THE FARM.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 779, 4 February 1887, Page 15

THE FARM.

OPERATIONS FOR FEBRUARY. NORTHERN DISTRICTS. (New Zealand Fakmkb.) February is a favorite month to which to put off farm work that can wait until mor.s pressing matters are put through. Thus, although harvest work is mo tly over, and the groued is too hot and dry for autumn cropping, there is a heap of put off work to get through. Some of the jobs which will now be crying out for attention are the ploughing up of all stubbles that have been left, cleaning all ditches and water courses out, collecting manure, fencing and mending fences, repairing and painting all implements and outbuildings, putting all harness and horse-gear

in order, wasting war on all briars and late seeding weeds, ploughing uplands and summer following to kill sorreb The dry weather jj a great assistance to the farmer in his efforts to kill sorrel, with the scarifier. Stacks—These sliou'd bo thatched at once, if not already done, for however dr, the senao-t.sudden tain may come on at any time.

Potatoes.—Your potatoes will require attention now, particularly whore the subsoil is retentive clay, for il lieary rain is followed by intense heat, the leaf being dead, tho tubers are exposed to the steaming heat, and very often rot. Draining is the best cure, but the drain does not always act quick enough. High banking and rolling after they die down is beet for both this and tho fly. Get them up as soon aa they ore ripe, but not before ; the skin must be well set first. Potatoes are very apt to go wroDg this month if not properly managed. Pits should be got ready for storing this crop. These should be so constructed as to be perfectly dry and watertight, but at tbe same time cool. Tbe thatching must be such os to keep out the heat of the sun.

Roots.—Any stubble land that is ready, if the soil be moderately rich and light, may be scorified and harrowed and sown broadcast with White stone turnips, harrowed again, rolled, and then left for a crop. A little suitable artificial fertiliser will give the young plants a good start. The success of the crop "will depend a great deal on the weather, but even if the turnips never como to much as roots they will make a nice bite of green tops which will be useful for lambs iu ear'y spring. Some farmers prefer FO-ving just before rain, while others think just after rain tho best time ; the nature of the land and the amount of rain has a great deal to do with this question. If the weather should he showery mangolds pulled up in singlirg may be used to fill up gaps in tho rows. Any mangolds or carrots of the earlier sown crops that show signs of running to seed should be pulled up and given to the pigs. Gbass Lands.— When rain comes after a continuance of hot dry weather there is generally seen a wonderfully quick growth of autumn grass, the land being so warm that it acts somewhat like a hot bed. Aftermath should not be too heavily stocked. Limbs, and drafted ewes, and fattening stock should graze them sufficiently to beep che feed Bhort but not bare.

As we said last year, nothing is worse for pastures than to expose tbe grass roots to scorching sun day after day. Brush harrow to scatter cattle droppingß. Keep jour paddocks clear of noxioas weeds by preventing their seeding. If it be true that we have got Rome patches of Canadian tuislles in the North Island it behoves all farmers to be watchful and energetic lest this terrible vegetable pest should get a firm foothold on our farms. The weed is known to be growing in some Southern districts ; now is the time to take steps for stamping it out while the evil is young and comparatively weak. No conscientious agriculturist would fail to do his utmost to eradicate such a scourge to farmets m the Canadian thistle. Winteb Forage Chops. —The land may be got ready for these for early sowing in March. Capo barley is a capital crop to sow for winter green stuff, and might with advantage be sown instead of oats for this purpose. Yetclies or tares also make a splendid forage crop ; from the end of next month to May is the best time to sow winter vetches. Next to clover, vetches may be reckoned a most nutritious food for all binds of stock. Clean wheat stubble will suit well for this crop. Manure well with farmyard manure if possible, say about ten cartloads per acre ; then plough from four to five inches deep, harrow fine, and drill in the seed at the rate of abmt three bushels per acre. Fallows. —lt might be worth while to sow part of your fallow land with mustard to plough in for barley in the spring. This is sometimes done in tho old country with good results. Bare fallows will require ploughing and harrowing again if foul with weeds.

Live Stock. —The same general management as last moDth will be required.. See that tbe stock is well wa'ered, partieularly dairy cattle, which ought as well to have some sheltered place to go to in the heat of tho day. otherwise the butter is apt to be of inferior quali'y. If you have sheltered paddocks and early grass you can put the rams to the ewes for early lambs, otherwise next month is time enough. Daiby.— It is to be hoped that dairy farmers have provide 1 themselves, as we have so often advised, with plenty of summer green forog". In a dry season a good paddock of green maize or cabbages is invaluable to any one with a dairy herd. This month and last are usually trying months for butter-makers. Your dairy ought to be thickly thatched and with a verandah all round, and plenty of ventilation on all sides, and the floor and roof as well, and it is an improvement to add a little saltpetre in the hot months to the usual modicum of salt, which in winter is generally half an ounce to the pound, and in hot months may be even increased to one ounce in the pound. If due attention is not paid to tbe temperature of dairy buildings and cheese rooms trouble and failure will result. The curd will be rich and soft. Tho whey will not be got out properly and the cheese will crack nnd heave. Rich cheese when well made should not heave more than poor cheese.

Abobioultube. —Continue to prepare land for forest plantations. Next month evergreens may be transplanted and the ground should be ready for them. Cuttings of laurel, holly, privet and yew may be put in if the weather be not too dry. SOUTHERN DISTRICTS. Stacking. —This is an important part of harvest work, as upon its being well done depends in a great measure the sample of grain you will have to send to market. Many otherwise well savedcrops have been absolutely ruined b" bad and careless stacking. A farmer, if he is competent for the work, should himself supervise the building of his stacks, or employ for the job only the most trustworthy of his hands. If a stack is well built it will keep out a great deal of rain even before it is thatched, but by all means thatch at the earliest moment possible after the building of a stack is finished, of course allow, ing time for tbe proper settling of the stack. The great point about the stack, properly

built to ktop ont wet, is to have it well filled up in the centre.. The top Bhould have a somewhat rounded ou'line after it has settle ! down, so that the water may run over it and dr'p off the outside edges as quick! v as po'S.blc-. Many stacks might be described as patent rain catchers, so ingeniously have builders contrived t-> allow as lilt e r.iin ns p issible to run off before D has had time to toak into the ‘heart of tbe stack. To avoid the risk of huving you- stacks burnt, through the stubble by any means being set on fire plough several furrows around the stackyard a suffie’ent distance from it. to prevent the burning stubble from setting alight to tbe stacks. Grain ia much improved in quality hy r raain-ng in Btack for some time before threshing, but unless it is quite safe 'fiom wet while it waits it must be threshed out at once. Thus treated the unseasoned grain is soft and clamp, and unfit to be shipped for a long sea voyage. With regard to the proper stage of ripeness at which to commence cutting the several cereal crops a good deal on the subject will be found In our last month’s instructions for the Northern districts.

Buckwheat. —This crap should be ready to cut about the middle of the month. The time to begin is when the greater part of the blossoms have ripened their seed. It is a tedious crop to hirvest, especially if the weather is not very fine and dry. It has to be moved several times to get it properly cured, and this must bo done gently so as not (o shake out the seed. It is best stacked in a long narrow rick built with a tunnel through it to give nhnt.y of ventilation. Root Crops. —Another horse hoeing tho beginning of this month will benefit the turnips. The earliest cleared stubbles, if the soil is sufficiently light and rich, may be scarified and harrowed, and then sown broadcast with White Stone turnips, and again harrowed and rolled. This will furnish useful feed for young lambs in the spring, whether it is much of a crop or not. Pull up any seeding plants.amongst the mangolds, carrots, or parsnips, and keep these crops as clean of weeds as possible in spite of the harvest work taking up attention. Early potatoes will he ready for lifting this month, and should not remain in the ground after they are ripe. See that weeds do not get ahead amongst such crops as mangolds and carrots while attention is taken up with harvest, work. Pasture. —Avoid over-stocking paddocks, especially in such a dry season as the present If the grass bo oa'en off too closely it will suffer by exposure of its roots to tbe burning sun, and then early frost may still further destroy its vitality. The best way to avoid too oh-se graziocr is to shift tho stock frequently from paddock to paddock, giving each a rest in turn.

Stubbles and Fallows. —lf harvest operations are got over early it gives time to sow a catch crop in sotne districts, asrecommended for Northern districts. Stubbles may be sow-i with White Stone turnips as early as possible this month. Rye and rape may also be sown on stubble ground, which should be scarified, and where necessary ploughed as soon as ever the grain crop is removed. Where the lands will not be sown until the spring, thev must be harrowed or scarified to bury the shed grain and weed seeds so that they may spring up and be cot rid of by grazing or otherwise instead of fouling next year’s crop. Where much grain is shed and harrowed in it. will furnish the farmer with some very useful grazing for ewes and lambs in early spring and thus pot be entirely lost to him. A sowing of winter tares may be made next month on clean wheat stubble, for which the land should be got ready. If no manure is used the ground must be naturally rich. A clayey loam suits this crop well. (See instructions for Northorn districts.) Where frosts are severe leaving the surface of the land as rough as possible after sowing is a protection to the young plants during the winter. If no manure is used now some fertilizer should be sown on the crop in the early sprine. Mustard may also be sown upon fallow land this month to be ploughed in for barley next spring. Bare summer fallows, if they are clean, should be well scarified and harrowed to prepare them for being sown early next month with grass and clover seeds. • ,

Live Stock. —The general management will be the same as last month. Where sows have second litters these will now be putting in an appearance, and some extra attention must in such cases be given to the mothers. The ewes now he drafted and judiciously culled. The rich aftermath grass should be kept foi the lambs and fattening sheep. For the owe? intended for breediag next season good ordinary pasture will suffice, or they may. where convenient, have a run over tbe stubbles. The middle of next month will b 3 soon enough to put the ewes to the rams,

SMALL FARMS IN IRELAND AND ELSEWHERE. No. 11l ('concluded ) The Fifty-acre Farm. —Here we have some scope for the application of sk'll and capital ; here a pair of horses can be kept and improved labor-saving implements employed. The breadth under cultivation will depend on fhe nature of the soil and the locality. If the soil is suited to the growth of pot toes, and located near the sea-coaaty where wrack or seaweed can be readilv obtained, the land may be kept in good condition at a small outlay. The potato-grower, as a rule, is not sufficiently alive to the value of superphosphate and kainib salts for tbe production of potatoes. The wrack or farmyard manure should be spread on the stubble and ploughed in with a deep furrow during tbe months of November or December. The land may be cross-ploughed during the winter, and fiaally prepared with the grubber. During the spring the land is ridged, the gets planted, and the ridge 3 split. There is no danger of injury arising from the manure coming into direct contact with the seed. If the land is poor, the quantity of superphosphate may be increased to 6 cwt per imperial acre, and the kainib to 4 cwt ; the cost of the former will be 3s 6d per cwt, and that of the latter 2s 6d per cwt. It is needless to say that the success of the crop greatly depends on the amount of cultivation bestowed. | Within a week of planting the drills should be harrowed down with the saddle-harrow, if available ; if not, a chain harrow or a pair of light harrows will do. Within a few days the double plough should be rnn through and the ridges set up ; within a week or t9n days they should again be harrowed down. If the weather is favorable, the plants will make -

their appearance ia the sp ice of about three weeks or a mouth. Instead of using a skeleton plough bstweeu the ridges, a light one-horse grubber is much preferable. The soil should We repeatedly stirred to the foil depth of the plough.: this aids capillary attraction in the drye-t weather. The access of atmospheiic air to the soil hcc-loro'e- ch -tn’eal eha Kesiwid converts dormant m>« e • into valuable plantfood. The pi-nis should he treed from weeds, and earthed np. Ia the cm.»« of farce weeks the grub Vier, *et very u .ro-w, may be run between the ridge-3 once or ’jwicr, a--d fine mo ild again set up by • the plouaU. For this work a double-mould board-plough should always be used. On a farm of this siz s the chief object should be stock raising and dairying. It U a wasteful practice to use much of the straw for litter. Here it will pay to have a horsepower engine to drive the chaff cutter, and a small gcinding-mill, ia order to economise the. - produce of the land. The food for the dairy cows should all be boiled or c >oked, and fed i:i a lukewarm state ; this < couomis-s-; food, and increases the flaw of milk. Must ,;£ the old tillage land is heartily sick of the fonr-cc.urso system ; it requires rest, and a longer period intervening between the crops. There cm be no more scourging and exhaustive (system of cropping than that of growing potatoes nod root crops, and drawing them aii off the ! .tul. I A. hsavv crop of swede turnips drawn off 'he laud and consumed elsewhere impoverishes the soil much more than a cereal crop. Iu many districts the system has been practised weltnigh a century, aud aithoegh cultivation has gieitly improved, the produce rather decreases than otherwise. Instead of the fourcourse, tbe six or seven shift shoo'd be adopted. This wonld decrease tho co«t of labour, and tbe land would produce quire os much food. It will bo necessary to keep a pair of horses here, one at least of which should be a brood mare, a Clydesdale, or some other recoguised breed. Use the bast horse within reach, whatever bis service fee. The filly may be put to the horse at the age of two years wilhout injury to herself and with benefit to her progeny. Young mares invariably produce the most vigorous foal. In careful hand* the mares may be safely woiked up to the period of foaling. Unless there is a large proportion of ploughed land, the farm should" keep from fifteen to eighteen cows; here, too, sufficient calves should be reared each year to keep up the stock. I think I hear the reader exclaim, the land will not keep the stock you mention. Without seeing the land we oan only form an approximate estimate ; nevertheless on good land, with skilful and economical management the number we have named „uay be kept. The food must all be prepared, and very little long hay used.' A great part of the corn grown should be fed to the cattle instead of purchased foods of a questionable character. Where the new milk can be 6old it is the most profitable ,- this will entirely depend on the locality, railway facilities, and distance from populous centres. The next most profitable mode wili be buttermaking. Here the difficulty is the disposal of tbe skim milk ; it may be fed to pigs, and with good management will make 3.1 per gallon ; boiled Indian corn and other grmn should be used with the milk. During tho summer months the pigs thrive best when folded on the land; they should be shifted frequently and shaded from the ra'n and sun by a temporary covering. Next to ni lkselling, butter-making will pay best. If the fresh butter cannot fiad a ready markot it must be salted down in the best way ; if well made it will always make one shilling to one shilling and three pence per pound; adding to this the value of the skim milk will bring the price per Imperial gallon to sixpence. 4. The Farm of 100 acres. —Except in the mountain districts this may in Ireland be called a large farm. We will suppose forty acres are under tillage and sixty acres in old pasture, we would divide tho tillage land into six shifts : first, potatoes, mangold, swedes, or other forage crops ; half the crop should be eaten ou the land by sheep, who in addition to the roots, should have half a pound to a pound per head per day of decorticated cotton cake or an equivalent iu corn. The custom of tho country is to draw off tha whole, sell or consume them elsewhere, u-iless under exceptional circumstances the land deteriorates gradually, and it may bo imperceptibly, but still none the less surely. Second, wheat or oats, seeded down with a mixture of clovers and a little perennial r ye gras Third year, seels mowu early, before the grasses have had time to ripen their seeds : the land to be grazed during the autumn and winter either by sheep or cattle ; these should, if cattle, receive from 21b to 41b per head per day. of cake —if sheep from -Jib to lib per day. Fourth year, seeds grazed throughout the summer and winter, broken up during February or March, and sown with outs. Fifth year, oats. Sixth, year, beans, peas, or barley. By lengthening tbe course in this way the expense of labor is reduced, more stock can be kept, and the land will grow more corn per acre ; in fact, as much com'can be grown on the six-course as could be done under the four-course. A farm of this Bize can commaud all the advantages of improved machinery. Here, at least, foals should be bred each year ; this may be done without interfering with the labor of tho farm. If the food i 9 carefully used, and fed in a prepared form,, the land will keep thirty head of stock besides the three work horses ; here, too, a combination of dairying aud breeding will be the most profitable. To recapitulate what has already been said, the adoption of th 3 soiling system of the management of dairy cattle is tbe most practical and certain means of improving tbe position of the peasant occupiers of Ireland. This would at once increase their profit SO to 80 per cent. I admit it requires extralabor and ene- gy, which will be amply repaid. A rich awl powerful body like the Roval Agricultural Society of Ireland should initiate the movement by putting the scheme to a practical test, and dis arm the strong pre udics which exists against every innovation on use and wont, or established custom.

I have refrained From describing a holding exclusively in pasture, under the decided impression that it is more profitable lo have a proportionate part of the land ia tillage, from the garden or potato plot of the three acre man to the field rotation cropping of the large holder. The success of the j-e-nant farmer entirely depends on the increase and successful management of his live stock.—‘lcH Dien.’