Farm & Station

Gisborne Times, Volume LXX, Issue 11168, 29 March 1930, Page 12

Farm & Station

DISEASE IN DAIRY CATTLE. lODINE AS A CURATIVE, The Hon. Mrs. Atkins, ol' Bradfield, Cullornpton, a lire member of the Devon Cattle Society, is in favor of tire breeding of a type or dairy cow whie t, will vie Id round about SbO or 900 gallons of milk yearly through her' eight or nine years of production, and one which will breed good calves, the male proportion of which are capable of realising a good price as meat. The ecoimmie problem of daii-y herds' would, she believes, be solved if tiiis could be done. Speaking at the annual meeting of the East Devon Milk Recording Rocietv. she said: “l have for a long time been convinced that the tendency to breed an abnormal type of cow', caving two or three thousand gallons of milk a year is to create an animal onite different lroe> ■"■us*- "' ; - ture intended, and one which owing its exaggerated milk vessel., will have a tem/vney to be delicate, and irroiie to all sorts of disease. Tne increasing use of concentrated mods, largely devoid of those minerals normally preseni in good crass, and ear!v cut s/ood liciv, still 1 uriher sulds the risk of disease, bv starving the animal of most of those clement' most usoi‘nl in resisting it. Mrs. Adams gave the result of iu’i inquiries among those engaged in research which led her to place groin importance upon iodine as a mineral '‘onstitvent or dab” - ral'ons. At tin Rowett institute she said the results of experiments with iodine were remarkable, and tended to show that hoth tuberculosis and abortion had been reduced, if not altogether eradicated, thanks to iodine.

FEEDING THE SOW. Hard-and-fast lines hi the feeding of brood sows are very I.tide good .or everything depends upon tiie cir cuinstances of each particular case Cows are fed according to their merits: sows should be fed in exactly to* same wav. It is. m fact, absurd lo suggest that a sow with young should so many pounds of ood a lav' irrespective of the number ol her family. She needs so much food ;-.)!- herseii in tile first place, and sc ,nrcl) mure for every member of hei litter. Rouglily speaking, lib of food ■ >cr day extra for every member c Ik- litter is a fair allowance, hut

■.'herons some sows will need •> or v !) daily for themselves. «alters nm> need rathe!' more, while others, again will do with less. Each ease must h edged on its merits, and any exf.r j roub’e involved will be well repaid. Pile comhcion of the sow and tin

rate of progress of her family snore umi show whether she is getfin enoui: ii or not. And ii should, b ■ <;tc 1 that sows vary in iheir mamiefeeding just as they (Idler in tin • mount they are ready to consume. Vi tii some ii i> better to feed them ;bree or even four times a dav.th-n----•mlv twice. Tn any case, they siiciil !'ot leave more food at a time than they will e'ear up within a reasonable period. The exact amount can oni. i, e disco- '---I l<v <i~tv>ri. input- bet - • , hould l'ovor have so much food that some or it is left lying about until it becomes stale and sour. In -■old weather sows usually require an extra amount of food because more -I tb e fend wdl go towards maintainng file iicat of the body. Tout is a point worth bearing in mind.

FARM WEED CONTROL. SX'AI MER FA LLO V.' INO. SEASONAL OPERATIONS. An important aspect of weed control calling: for consideration at tin present season lias to do with summer fallowing, which was once generally recommended as a standard •roans of weed extermination _(says lie ‘Otago Daily Times”). Except indcr the conditions most favorable to it, which are not of wide occurrence. it is now being dispensed with, because it is impracticable as a solo means of destroying weeds diliieuit to deal with. The summer fallow, was usually adopted against weeds of the ■ twitchy” type, such as sorrel, couch • rass, yarrow, brown-top, creeping fog, and Californian thistle. It. is now accepted that, wldle summer fab tow may at times eradicate weeds <»i ■ ids type, the method requires so •inch jalior as to become too expel. ri\-e ; and, further, under many con ditions, no matter how much laboi ..ere devoted to summer fallow, by Ssc'f if would not lie effective. This is not to nay that summer m tivation is useless m weed dcstrue- , ion. Tim position is that to obta'ii its full iiotential value it must hi linked with other su.table measures ,f management—measures which continue to 'exert on the perennial twit•hv weeds a weakening influence similar to that exerted by the cultivation. For instance, summer eidtiva- : ion during a dry period should be followed hv the. immediate sowing o, i crop winch grows quickly and lensely. These crops have a sinoill--1 tming effect hv excluding direct suniiclit. which is a vital necessity to iractirally i'll weeds. At tunes aut-unn-sown Algerian oats, or Western \Volths ryegrass and red clover, prove suitable for this purpose. If niter such crops the weeds still call lor attention it can often bo given elfecrively by growing a well-tended, wellnoiirished forage crop such as f»aii irois, turnips, rape, or ehou moeHier. fn brief, a suitable rotation winch is spread over a number of seasons, and which alTth-e time pays its wav, rather tli.ii.ii expensive summer fallow, is the modern method of porenmajvveed eradication. . Another point often ■ overlooked in regard to weed control is that sod, the surface of wldch in badly infested with weed seeds, having been ploughed, should then he so cultivated that the buried former surface layer, is not again ..brought to tho surface. Weed seeds buried to a depth, of some inches, wldle they.may not he. destroyed, will be dormant, •ind 'so long as they remain dormant they are of no .moment to the fanner. " This point is of considerab.e importance in planning cropping programmes In which crops such- as mangels, lucerne, and carrots figure. These crops are specially apt to suffpy lto>l| v f •oiyi “"perl i'Tfp'tyt’on. ' > n f J ploughing for them, should he planned with-this point in mind. Often direct attack on weeds suen as sorrel, brown-top, creeping fog,, and similar “tw-’tchy” plants is not advisable. The best mode of dealing with them is often to sow the land, in grassj and by judicious manuring and management to make the conditions so -fa vorab’e to growth or rrrass that the grass gradually smothers the weeds to such - ait extent that-their presence is not ielt. The matters in regard to ; %veedcontrol railing for attention .at-thf-present season, summed up are: ft) Tire'-taking of proper steps tofinake

“cleaning” crops true to 'name; (2) the aoption of a suitable rotation rather than summer fallow to eradicate perennial weeds : (3 the autumn sow mg of land infested with spring gei aunating weed seeds; (-1) care not to bring to the surface a crop of weed seeds that has been buried deeply; (5) the attacking of certain weeds indirectly by making the conditions so favorable for valuable, plants that these latter smother weeds.

FENCELESS DENMARK. ALL STOCK TETHERED. Having visited liis native land, .Denmark, after an absence of 5.7 years, Mr. V. Jensen, of Wellington, returned recently, says the “Rost.” When b - onme to New flealniul at linage of 12 years in 1-873 it- was under one of the earliest immigration schemes, and lie came alone, a I actwhich, with his age, made everyone ready to help him. and he found no difficulty in getting work. He came out in the liaieyona, 800 ions, and Iho vessel lie returned, to the Old Laud by, the Tamaroa, 12,000. tons, belongs to the same company. In Denmark lie found a great ini provement, both in the country dis triots and the cities, and lie noton prosperity everywhere. The country was one vast dairy farm, with poultry farming and pig raising us wcl.i. There were no fences, the farms, many of which were very small judg-,-d p'y .Now >vcal.lud standards, being separated only by a narrow strip of uncultivated turf, perhaps lour inches high, which in most instances has been undisturbed for hundreds of years. Fences would prevent the ploughing of these-, small areas to their boundaries, and there is no waste ground in Denmark. Naturally under such conditions the animals ito not roam around, and every one of fl'<'in. sheep cows, horses, ct/ 1 ., is tethered all the summer. In the wliner nicy are liouseu, because <» tiie severe conditions, and the cows are then fed on oil cake, or soya Eager. as'it is called in Danish, linn "rods ot tons or tins food corne to Denmark from all parts ol the world, "it is unpleasant looking stuff.” sum .Mr. Jensen, “like dirty lumps of gravel.” There were, he said. If 4,003 small farms in Denmark.

Good wages were being paid in Denmark, and unemployment was not so serious as here. "Hie unemployed ranged in number from 30,01.0 in the winter to 2-3,000 in the summer. Ii was a busy community, but the average number of hours worked, except oil the farms, was eight as here. On the farms people worked iron, ten tx eleven hours a day. One ol the tilings that struck him most was tiie -nonnous amount of feeding done b-

everybody. He'found he cou*d not Keep" pace with tiie natives, and was twitted a good deal about it. People in New Zealand did very well, said .Mr. .Jensen, but in Denmark thewould be left far behind in the day’s ood consumption. Heavy meals were the rule, and there was plenty ol food in all classes of the community. Pelimps it was the colder climate that wemed to edge everyone’s appetite, bat lie thought it might also be that hiring the war the people of Denmark were starved, and had not yet got out of the habit of eating to catch up. Even in England he iouml that people ate more than they did here, but nothing like the amount- or food was consumed daily as in Denmark, which lmd tiie reputation oi being the pantry of Europe. Farmers were industrious and eeo-norni'-rd ii" ni"" , si>'" of tiie -""n----try. but in the cities fflliere were plen-

... - . I 1 1, , , Hu Uioroilgllv enjoyed life. Everywhere Hie was gay. but a Government tax of 10 per cent, on all food, s lid a waiters’ tax of 10 per cent., making a total of 2!) icr cent., made all meals expensive, and taxing what seemed like one othe chief national amusements must have returned the Government a round sum

An audience with King Christian was granted Mr. Jensen in Copenhagen, his Majestv being deeply nterested in New Zealand, and asking Mr. Jensen to convey hisf geeiiugs and best wishes to all Danes in' the Dominion.

FEEDING OF PIGS. MUCH-ABUSED ANIMAL. LORD BLEDISLOE’S VIEWS. LONDON, Dec 5. Although New Zealand has forged ahead considerably with her pigexport trade, it is obv'ous that producers have not yet taken up the matter of feeding very seriously. At any rate, there must be considerable development and study before the baconer is produced which will compare with some of the finest Danish and English animals. The new Governor-General, Lord Dledisloe, is something of an expert on modern pig-breeding, and it is possible, that- even in his exalted position. lie will want to study what the Dominion is doing to make the pig a profitable animal, and as porkers ov baconers a desirable export to this country.

Lord Bleilisloe has lectured on pigs on several occasions. Of all the farm animals in Britain, he says, -the jug has been until recently the worst treated, alt-bough potentially .the most profitable. .-Ignorance or neglect of his own requirements as well as those of his? gastronomic patrons lias dominated Iris unhappy destiny. Lord PJodisloe’s appeal for the. pig on a certain occasion before the Farmers’ Club wus• quibe elo<i uent. “The pig;” he said, “if given a fair- chance,., is -of clean habits, and is more sensitive than any other domestic animal to changes of temperature or hick of fresh air." And- yet' Ids home 1 is normally art ill-ventilated closet (euphemistically described, as a sty. or pigseot) where food and excreta are unavoidably- intermingled—much of the former'being wasted, and of the latter ingested—inaccessible to 'germ->lds + -voying sunshine and 'often roofed with• r.nlined .corrugated iron and floored with, concrete. .Ho. has one stomach'oiilv, like a human being) and' with it ma-kfes excellent' use of’’clean, carefully • selected food, 'judiciously balanced in its.albumoid ra.tio or starch, equivalent;’ yet lie is often expected to digest' and 1 aSsim-iiM-a fihi-Mis 'foods' like 'a ruminant, and is allocated . the' unsavoury • eon tr.ioinerathin of pu trifyiug .scullery 0.fpl,s' (containing. inter, alia, fat and salt) de’emed "uhfir for- other ' living things..: -He' if?-, fia-turally ;an. active' Minimal. foraging for his, living, and, especially his" mineral . requirements, in woods and rough u-us tores"; hut no animal oh-the-farm ';s nioi'cv cmifiu'ed.' and’when, temporarily released from incarceration, lie seeks for, lime, phosrihates, .iodine, and other minerals he-’ heath' the surface of' the land, we' pierce 'liis sensitive snout' ■■■'with metal

% fIUSTICUO’

rings to stop the process. No animal' is more responsive to sympathy and kind treatment. The, stick that is often undeservedly used to beat his back would be better employed, if at all, in .scratching it.” Later on in this lecture. Lord Bleilisluo said: “Not only must the bacon nig be of the right type, but it must be" (like the bacon, itself) uniformly so. 'Otherwise the customer of to-day may fail to be the customer of tomorrow. The housewife, when she says to her grocer, ‘same as before, please,’ likes to be sure of getting it. r ("nis is where Denmark is heating us.”

Success in pig-breeding had been achieved, said Lord Bledislop, where ri) newly weaned bacon pigs receive about equal quantities of barley meal and sharps (or .their respective food equivalents), with about 1.5 per cent, of dried blood, “tankage,” whole meal, or other like animal protein where milk or milk products are un : obtainable —together with a small quantity of a mineral mixture, the sharps being gradually reduced and the barley meal increased until (at 24 weeks old) the amount of the latter is "at least four times that ol tin former, the special protein ingredient being correspondingly reduced with the growth of the animal : (2) pigs are fed to the limit of their appetite twice daily, no food being left in tintrough an hour after a meal; (3) a little green food is supplied to pigs in confinement ; (4 maize is fed sparingly or avoided altogether, as it produces soft yellow fat ; (5) all cereal meals are ground very fine, especially for newly weaned pigs: (0) highly fibrous foods' (except bran as a laxative) are avoided altogether; (7) a variety of foods are used rather than two or three onlv, subject to digestibility and nutritive equivalence lifting taken into account: (8) liquid food is warmed in very cold weather: and OL no food is cooked except potatoes and swill. The use of over 8 per cent, of oii.v foods should be avoided. A pig lias a limited capacity for the assimilation of oil. and it is ant to remain unconverted m its lies'll tissues and thus become rancid.

POULTRY ON THE FARM. A FEW HINTS. During tiie moulting season, which generally lasts from February until June, it is customary"lor breeders tii 'educe the food supply, or to cut down the fowls' rations. This is a big mistake, as during tiie moulting period, owing to the strain of bloodmaking to assist the grow fit of new feathers, the fowls require extra food o’ a more strengvitenmg nature than that supplied during the laying season. As the principal work of feathergrowing is performed bv the blood, it is necessary to fern! foods rich in blood-forming' foods. Amongst these an 1 animal food. This may he snuplied in tin* form of sheep and bullock livers boiled up and mixed with the mash. Boiled rabbits are also useful, as well as tiie different ou mikes and meals on the market. A good moulting tonic or condition powder should be given at least twice a week during the moulting period, m ;tiie proportion of a beaped-up tablespoonful to every dozen beads of fowls kept. There are several good tonics on the market, any of which will suit. I' the fowls are slow in shedding their feathers, increase tiie quantity of moulting tonic to two ounces per •’•wii head. Remember the longei they are coming through the monk. Lin* longer will they he kept at a loss, as. moulting hens cannot lay and moult at tiie same time, so every assistance should he given to help over this trying period. Cull heavily. All slow-growing, backward youngsters, or any showing deformities of any k nd should in* gig rid of. Reserve only such 'cockerel? required for next season’s breeder-, and those required for sale as stud birds. Market tiie rest, as they will only lie in the way and will consume their value in food in circle time. Treat every pullet on the farm as a living machine for converting raw material (."ood' into tiie finished product (eggs). Unless you have a good machine you cannot get good resnus from the food consumed.

COW’S USEFUL PERIOD. THE RETIRING AGE. The question its to what age a cow should be turned out of the herd is one that lias suggested itself to every breeder ot cattle, and it must be decided differently (says an English authority), according tn the- conditions under which the stocky is kept unit tiie purpose for which they are bred. 1 11 a herd ol heel cattle ii. is sale to sav as long as she will breed a calf, as' the calf, as soon as ifc is born, is worth as much or more than tiie cow herself.

There is a general principle that -A pays better to buy young stock than old cows. Allowing this to be true as a general rule, there are exceptions wiHch a man must take into consideration, and not go biinelly along and sav because that" is. the rule money cannot be made outside it. Old animals can seldom be i'atteind at a. profit even it their llesh was as valuable as that of a young one, because it requires so much more tune and feed to do it. But t-he'r lies!, is not equal to animals in their prnm . so there is a loss both in the qualify and in the cost of production. Did cows that have been milked mU d their life force is exhausted make vory poor and low-iirieed, as well as expensive beef. IV hen a cow nas reached twoI.VC oi" fourteen--years c age it hardly pays to .fatten her it she could be had for nothing.

WOOL GROWING. AN ADDRESS TO. FARMERS. SEEKING' LUSTRE. AND SOFTNESS. “One .important point to emphasise in a climate such as this is that, it'is necessary to try to got strong, soum, wool on the ,sheep's-back; sait\ Mr. W. Perry, Mastefton, . prefacing anaddrbss to'farmers on the subject, o! growing wool. . . Mr. Perry, who is recognised •a* - amon. o - t>.Timost noted jiq\ bio< jders in the world, has made a close study of wool. His remarks were'mp-i. interesting. -Where there, was eorisidorfible rainfall breeders should try.to. keep -the back' wool sound, be. snm, and to aim at haying wool tnat was, soft- in handling, was elastic,. and linn, lustre. In the 36'to 46 counts elasticity was important. Tn the liner, wools it was, not .expected so much. “Tn a ‘Hr count, . Mr. Perry proceeded, “I like to ' see . four to .six

curls to the inch. There is a lot of misconception in tin’s respect. Long, curly wools do not appeal when you analyse the matter out. Very lew Savors have gone so tar as to use microscope and really study what wool fibres meant J. have done so and find it a very interesting job'. It has given me food for thought and has Drought confidence. We have hud theories, hut we never knew whether they were right or wrong. By using the microscope I have been able to get beyond tlie theory stage. I have come to the conclusion that the scale m wool is the controlling factor as to quality. Wool fibres are. formed insiue the skin and are composed of cells intertwined one with the other. When they come out from the skin the outside hardens and forms a scale. It may be a snort scale, it may be long, or it may extend round the fibre. The whole question of lustre depends upon that scale. If it is close-fitting and of good length you are going to .get lustre. If it is short and pointed the wool will be wastey. The same applies to elasticity. A close fitting scale gives strength and an elastic effect to the wool. What is a more important point is that the scale is the control of the grease, or yolk. Mr. Perry referred to the different appearances of wool. One fleece would he bright in color; another dark yellow and then there was the metallic white. This was all due to the scale. Harsh wool was rough to handle: good wool was soft to the touch. Hrdemonstrated, with fibres drawn from fleeces on exhibition, how it was possible to test the strength and elasticity. It was ‘surprising. he said, how elastic and strong the fibres in good wool could be.

GREASE IX WOOL. “In the soft handling, good wools,’ the-speaker proceeded; “the grease, or yolk, is like olive oil in color.’’ When 1 see a heavy ye'low yolk in the fleece on a live sheep 1 pass him by. His wool will he harsh. You can la* certain of that af once. There is a difference of opinion about the yolk in wool. Mv theory is that the yolk flows Ihroweh the centre of the fibres. Scientific men say ‘No.’ They hold that it fiows round the.fibre to the trip, but there. is no reason why it shouldn't How through it. I am finite convinced that that is what it floes.”

Continuing. Mr. Perry said that when wool was dull white and had no volk in it it indicated that the sea l " was not working prooerlv. In such cases fibres aooeared black under the microscope am] could he broken like a carrot. Referring to metallic white wool, he said that it indicated a dangerous stage: one - bordering on breeding into hair. H'”r was the most deadly tiling for the manufacturer. A breeder in search of a lasting fleece he advised to buy a. hoe•’"t, with the i*n of +he wool finer than hear the s>ui. He had argued on that point with a wuol.huver, but had proved liimseU right with his own sheep. In sheen 1 2 months oM. vlm-h had the tin stronger than -the butt, the wool wo”Id not last., lmt would wo-'ken at. about the third shearing. “I hold that our best wools have the curls running no the mck.” Mr. Perry went on. “ f l ho” should not cross, or run at right angles. I am satisfied we pay too mm-h attention in this country to tliai short curl. A short, r’ght-niiglefl c*>rl means harshness. The short curl is misleading a. lot of people.”

SCIENTIFI O FA RAIIXG NEW AIDS VALUABLE RESEARCH WORK AT HOME LONDON, Jan. 3U. How higher mathematics are on the way to solving the farmers’ most serious problems was explained to-day at Roihamsted, which is the oldest as well as the most famous agricultural experiment station in tile world. In a room plastered with graphs and tables of figures scientists were manipulating calculating machines and working out elaborate equations which spread literally, over dozens of foolscap sheets covered with mathematical symbols. One of these workers is Miss Allen, of Melbourne They are working to produce a formula which will enable the farmer to know by the spring how many bushels of his crop lie will harvest in the autumn, and what methods ol cultivation and manuring he should follow in each season.

One day the.se volumes of statistical tables, these myriads of “multiple correlation coefficients'’ will be reduced to some simple sentence of advice, which will affect the lives and fortunes of farmers who have never heard of algebra, from Yorkshire to the Murray River and from the Rockies to the Rand.

WEATHER G AMBLE The farmer who grumbles about the weather is a stock character of stage and fiction. But farmers have a reason behind their complaints. So long as the weather is an unknown factor, agriculture must be an eternal gamble. Farmers are throwing dice with the gods of sun and rain. It is just this blind-gamble that brings to nothing so many schemes for improving production and stabilising markets. It is this weather uncertainty that keeps agriculture a “hit-or-miss” industry compared with carefully regulated manufactures.

Rothamstod has decided that this weather factor is the basic problem of crop production to-day. It lias decided to tackle it in a way that has never before been attempted. Believing that tlie ,calculating machine is mightier than the plough, it has called on mathematicians and statisticians to help in the gigantic task of relating the behaviour of climate to the growth of crops in such a way that yields can ■ bo foretold.

BEGAN IN 1812 Experiments at Rothamstod were begun in 1812. On the Broadbalk wheatfield, crops have been grown under different manurial treatments for over 70 years. Graphs have been plotted showing the yields of the different plots over this period. They have brought to light two outstanding facts. First, the amount of rainfall 'in each month has a definite effect, measurable in terms of bushels, on the yield of cereals. Secondly, the amount of rainfall ill each month has a marked influence on the efficiency of fertilisers. It can be shown that every inch of rainfall above the month’s average that falls in, let us say, "December, means that the yield of wheat will fall by a certain amount. Equally, every inch of rain above the average that falls in some other month may mean a. larger yield in

the autumn. This all depends, of course, upon the average rainfall of the district

At Rothamstod, it so happens that the rainfall is too heavy to suit wheat perfectly, and that every extra inch, especially in winter, depresses the yield. In a drier climate the reverse would probably be the case.

VALUE OF FORECASTS In the future it may be possible to calculate the yield of wheat f rom the recorded rainfall. To make this fully efficient, reliable weather forecasts would bo needed. This is the task of , the meteorologists, and Rothamstod scientists are- confident that the next few years will see the development of a vastly improved system of weather forecasts, What this will mean it is almost impossible to visualise. John RusSell pointed out that it will bring ideas of a- huge-seale system of crop insurance into practical politics. Life insurance is built up on statistes, compiled over a long period, showing the expectations of life of the average man. These Rothamsted re-i cords aim at the same thing for crops. If the average expectation of yield for a given crop, based on weather records and predictions- for the year, could bo, worked out, crop insurance would become as safe as life insurance, and the gaunt spectre of ruin, which stalks through farming communities when a succession of “bad years” occurs, would bo laid to rest.

FATHER, OF FERTILISERS Rothamsted is the father of fertilisers. From the early experiments of Sir Join) Laves. an English country squire, the modern system of fertilising was evolved, and the work of Sir .Joseph Gilbert was virtually the foundation of modern soil chemistry. Rothamsted lias worked out a system of manuring suited to the types of soil into which the land has been broadly divided by analysis, sand now it- is turning its attention to the relations between fertilisers and weather.

Statistics show that fertiliser mixtures. which increase the yield of a crop enormously in one year, may have little effect in the next. In a year with .a fairly dry winter, a nitrogenous manure will be very effective. But- in a very wet winter the nitrogenous manure is washed out of tiie soil, and is largely wasted. Again, potash manures appear to he most effective in sunless rather than in bright seasons. When more is known about these factors, recommendations based on weather knowledge may save the expense «f fertilisers which would Is? largely wasted and increase yields by persuading fanners to use those manures which do the most good in each particular season.