NOTES BY THE WAY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 23 February 1929, Page 14

NOTES BY THE WAY.

Despite the very much increased' amount of lucerne grown all Qver the district, the Farmers’ Union competitions do not show increase in entries. , It may be that the farmers have been extra busy, but- the value of the- competitions has been proved time and again. It is to be regretted that more farmers are not supporting the union in its desire to broadcast information gathered in the most practical way to the farming community. This is the period for the farmers’ dairy cattle shows of the district, and they are proving very successful. Otakeho was held last week, AwatunaTe Kiri was held to-day, Auroa will be on Wednesday' next, and the combined show of the district winners will take place on Saturday, March 2. The last-named, with the. winning animals from the other shows, will be a specially interesting function and will see very keen competition. Commenting oh the dairy cattle classes at Dannevirke show last week, Mr. H. F. Wren (Hawera-, said that the quality was good, and he did not think he had seen a better _ two-year-old heifer than the champion. The yearlings were patchy, but the winner , was good. > Matapu farmers report having had a particularly good season, with a wealth of grass that has kept stock in wonderful condition and been sufficient to make ample supplies of hay. The weather to some extent runs in circles, and it has been the experience of some areas on the coast that they have had much less rainfall than places only a few iniles away. But this year the good conditions appear to have been general. A fair amount of trouble in milking herds is reported through cows “slipping.” Ewes with lambs always coine back to the same paddock if they are allowed a free run, and a farmer of long experience with sheep says that if paddocks are left open it will always be found that certain sheep remain in practically the same small section of grazing. A well-known farmer near Wanganui has ah area of about 40 acres, and he told Mr. T. A. Winks, of Hawera, that lie runs nearly seven sheep to the acre and also grazes a number of cattle every year. He carries on very heavy top-dressing, and this is, of course, the secret. He was told by the butcher who took all his fat lambs that these were the best' he was able to get anywhere. But the butcher added that in the whole of the lambs — the farmer averages nearly 125 per cent. —there were only about five per cent, of kidneys not deteriorated. The prices at the wool sale in Wellington this week show a considerable decrease. It has actually, beeh expected by experienced men that there was likely to be an easing of the very high prices of the past year or two. This was forecast some ■ time ago in the Old Country, The intake at the dairy factories in Southland is reported to be well maintained, and it appears likely that the output for the season will be a recoi-d. A South Canterbury farmer recently sold a line of weaner calves on the place at 35s per head, whilst a few days later, at the usual stock sale a few miles away, calves not quite so good were sold under keen competition at £8 2s 6d per head. In North Canterbury a line of good calves were recently bought by. a grazier at £5 per head. The fact is that fanners have not realised how the stocks of beef and cattle have been allowed to go clown, due partly to the stations breeding fewer cattle, and partly to farmers killing so rnanp calves. This year it would have paid many farmers to rear calves suitable for making; beef than to feed their skim. milk to pigs. In the North Island good steer calves of the beef breeds are selling at £4 to £6 per head. The .. weather has continued to be very unseasonable during the last week in Southland (says the “Times”)), but there has not been a great deal of rain and outdoor operations have been proceeded with. Reports to hand 1 from many parts indicate that crops are in better condition than for many years past. There is still an abundant supply of feed available, but stoek generally are not doing quite so well as seems to be the case throughout the South Island.

During the recent stud ram fairs in various parts, Australian buyers were keen competitors for the highest quality Romney rams offered, and, besides purchases at the fairs, a number were secured privately. The North Island breeders of Romneys have had a good innings this season. Three rams have reached three hundred guineas or over, and, apart from private sales, thirty-two rams averaged 159 guineas. Some idea of the heavy movements of stock that have taken place in the Waikato during the last three months, says an Auckland exchange, may be gauged from the fact that' during that period 2609 head of cattle and 30,753 head of sheep left the Frankton Junction railway station, while 2129 head of cattle and 14,377 head of sheep were received by rail. In addition to sheep travelling; by road or being railed, large numbers are being shipped from the Gisborne district to Tauranga and over the Kairnai Hills to Matamata in the Waikato.

It has frequently been remarked what prolific growths of white and red clover there are in Canterbury this season. The former should give an abundant yield of seed. In South Canterbury some farmers are finding there is little seed in the red clover, and in a few cases the crox> lias been made into hay. An explanation for the absence of seed is given as being the lateness of the bumble bees in getting to work, and, therefore, if a paddock of red clover shut up for seed has not got beyond the stage of being inoculated it would be well to allow it more time before giving up hope of a profitable return of seed.

There has been a. heavy hay crop in Hawke’s Bay this season, and there will be no shortage of fodder for the winter. One farmer said he was sick of stacking hay, and-another said he had offered thirty acres of grazing for nothing and nobody wanted it. The fine weather of the past ten days lias enabled good progress to be made with the grain harvest in Canterbury. Tlie binder has been through the great bulk of the crop, and sine© the beginning of last week many stacks have been built, and a good deal of threshing from stook has taken place. Should the weather keep fine, the harvest will be well through on the light land by the end of the month.

Touring in Poverty Bay, _ a visitor of some prominence in farming affairs noted near Patutahi a field of wheat.

of good strong growth, completely ruined by smut. The owner of the field should have reaped about sixty bushels to the acre, he considers, but, m consequence of the smut infestation, he will have to cut it and burn the crop. A little more knowledge of graingrowing and of the methods of treating seed wheat to prevent the development of smut would have saved this farmer his crop. , „ , , Referring to the Waikato fat lamb trade the other day, a prominent Hamilton dealer said there was apparently an unsatisfied demand among Waikato farmers for breeding ewes (reports the “New Zealand Herald”). An immense number of ewes had been brought into the Waikato in recent months to meet local demands, but at a special ewe fair held recently, at which over 10,000 sheep were sold under the hammer m an hour many buyers went away unsatisfied. There appeared to be great prospects ahead for the fat lamb trade in the Waikato. The opening of the East Coast railway as . far as Taneatua had been of great benefit both to Gisborne and Waikato sheep breeders. It is reported that the famous stud Lincoln flock established by the New Zealand and Australian Land Company in 1862 and maintained on the Moeraki Estate Otago, has been sold to Messrs Docker Bros., of Bontlierambo Wangaratta, and Mr. J. S. Eastwood, Moolpa station, Victoria, who will divide the flock between them. The flock comprises 15 stud rams, 56 flock ranis, 123 ram lambs, 200 ewes from two to five years old, and 127 shearling ewes and ewe lambs, a total of 521. This flock has had a great reputation for many years on account of its breeding and quality and its show ring records. It is all the more regrettable, therefore that it should be sent out of the Dominion when the demand for ciossbred wool is again turning more attention to the Lincoln for crossing purposes. „ During the past five years the number of purebred and Lincoln type of sheep has been going down m the Dominion. In 1923 the number of Lincoln® entered in Flock Books was 19,304 and sheep of a distinctive Lincoln type totalled 142,135'. In 1928 the totals stood respectively at 9269 and 96,186. The South Island had 2024 pure-bred Lincolns and 24, /yd Lincoln type sheep in 1923, and only 1047 and 17,946 respectively m 1928. Of late years the demand for the finer wools and the increasing popularity of the Romney in place of the LincolnRomney cross has given the Lincoln the setback it has received After a strenuous day m the harvest field teams generally line up to the feed’ trough or nosebag. A farmer in the Rakaia district, however, noticed one of his draughts refuse the proffered evening chaff meal, but nibbled at the green feed (says the Ashburton Guaidian”). Investigation revealed that a piece of solid straw, evidently picked up in the harvest field, had become attached to the throat at the rear of the jaw. This removed, “Dobbin” accepted his nosebag and once more crunched his hard feed. . ■ The largest , land ballot since, the time of the discharged soldiers’ land ballots in 1921 took place in Napier recently for six sections at Waimarama, ranging from 450 acres to 860 uci es (says tlie “Daily Telegraph”) applicants in the ballot totalled -00, and they all bad to be examined by the Hawke’s Bay Land Board prior to that body proceeding with the holding or the ballot. The ballot is open to married men with one or more dependents, and to discharged soldiers who have competed unsuccessfully in ballots during the last two years. ,