THE WEATHER AND THE HARVEST.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CV, Issue 12428, 18 February 1901, Page 2

THE WEATHER AND THE HARVEST.

•■ The drying winds of last, week, together with the warm weather, have caused the grain crops to ripen very quickly, and farmers are busily engaged with 'harvesting operations. Many of them are threshing, straight out of stock. In some cases the work is being delayed owing to tii& scarcity of labour. On the whole the crops a.re turning out very well, and some heavy yields are reported. On the heavier lands some of the oats are badly laid, and cansiderable difficulty is being experienced in cutting them. Mr G. W. Holland, of Greendale, lias just completed threshing twenty-four acres of oats, from which the magnificent return 1 of 101 bushels per acre was obtained. During the previous year the same field produced 40 bushels of prime Tuscan wheat, a> portion, of which gained first prize at the Courtenay winter show, while in 1899 the yield was 50£ of Pearl, thus making u total for three consecutive years of 191 i bushels per acre. The weather has at last cleared in the Peel Forest district, and harvest work is being pushed on apace. A large amount of oats has been threshed out of the stook, and this, considering the weather lately experienced, must be a risky proceeding. The crops, as a whole, appear to be above the average, and the grain being so long in ripening, should be good. Farmers in the locality, while waiting for their crops to ripen, have kept their teams carting firewood. All along the foot hills the, feed is still plentiful. At Waimate harvesting is now general, and a week of fine weather should see nearly all the crops cut.