FARMERS COLUMN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 19 April 1907, Page 1

FARMERS COLUMN.

Mr Fshiera Spencer, a well Known English Shorthorn and white pig Ijreoder, Fends the following interesting lttter to a contemporary : — "In your issue of August 23 there Appeared a veiy interesting article with ttie nbova heading. The writer ap- \ eared to desire to call especial attenli >n to the methods of feeding pigs and th s probable cost of vbe manufacture of pork in New Zealand. Of course I know cjmparatively nothing of the local conditions affecting the breeding and fattening of yii :s in your colony, although 1 have ex]> 'od pigs to, and have had several c.< . versations with, New Zealand faim rs when they have visited my old home at Holywell Manor, near 8k Ives's, Hunts, wlibh I have" no*r, after 43 years' pg farming, handed over to one of my sons to carry on. When I state that I have exported pigs of my own breeding to the unprecedented number of 46 colonies and foreign countries, your readers will conclude Chat 1 hive had a little osporionce of p g-breeding, and that I have oome light warrant for trespassing on yoi r columns with some of my ideab on pigft ediug. The description givon of the uianuer in which some benighted parsons feed their pigs in the neighbourhood of Auckland would nccount for the rejpugnance of many persons to pork Which had been manufactured near towna, but surely this serious accusation against pig-keepers near Auckland canndt be of general application, since the unwisdom — to put it mildly — of such a course of procedure mi st be apparent *o the least enlightened ho£,-raiser. The unprofitabltnessof so needing sows and young pigs must be evident to the moet pigheaded and short-sighted pig-keeper, I; nay have one slight advantage— but tiis I doubt— a saving of labour ; ani thuß it may appeal to the lazy section of those who reflect no credit oh hu* ruanity ; but fiom every other point of view this policy of feeding hogs on garl age, or, as it is termed, ' carrion offa I .' is a gripvou9 mistake. The writer of the article makes a strong point of ilio fact that a combination of cows and pigs is bound to be a most profitable ole ; that this is so hi the small and niturally poor country of Denmark has bi ea clearly proved, as the finances of the country have marvellously improved since large white pigs have been imported and co-operative bacon-curing fact-, ries have been established, as by mears of these the number of cons kept has vastly increased, whilst the > xport of butter, bacon, hams, and pork has proved a perfect gold mine to the industrious, hard-working Danes. This point may be clearly brought to tbe roinds of your readers when I state t jat the pi^ population of Denmark is twice as numerous as that of human beiugs, and these last are not a& many in number as tbe population of London, England. There is little doubt that the hign character of Irish pork and bacon was to a very large extent due to the exlensivo use of dairy produce— or dairy offal as it is sometimes termed— in the manufacture of pork, as well as in the rearing of young pigs. When I was lecturing in Ireland some twenty or moro years nines, I was surprised to learn how well iufoimed the small Irish cotters were as to the value of skim and butter-milk, and further, that they were fully aware of the necessity of using it sparsely, not-, as is the custom in some parts of England even at the present time, when separated milk is fed to the pigs in such volume that the young pigs are checked in growth and thrift. The pig-keepets do not trouble to think that they have completely altered what Sb a most valuable iood when fed in its natural state— i.e.. with 3 to 4 per cent o£Jat in its composition. Were they to add about this proportion of some oil, such as linseed or cod liver oil, the little pigs would be able t<rdigest the miik and make a good return for its value- Thera is little doubt that- the most economical way of using skim or ssparatsd milk is iv small quantities, aid as sn addition to other feeds— these would vary with the age of the pig and its cendit on. '• Another point to which the writer of the article would draw the att&ntion oE your readers is the fact that pigß can Le profitablj grazed. This is perfectly true, a* for nearly half a century I kept Borne 50 or more breeding sows, which pretty well Jived all the summer on grass, and even in winter they would roam over the grass fields and pick up a gnod tharo of their living, tha grass utiiig supplemented by roots, such fB cabbages, kohl rabi. and mangold wurtzel ; the added food in the form of corn was usually beans in tho summer and maize in the winter. Some two or three weeks before the sowa were due to farrow, they would bo sbut in the farrowing peus at night, and tbe food would bj of a similar character to that on wh.cb tho sows would be fed after they had fanowed. I can well nmember the time wken large numbers of pigs were fattened in Cambridgeshire and ia Suffolk in the -clover fields ; a rough shelter was erecied where there was no natural shade, a continuous supply of water was provided, and the pigs wt re fed with about one pint of peas ps- r day, in addition to the clover weicu th y cropped. The pigs would grow au>i "fatten, giving a good return ■ lor ilio food consumed, and reader the lind in such good manurial condition that a fine crop of wheac was cartain tp follow.