FARM AND GARDEN.

King Country Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 312, 16 November 1910, Page 6

FARM AND GARDEN.

HERD TESTING. If there is one thing more than another about which progressive dairy farmers are in accord, says a southern exchange, it is the great value of testing dairy herds, in order to secure the actual productive capacity of each individual cow. Rival dairying countries are fully active to its importance, and cow testing is being representative cf producing interests and by general governments. Not only this, but breeders of pedigree dairy cattle in Europe, Scotland and America, are being forced, by weight of public opinion, to base their breeding operations on the lessons of the annual yield, and the pedigree of performance is now the test of merit among breeders of pedigree stock. To New Zealand dairy farmers the principle is new, and, cn the face of it, involves an apparent loss of time, in addition to demanding an amount of .detail work in weighing, testing and recording which does not appeal to the ordinary man on the land, who would rather do a hard day's work in the field than sit down for a few moments to wrestle with figures. The solution, as it has proved to be the case in Denmark and America, is the herd testing association and it is very gratifying to know that the New Zealand Department of Agriculture is setting a splendid example in providing model testing associations. This work, however, is merely educative. It cannot be expected that similar associations can be established by the department in every place where they are required. The farmer will have to act for himself merely regarding the model associations as examples to guide him correctly in his testing operations. The obvious policy in such case is that the suppliers in given centres must club together and have their testing work conducted by officials in their own pay. In this connection we would make the suggestion that, where the suppliers of a factory or a string of factories are prepared to take up the important work of testing their herds, they should approach the Government and ask that an official of the Dairy Produce Division be appointed to do the work, but that the testing association should pay his salary. In any case, a man who thoroughly understood testing, and could be depended upon to keep accurate registers of the yields, tests and other instructive particulars of tire different herds, would have to be employed, whereas if this man were a Government official, an official hall-mark would be attached to the tests, which would render these of much greater value than if the work were carried out by an employee of the association. It cculd perhaps be arranged that the department should appoint testing officials and charge a certain fee for each cow. This would enable a wider field to be covered, and anyone could come in. Such an arrangement would be. of spscial value to the breeder of pedigree dairy stock, who required a more frequent test of each member of his herd. He would thus have a record which would be accepted with confidence by purchasers of his pedigree bulls, and any great record put up by a pedigree cow would be recognised by breed associations in other countries. There is, it will be readily admitted, so much room for errors in taking samples and making tests, that critics may be forgiven for doubting any record but that taken by an independent official. The method outlined is the only feasible means of establishing herd testing on a thoroughly satisfactory basis, and there should be no difficulty whatever in giving effect to it.