Farming column

Hokitika Guardian, 11 November 1933, Page 8

Farming column

MANAGEMENT OF PASTURES

MORE INTELLIGENCE WANTED

It has been emphasised previously that the management of the pasture has more to do with the composition of the sward than any fertiliser practice. There is nothing, for instance, to equal the judicious use of sheep as followers on after cattle in improving a pasture, especially where sufficient sheep can be crowded on to evenly graze the pasture in a short time, to rapidly eat the grass down, but not to punish it. The pioneers of the new system of grassland management stressed the point that more intelligence was required with intensive grazing, than with the range system of grazing, and experience is proving the soundness of this observation, ■ says the Waikato Times.

Martin G. Jones, %f Jealott’s Hill Experimental Station, England, recently reported on an experiment carried out to discover the influence of management of the sward. The experiment showed tlipit, although the nitrogenous dressing approximately doubled the actual yield of fodder during the early period of greying, it had little influence on the botanical composition of the sward. On the other hand, the time and intensity of the grazing considerably affected the botp.nial ccmposiKtou in. .vfclaitioli both to the proportion of grasses and clovers, and . the inroad of weed grasses and thistles, thus geve'nim the improvement or deterioration of the sward. In fact, it is declared that the method cf stocking is the governing factor in determining the botanical nature of the sward. The plots which stood out as superior in this I experiment were subject to a system of controlled close grazing on a rotaI tional basis with an intervening j period of complete rest. This method of grazing—the system advocated in these columns—showed how weeds are hampered in competition with the rapidly growing species of grasses, which are also the most palatable. This method also proved *,valuable in elimination of weeds from badly infested pastures, frequently with the aid of artificial manures. It should be noted that the above experiment was concerned solely in improving the sward from the botanical point of view, or from that of the discovery of the best means of carrying the highest proportion of good grasses. The inquiry was not concerned with . providing a pasture which would give'grass which would be of the highest feeding value, grass that would contain the oomplete mineral food the animal requries. We not only want a pasture comprised o f the best and most persistent grasses, but grasses i that will provide the complete food they should. This is a pmblem research workers have yet to solve.

The mystery is disappearing from the Finnish system of : making silage. We have known that by the process, developed at the great experKtietiv farm of the Co-operative Butter Export Association of Finland, grass could be preserved as silage in practically its original sfate. The food value of it was declared to be eoual to that of the ; best summer grass. The method was patented and when the Finnish authorities were approached by a New Zealand .firm to purchase the rights for this country the price asked was quite prohibitive. Edit now that more particulars are available as to the method employed it is difficult to see where any patent comes in. Wo were told that hydrochloric acid was the main factor in the process but, that other acids were also used. It now appears that the only other acid used is,sulphuric acid, and this in only small amounts. This being so it is certainly hard to understand haw the Finnish patent rights can be sustained. An argument used against the process is the cost of the acids, but there are in New Zealand large plants for the making of sulphuric acid (the superhhosphate plants) and hydrochloric acid by the use made from sulphuric acid by the use of common salt. Now that Imperial Chemical Industries have interested themselves in this important matter we may surely anticipate having demonstrations of the process made in New Zealand in the near future.

CO-OPERATIVE FARMING'

A future development

Once or twice lately I have heard small discussions on the question whether New Zealand could or could not have more farmers with advantage both to the Dominion and to the farmers. People who talk about this subject generally have very positive ideas, but they do not look very far ahead, otherwise they would be discussing rather the future of farming,” savs Pro Bono Publico in the Star.

So far as small farming is concerned the future development will have to be in the direction of co-operative farming. If left to themselves the farmers will naturally want to retain what they call their independence, though independence, is a very relative term in these days, and if we are to have co-operation it will have to be brought about by some external organisation. In the dairying districts the co-operative idea was given a very useful start, and I am sorry to see that the folly of the farmers in some areas has led them in other directions. Security lies in a greater measure of co-operation all the. time.

In the mixed farming areaif especially where cropping is the rule, 4 the co-operative system would fee of irn-

mense benefit, because small farms could 'be grouped and worked scientifically under expert management, accounts would be properly kept, and the members of the association would be far stronger financially than they are at present. The system brings bo the small man all the advantages of large scale farming, with all its labour saving devices, its division of labour, its elimination of waste time, and its •reduction in 'overhead costs.

I have long been of opinion that this is the only effective alternative to what is called “factory farming,” examples of which are already to be found in some big American farms and in the. merchanised farms of Russia. Of course, these big farms are devoted to one product, ■ generally wheat, whereas the true factory system would be better applied to mixed farming, such as obtained on the Canterbury Plains and elsewhere in the Dominion. It could h e applied profitably to small d’iry farming, V where a few pic’s end poultry ore kepi. In effect true co-operative farming converts a number of small units into one large one. It eliminates th e sum 1 ! and inefficient equipment, makes possible the erection of good buildings and the ■ installation of modern plant, concentrates all operations of one kind and renders possible the employment of specialists, such as mechanics. It would make for incomparably better farming, raise the standard of stock, increase the output, and reduce costs. It makes finances simpler and gives a better all round return. 00-operative farming will have to come whether we like it or note

MARKETING OF HIDES

much CARELESSNESS .’APPARENT

Respite persistent advices, many parcels of carelessly prepared sheepskins continue to reach the sale floors. iSkins damaged, perhaps in several diffevent ways, lose 2d to 3d a lb in price. All skins classed as “damaged •betray the carelessness of the growei, either in the skinning of the sheep or in the drying, preserving, o r packing of the skins from dead sheep. Ribby skins, or skins which have been pricked or pierced by .seeds, are classed as “faulty.”

.Damaged skins can be classified r.s ■cut V>r torn, ipejrished, weevil eaten, sun dried, or those which have- been exposed to the weather .and are shrunk and 'wrinkled. Any farmer can easly avoid losses on such skins for sale if, in preparing them for market, he adopts sound methods. In skinning, a. knife should be used only where necessary— oll 'Hu* neck, ’holly '.and legs. It iis usual to commence skinning from the knee to the brisket, then down the thr°at, then opening out carefully from the hocks to the twist, and. finally opening up the skin of the belly, arid if the skin <js thus opened up it is possible to remove it without. further use of a knife, by pulling the skin with one hand and punching against it with the other. Thus cutting the pelt is .avoided, and attachments of fat and flesh, which have .a tendency to encourage weevil, will remain. The wool ..should 'not be smeared with blood, which should be washed away before it dries.

For drying, the skin should be stretched . out on a flat, sheltered surface, preferably on a grate, such > a s in' a.' shearing shed. The neck, legs and edges of th e skin should be onre-,fu-lly 'opened out to ensure even drying and constant attention is necessary to prevent their ■ curling. After about two or three hours,, while the skin is set, it should be covered with an anti-weevil solution, of which there are many effective arsenical washes. A cheap one can be made as follows.: Boil one dessertspoonful each of arsenic and washing soda in .a pint of water, and add enough water to fill an ordinary 7lb treacle tin. This , c an be applied with a brush 'or swab. A. solution of sheep dip is also suitable. The skin should then be hung over a rail from neck to tail end, with the flesh side upwards, allowing the leg s and trotters to hang down 'on either side. The rail should be underneath a roof, where the skin will be protected from sun and rain, both of ivhich seriously damage the pelt. When the skins are thoroughly dried, all 1 trotters should he cut ofl. and the skins folded exactly opposite to the way they were hanging, leaving the woolly pide outwards. They should then be placed on top of each other, with the back alternately on cither side, and the bundle secured with wire or rope. In consigning them to the broker, each bundle should be labelled separately, and the broker advised of the weights and the state .and number of the skins. All loo'e ends should be folded in so that they would not be used by handlers for shifting th e bundles.