THE HAURAKI PLAINS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIII, Issue 19255, 18 February 1926, Page 6

THE HAURAKI PLAINS.

GREAT DAIRYING, COUNTRY.

RECLAMATION PROCEEDING. FLAX-GROWING POSSIBILITIES. BY OtrH. SPECIAL COIitfiMXSSXOSEIt. No. I. 1 The Hauraki Plains, which is rapidly becoming one ot Auckland's greatest dairying districts, is ivhife was original] v known as, and is still frequently called the Thames Valley. The name Thames Valley is, however, a misnomer, because that wide stretch of level country which lies between the goldfield ranges on the east and that series of kill ranges to the west, is traversed by mors rivers than the Thames or the Waihou. The Piako, navigable for some distance, runs through th» centre of it; the Waitakururu traverses it to the west, and in this north there is the Waitoa, the Awaiti and other considerable streams. Even the name Hauraki Plains is somewhat misused, because it is restricted officially to that northern part of the level expanse which is includes under the Hauraki Plains Drainage Act, Since cal terms are still vague in this new country and since names arai really necessary when describing districts, it. would be advisable to speak of all that level tract of country bordered on the south by the Morrinsville-Te Aroha railway, on the north by the Firth of Thames, and on the east and west by hill ranges, as tho | Hauraki Plains. It is not a valley in tha vtruo sense and it is geologically and geographically a plain. Vast Arears of Dairying Land. Within the boundaries mentioned, tha Hauraki Plains has an area of something near 300,000 acres, only a part ol which, is under cultivation, and yet even in its undeveloped statu, its production of; butterfat is enormous, and it has distinct claims to be considered not only one of tho greatest dairying districts in .Auckland or New Zealand, but in the world. Along its southern border tlie Mommville. To Aroha railway—am studded. soma of the largest butter factories and dried milk factories known in any country J there are also great factories on tho railway which fringes the ea.stern part' of the plains, between Te Aroha, and the Thames, and there are, I think, five rapid.ly-grow» • ing factories scattered i.bout the plain, Dredging work and swamp reels,mation are proceeding on a large scale, not only on the 07,000 acres undiw the control ol: tho Public Works Department, but also southward toward Wait:,'a and Waihou, It is difficult to estimate what proportion of land on tho plain i;s already under dairying pasture, but it is doubtful if more than ones-third is in productive us?,, and even this is far from its aiHixipnm standard of production, so it requires littki imagination to realise that, in the future, there will be a great expansion of dairying here anci, of course, other classes of farm* ing as well. It is possible that flax growing msy.be* come a very important branch of farming. A Rival to Dairying. The Hauraki Plains country was fsanous for its flax long beforn dairying was thought of, and to-day th sro are .four flasmilla operating, the core bined output oi which is over 1000 tons of hemp ami well ever 100 tons of tow. Bui; thera is,coming for tha flax industry a new era, a revolutionary development, tiuch as • came to the dairying industry when the factory system and co-operation were introduced. The Government is already recognising this possibility and preparing for it. In talking to the officer m charge of the drainage operations, I was in* formed that one area <!f no lesii than 30,000 acres is . being surveyed and examined for flsvs-growing purposeir, sites for factories are being selected, and drains and waterways li'.id out ispocially %o suit this industry. It is possible that flaxgrowing may solve the problem of utilising the vast extent of peat country which in. parts of the plains has proved difficult to prepare for dairy farms. It is» possitlu also " - that flax growing may prove a willing rival in wealth production to dairying. One can seo by the prospectus of the new flax-growing companies, j issued almost monthly, that a number of experienced and capable business nuin ate putting capital into these ventures. It is not necessary to accept all ;! the optimistio figures supplied by company promoters to believe that !lax-'g;row|ng may become a profitable undertaking; it is only necessary ty believe that improved methods or cutting, 1 plant selection and cultivation aro likely to give better [results than the old. extravagant and sora ewhat destructive methods used in dealing with this plant growing in its wilt condition. Besides thin, it is certainly not impossible that very great improvements nia,y yet be n»de in mannfacturiiitg, which will raise the product of Ehormiutti jtena'x from a hemp suitable oijily for binding twine and ropes to fine :tibre capable oj competing with sisal jut j, llmum, an 4 similar High-priced produ:ts. The side-cutting of the native flax, introduced by Mr. Smerle, 'lias already had a very beneficial effect m the annual retarri per acre of flax are, its, and uo havo the first attempts at cultivation carried out by the Manawatn flaxmillers, but it requires some knowledge of what marl has done in the way of plant improvement -in our farm crops and fruits t« rijalise what may be done with the Phormium tenax in this direction. Improvement of Flax, In comparing what has been don® in tha "work of improving fat m crops with wha6, <may be done with our native flax plant, one would have to measure the wheat plant, as it was when primitive man first pounded; its scanty grains between two stones, and the wheat say, of <jQ years ago, and then to realise that within a vear or two skilled! plant breeders bv hybridisation have multiplied the yield of grains and other crops more greatly than men by ordinary farm methods have done in a score of centuries. Spies® has given man command over many things, and no one need doubt that while the ordinary fiax farmer could greatly improve his acreage yield b;r selecting the best specimen!) of 'flax for planting, or using the seed from the finest plants and then improving hiif land by judicious cultivation and manuring, tho plant breeder could in a little while vastly increase the fibre contents; of the plar t and improve it in length, strength and quality.