FARM NOTES FROM ENGLAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 9624, 24 September 1894, Page 3

FARM NOTES FROM ENGLAND.

[BV OCR ENGLISH AGRICULTURAL CORRESPONDENT.] London, August 11. HARVEST. Harvesting is now general throughout the southern half of England, but hitherto has been much interrupted by rainy weather. Since the firsb field of wheab or oats was ut more or less rain has fallen nearly every day or night, and thus the cut corn has been kepb constantly damp, precluding carting, while the cutting of wheat has been hindered by the impossibility of binding it in sheaves while it was wet. The continuance of unsettled weather, which has now lasted over a month, is a bitter disappointment to farmers. After growing the best all-round harvesb that the oldest of them can remember ib is desolating to see their splendid prospects marred by the excessive rainfall. . An immense amount of injury has already been done. All the best crops of wheab, barley, and oats have been badly laid, and rained upon afterwards time after time. The downfalls have been so frequent that the corn has seldom had time to dry before it was wetted again, and the consequence is that the quality of wheat and barley has been sadly injured. Oats do not matter so much, though the grain will be light in many cases, in consequence of having been produced when the ears were flab on the ground, and in facb, smothered by superincumbent straw. The present character of the harvesb, as far as bulk is concerned, may be estimated from the following abstract of reports from every county in England and most parts of Wales and Scotland, which have appeared in the Times and the Mark Lane Express respectively, the figures being percentages of condition, as an average is represented by 100:- } CONDITION OP CROPS ON AUGUST 1. •a "2 *> c ( - - I i I i'B 9 3 8 £ S '■■ W I* m Wll „ af /Times 99-5105-0100-5 997 wneat .. ... -i M j jE| 1()0 . 7 95-o]oo-4 100-6 T , ~„ /Times 1009104-3 997 lOU'9 UAuey _ .. tjn, L.E. 102-8 98-3 92"2102-1 0of „ (Times 102-5104-* 1 98-4 ini-4 U(US " •• \M.L.E. 101-9100-8, 98-8 100-1 „„.,„„ (Times 94"4107-0101*0 95-0 .Beans .. .. -{ ML-B _ 9,vi 108 2 99"4 95-5 Pfla , /Times — — — — ±-eas .. .. -^ M , J-E- 95-7102'5 97-5 95-7 Potatoes ('limes 92-2 94-0 05-0 93-3 potatoes .. -[m.L. E. 92-0 85-3 94-1 92-1 „ , A .„ J Times IUO-3 99-0 54-8 99-1 UOOtS .. .. MLE| 96-6 91-51 93-2 95-7 -,„„„ J Times 110-2112-5109'5110-3 . L '' 33 \M. h. K. 112-* I IU-C 102-3 111-8 , lb will be seen thab every crop named is \ either over average for Great Britain as a whole or close to an average, and I cannot remember any year in which so favourable a bird's-eye view of the general production could have been presented. Even some of tho crops which are represented by the figures as being a few points under average ate probably up to thab standard. With respect to beans and peas, it has been noticed that they are almost invariably returned as under average, thus proving that the idea of an average for each of these crops is not too high in farmers' ideas. As to roots they are still improving, and will certainly be more productive than usual. In the case of the potato crop, on the other hand, the figures are too favourable, as they do not allow for the disease which is rapidly developing in most parts of tho Kingdom, and which has become much worse since the reports were collected. But unless the wet weather comes to an end promptly a heavy discount will have to be taken off the estimates for all the corn craps. This ' danger is clearly indicated in the returns — over 670 in number— to be published in the Agricultural Gazette of Monday next. Having looked through them in order to tabulate them, I have been astonished to see the numbers of qualifications to the estimates of the condition of the crops as to quality which the writers of the reports have added by way of comment. They give estimates of the probable produce of the crops, if saved in the condition presented in the first or second week of August, and then add qualifications indicating the danger of the possiblo results not being realised. There is a "but" to nearly every reporb on one or more of the crops. Of all the white-straw crops ib is said by a great majority of the writers that they are badly laid and injured in quality, while not a few intimate the expectation that such crops will not yield in proportion to the bulk of straw. Wheat is mildewed in some places and blighted in others. If the wet weather lasts we may expect an extension of mildew. In the majority of tho reports on potatoes it is stated that disease has appeared. Then of the hay crop, one of the best ever grown, nearly all the reports state thab a portion of ib has been injured by wet weather, and many say that it is not yet nearly all secured. Reduced to percentages, the returns of the Agricultural Gazette, representing every county in England, and many counties in Wales, Scotland, and Ireland are as follows : — PERCENTAGES OF REPORTS ON crops IN the united kingdom. Wheat. Barley. Oats. Beans. Peas. Over average.. 41-2 015 57-2 39-4 33-9 Average .. 45 - 5 32-3 30-0 357 43-3 Under average 13-3 0-2 12-2 24-9 22-8 Total .. 100 100 100 100 100 Hay. Potatoes. Turnips. Mangolds. Over average.. 769 300 47-0 437 Average .. 180 44 0 34*4 389 Under average 4-5 25"4 18 - 0 17-4 Total .. 100 100 100 100 These figures represent every crop as oyer average, the reports to that effect being more numerous than those indicating a yield below average. But, as already stated, tho continuance of web weather would render necessary a heavy discount off the estimates of the corn and potato crops. Even now damage has extended since the reports were written, as every day of rainy weather increases tho damage. If we should get settled dry weather for the rest of the harvest, the crops as a whole would prove above average, I believe, bub nob if even partially wet weather lasts for another fortnight. With respecb to the harvest in the Continent of Europe, web weather has done much to impair ib in some countries, and scorching drought in others. Generally it is a fair one, nob equal to that of last year on the Continent as a whole, but still about up to average. France has magnificent crops ; but the cereals have lately been injured in the north and north-west, where they were nob secured by frequent falls of rain. The wheat crop may be reckoned ab nearly forty million quarters— the greatest crop ever grown in France. In Spain, Italy, Germany, and Austro-Hungary the wheat crop is not equal to the good one of 1893, while in Roumania and Bulgaria it is much smaller, and, so far as can be judged, ib is also less in Russia. In the less important countries of the Wesb of Europe the crop is superior to thab of last year. In the United States the damage done recently to the spring wheat crop is not fully shown in the August reporb of the Department of Agriculture, as the returns on which thab report is based must have been collected before the frosts occurred, and also before the extreme of drought had done its worst. It shows a decline since July of only I*3 points ; bub if ib had been prepared after the frosb occurred, ib would certainly have shown greater deterioration. Still, 67*1 per cent, of a full average crop is bad enough, and ib is now probable thab the estimate of 400,000,000 bushels for the total wheat crop, derived from the July figures of the Department, declared much under the mark a month ago by commercial judges, will nob be much, if ab all, exceeded, though winter wheab is said to be yielding well. Canada has only a moderate crop of wheat, and the prospects of countries which do nob harvest their crops for some months to come are uncertain. On the whole, ib seems likely that the world's | production of wheat in 1894-5 will nob exceed a year's consumption. But the accumulations of the lasb three years are not yet exhausted, and therefore tho prospect of any material advance in prices is a poor one. The excitement which has prevailed in the American markets during the present week, resulting in an advance of several cents a bushel in the price of wheab, shows, however, that the general opinion is thab the extremely low rates current for some time past are nob justified by the general prospects of supply and demand. As to the American maize crop, its condition on August Ist, according to the Department of Agriculture, was only 69'1 per cent, of a full average, or 26 points lower than on July 1. There is no doubt, then, that this crop is one of the poorest ; ever grown in America, and the scarcity of ! maize will help the price of wheat someI what, so bhab the extremely" low rates of f 1893-1 can hardly be repeated in 1894-5,