FARM AND DAIRY.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue 7379, 4 February 1902, Page 2

FARM AND DAIRY.

NOTES.

The fine weather of the past few weeks is enabling farmers to push on summer work. Those who had belated hay crop are smiling, having saved their winter feed in splendid condition.

There is not a great amount of grassseediog going on, the area shut up is so small to what it was a few years ago, but t.hose who have paddocks this year are looking forward to saving in excellent condition.

Grass everywhere is abundant, the milk supply large, and the make of dairy export produce this year must be enormous.

Everything points to a further extension of the industry. All round there are reports of so and so putting land into dairying next season. Returns from sheep are falling, the receipts of the man who goes in for dairying keep on a good level ; and the effect naturally is that many are anxious to go out of sheep to some extent and into dairying, provided they can see a chance of getting reliable labor.

A Plains farmer who was in Great Britain a few weeks age, was gratified at seeing put on the table a pat of New Zealand butier; but the remarkable coincidence was that he discovered it bore the brand of the factory his own farm was supplying.

As individual records are being trotted out it may be mentioned that a farmer, not very far from Hawera, last month drew £270 in payment for milk supplied to factories for previous month.

Pigs are scarce, but supplies are coming on, though when pretty well 30s can be relied on for calves off the bucket, many people prefer to give their milk to the calves, at any rate, early in the season. There is less trouble about calves than pigs. Later in the season the latter may receive more attention.

The extension of dairying means more demand for cows, and heifers are being brought in aa early as possible; too early, many people think. Experienced farmers hold that a heifer should be nearly three years old before it comes in for milking, but a good many calve before that, and there are prophecies of evil as to the constitution of future herds if too much hurry is shown in this matter.