Farming at Home

Manawatu Times, Volume 60, Issue 196, 21 August 1935, Page 12

Farming at Home

LARGE SCALE OPERATIONS £13,000 A YEAR AVAGES Mr C. H. Tomkins, AVilby, AVcllingborough, and his sons, one of whom Mr J. W. Tomkins, is at Apethorpe,- Peterborough, farm about. 5,000 acres in the north-east district of Northamptonshire. They control sonic fifteen farms, owning sonic and renting others. Mixed fanning is adopted, and practically all forms of stock raising and crop cultivation are undertaken. About 150 men and boys arc regularly employed, and the labour bill amounts to approximately £13,000 a year. Over 200 dairy coxvs arc milked; there arc usually 300 to 400 young cattle and a similar number ot fattening beasts; abougt 2000 exves and lambs; And herds of 200 breeding sows, while 2,500 bacon pigs are contracted for during the current vear.

With operations on this scale it might be supposed that Mr Tomkins and his sons would not bffl looking for extra xvork. Recently, hoxvever, they have undertaken a task of land reclamation xvhich will occupy their attention for sonic considerable time. Blathcrxvlck Farm comprises about S4O acres, of which a large proportion has not been cultivated in any way for about fifty years. It consists of grassland, rough grazing and woodland. Cattle have been alloxved to graze where they pleased, with the result that some of the grass has been fed, but well over 300 acres are covered with coarse, acid, spear grass, brambles, thorn scrub and dense woods. This is the type of land to be cleared, and Mr J. \V. Tomkins, who is in charge of the work, explained his methods.

“It is, of course, good land,” he said, “and, being practically virgin soil, should have an accumulation of fertility and grow heavy crops. Otherwise xve xvould not have undertaken the xvork.” This land has been taken on a seven years’ lease at a very low rental. During the past xvinter, some 150 acres of the more-casily cleared land have been dealt with. Large areas of decayed grass have been burnt. Trees and bushes have been grubbed by ploughing engines and tractors xvorking xvith grubbing implements. When the bushes had been grubbed it was found difficult to burn them. Not only xvas it sloxv and laborious to put each bush separately on to a fire, but the trouble lay in getting them compressed sufficiently to generate a good heat.

This xvas overcome by running one end of the steam plough cable round a ring of bushes and anchoring it on to the engine again. The bushes are dr-axvn together as the cable is draxvn in on the drum. Tho fire is kindled at the end of the heap nearest the engine and, xvhen the flames have secured a good hold, the cable is again drawn in until th e heap becomes tighter and tighter. Gradually the bushes at the far end of the heap are pulled off the ground until they fall over on top of the tire, which xvill then get, sufficient lieat to burn dry and green alike. When the surface of tho laud has been cleared it is intended to niolcdrain it, give it a .summer ,fallow, and then to cultivate for a. crop of flax before laying down lo grass seeds. Other parts of the farm have needed attention of a less drastic nature. About 100 acres of grassland xvas covered xvith large ant heaps. This has been disc ■ harrowed twice and chain harrowed twice. Another area had supported numbers of trees of wcll-groxvn timber. . Years ago the timber had been cut and sold and tile brushwood left on the ground. “Clearing land of trees, bushes and undergroxvtli is a X'ery expensive matter,” said Mr Tomkins, “but'it lias a peculiar fascination, which is part of the reward for the work.” Specialisation of farms is not carried out to any grfcat extent, but as far as possible each farm is worked in the way most suitable to its buildings and characteristics.

The dairy cows, which arc chiefly Shorthorns, are liand-milked and the milk sold on a xvholcsalc contract. Hereford, Shorthorn and Black Pol! store cattle are bought for grazing and winter feeding in. the yards. Sugar beet tops arc fed to the cattle, and iu suitable weather tho bullocks arc grazed for txvo or three hours each day on the land xvliere the beet xvas grown; iu bad xveathcr tho lops arc hauled to the cattle. On the various farms a total of 2000 grass owes arc kept, and the breeds arc chiefly Mashams, Cheviots and Border-Lcicestcr-—Suffolk cross. Some of the lambs are sold fat off tho exves and others arc kept for feeding on the beet tops.

Hundreds of acres of sugar beet arc grown, and tho crops lifted by mechanical poxver. The beet is drilled in rows to xvork with steam tackle, the xvidtli of the drills corresponding xvith the tines of a steam cultivator xvhich is used to lift six rows at a time.

AVheat, potatoes, barley, oats and sugar beet are the chief cash crops, and this year for the first time flax is being grown for a factory.

The cultivations are done by engines, tractors and horses. Mr J. AV. Tomkins has designed a farm cart xvith detachable shafts, xvhich can be drawn by a horse or used as a trailer behind a tractor. The xvheels arc fitted xvith pneumatic tyres, and the cart is provided with a steel draxv-bar for coupling to the tractor. The shafts are secured in slots and can be removed in a few seconds.