FARM PROBLEMS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23113, 11 August 1938, Page 19

FARM PROBLEMS

LIVESTOCK DISEASES' DEPARTMENT'S WORK ECZEMA AND MASTITIS p CAMPAIGN AGAINST RAGWORT B [uv TELKGItAPH —SPKCI AT. KKPOIUIHII] r WELLINGTON, Wednesday ■ Activities of tho Department of r Agriculture to combat various stock diseases and also in respect of the campaign against ragwort, were renewed by the Minister of Agriculture, the s Hon. W. J <ee Martin, in the annual report of the department, presented to s the House of Representatives. Investigations into facial eczema r would be carried out at the Rnakura Farm and out-stations in the Waikato, the chemistry laboratory of the depart- " jnent at Wellington, tho Wallaeeville 1 veterinary laboratory, and the plant research station at Palmerston North, 3 the Minister stated. Studies would also •' be made of farm practice 011 both l " affected and unaffected areas. The Gov--3 ernment had voted over £IO,OOO for this work, the largest single investigaI tion ever undertaken by the depart- * ment, and further amounts might he a necessary for some years to come. 1 Loans were being made under certain . conditions to farmers who require 1 fresh stock to replace losses incurred 3 during tho outbreak. 1 Extensive Testing "Following the report of Dr. G. J. } Hueker, of the New York State Agricultural Station, 011 mastitis among dairy cows, the department is collaborating with the Dairy Board t and the Herd-testing Federation on a , system of control, and arrangements have been made for the board and the | Government to contribute £IOOO each to cover the cost of the work in the forthcoming season," he continued. "Extensive testing for mastitis will be carried out each month by the Herdtesting Federation on every herd under its control, and testing sets are also being made available to farmers who wish to apply the tests themselves. It is hoped that the records collected will form tho basis of farm and herd management in connection with this disease. "Increased attention is being paid to the. problems of animal husbandry. Extensions costing over £15,000 are being made to the Wallaeeville veterinary laboratory, and additional research and field officers are being appointed to the live- : stock division of the department. Rei search and administrative facilities are , also provided at Buakura. "One of the obstacles encountered in the proposals for strengthening this division is the difficulty of securing trained men, and the question of establishing a veterinary school in New Zealand may have to be considered by the Government. At present a number of students is -being trained in Australia under a bursary system, and their services will soon bo available to the department. Cost of Combating Ragwort "During the year the department, in co-operation with the county authorities, instituted a campaign against ragwort in the affected districts I of the North Island. The cost included £74,000 in wages and material and j £13,000, in subsidies on sodium chlorate. I The continuance of the scheme for the | coining year is under consideration. Ragwort research is also being carried out at Buakura." The Minister also referred to the completion of plans for the inauguration of a system of dairy farm instruction on a national basis. He said that under the national scheme the total cost would be between £16,000 and £47,000, of which tho industry would bear 60 per cent and the Government 40 per cent. It had been his policy to build up the advisory services rather than promote fresh regulations, and increase inspectorial work, the Minister added, He regarded as a fixed policy of the department the establishment of farmers' advisory committees to work in conjunction with departmental officers. AUSTRALIAN RIVALRY MINISTER'S FORECAST \ , PRIMARY PRODUCTION LINES t ' fBV TKLEGItAPH —SPKCIAT, UEPOTITER 1 £ WELLINGTON, Wednesday A forecast of keen Australian rivalry of the Dominion in some lines of primary production, accompanied by a measure of co-operation, was made by the Minister of .Agriculture, the Hon. I W. Tee Martin, in the annual report! of the Department of Agriculture for j the year ended March 31, presented in the House of Representatives to-day. < "I took the opportunity while in i Australia of visiting country districts of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia, and research institutions such as the Waite Institute at Adelaide, the Werribce Experiment Station near Melbourne, and Hawkesbury Agricultural College, the Sydney Veterinary School, and" tho Glon lipid Veterinary Research Station in NewSouth Wales.''* tho Minister said. "By the excellence of the facilities afforded me 1 was enabled to form some conception of the tremendous potentialities of tho Australian continent, and an appreciation of the very competent way in which the resources of that j great country are being developed. "Australia will in future be a formidable rival of New Zealand in cor- ' tain lines of primary production in | which our Dominion has enjoyed pre- i, eminence, but I am convinced that!, the two_ countries have so many in- ! forests in common that competition i! must be accompanied by co-operation, both in marketing our produce and in' : the solution oi production problems of > similar origin. The interchange of in- , formation and ideas will receive every encouragement from my dcuarl men!, 1 and I hope that it will' bo possible in' j some cases to have this effected by ( temporary loans of specialist officers " t