor ih worth mentioning, and that is that although he carried a lessor number of cows this season than last his aggregate returns were larger ns the result of careful and systematic culling and h'et-tcr farming. Air Guy’s Mountain View’s Sylvia has completed her

semi-official test with 484.111 bof butter-fat in 321 days. She required to make 343.51 bto qualify. Mountain View’s Rose made 342.401 bin 319 days. To qualify she required 3081 b, One of the main uses of a small plot of lucerne on a farm, sap's a writer in tlie Journal of Agriculture of South Australia, is as a medicine to stock being fed on dry foods, amTToT this purpose it will probably give tbe bci-t results if supplied a s daily ration, but is very useful it only given periodically, providingjdie space of time between supplies is not- too long. Lucerne is very rich in nitrogenous materials, and as a consequence lias a very narrow nutritive ratio, which means that as a food for livestock it is unnccse-anly rich in digestible protein, and to make full use of this fodder it should always be fed in admixture with containing less protein. . • AL farm live stock do well on lucerne, either in the green state or as hay, but because of its high protein content it is an exceptionally good nnIK producer.