LAMBING SEASON

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVII, Issue 23719, 27 July 1940, Page 8

LAMBING SEASON

EXCELLENT PROSPECTS LATER STARTING EXPECTED SOME AREAS WELL FORWARD Although some districts, including Onewhero and Clevedon. are well forward, the lambing season has barely begun throughout the province, and experienced farmers expressed the opinion yesterday that it was likely to be several weeks later this year. However, the prospects are regarded optimistically, as the winter has been the best for. many years, and there aro indications of nil early spring. After a spell of dry, sunny weather the break in the conditions this week has not greatly affected lambs in the Clevedon area. On one property with breeding ewes, between 500 and 600 lambs have been counted and, after wintering well, the ewes and their offspring are in excellent condition. Lambing is sufficiently forward on several Onewhero farms for tailing to be in full swing, but in the Papakura district and on the low country and hill runs of the Waikato very few lambs have yet appeared. One farmer, who so far has only several score of lambs from 3000 N or more breeding ewes, said that under present conditions there was little incentive to run the greater risks by preparing lambs for the early market. The rush for early export was unnecessary to-day, and the limited demands of the local trade alone were insufficient to justify this course.

Neither .the low country nor the hill properties of the Waikato are yet thickly populated with lambs, although since the first were born a month ngo tlioy have been arriving in slowlvincreasing numbers. Farmers were emphatic that the season would bo later than last year, and the opinion was expressed that when lambing did start it would be at a solid pace. One widelyexperienced breeder said tho Waikato had experienced the best winter he could recall, and in his" district he had never seen sheep at this time of tho year in better condition. Moreover, winter losses had been negligible