FARM JOTTINGS

Horowhenua Chronicle, 23 May 1928, Page 8

FARM JOTTINGS

Outrage on Farmers. In Westraliu they have a supertax. A farmer received the Government papers calling upon bun to pay the tax. He wrote back that lie had no intention of paying. It was evidently an attempt to cheat him >f his bard-earned cash, for he hadn't put a bit of superon his land this season-only basic slag. Mr W. Good follow Drought this story back from Australia. Killing Export.

Speaking to a gathering of farmers at Kangiora on the occasion of an inspection of the New Zealand Farmers’ Co-operative Association’s new graincleaning plant, Mr W. Machin said that while visiting the Dominion, the late Mr H. E. Flatten bad told him that New Zealand had. killed Australia’s exportation of wheat and floor. “I was so pleased to hear it,” said Mr Machin “that 1 could not help interjecting that wc t will take some more of Australia’s dried fruits.” Trees for the Farm.

It is reported that there is a good demand for plantation trees for the farm, and quite a number of fanners seem to realise that it pays to plant trees for shelter for stock and to occupy waste corners. Some farmers are dealing successfully with gorse which has taken possession of steep sidelines and other waste properties by planting through the gorse. The trees grow very quickly, having good shelter, and destroying the gorse as they grow up. A number of years ago the requirements of wood and fencing material on farms were not seriously considered, as plenty of timber was available from the bush reserves, the majority of which have now been cut out.

Diseases iu Stock. Diseases in stock have been much less frequent this year than during the two previous years. This is considered to be the result of the activities of the* live stock branch of the Department of Agriculture. - Cattle have been comparatively free from contagious abortion and contagious mammitis. There has also been less trouble with cows failing to come into profit. At present experiments are being undertaken in the feeding of ewes to attempt to prevent continuation of the lamb mortality experienced this season. Ferocity of Weasel. The ferocity of the weasel was demonstrated on a farm at Masiaia. Taranaki, recently. A settler engaged in gathering wood saw an adult weasel carrying a young one iu its mouth, and ho attacked the pests with a piece of wood. Both showed considerable fight and after the young one had been despatched, the old one ran under a log, where it continued its snarling and teeth-showing. Later it Avas found that the old one had carried oJF the dead body of- the young Aveasel.

Ousting Blackberry. Some time ago a resident of Tauranga wrote to the Cawthron Institute, Nelson, asking whether the Institute had any specific to recommend to deal with blackberry. A reply was received recommending a trial of one pound and a-half of arsenic and three pounds of soda, with six gallons of water boiled for twenty minutes, the mixture to be applied with a line spray. Following these* instructions, the resident lias had distinct success in dealing with blackberry at Pupamoa. As far as could be judged the patch of blackberry sprayed had been killed. Two Killers.

The high price of land and the high price of money were the two things crippling the farming community in New Zealand to-day, remarked Mr J. Cocker, Eltham, at the annual conference of the South Taranaki provincial executive of the Farmers’ Union. Eahhits Pay the Bates.

Good prices are beir} paid for land in the back country for the right to trap rabbits, states the Western Star. One settler in the Maroroa ‘Hiding received £(300 for the rights. This sum was sufficient to pay all his rates and other disbursements for the year. • *