Notes and Notions for Country Settlers.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1425, 22 June 1899, Page 5

Notes and Notions for Country Settlers.

SCOURS IN CALVES. A bull that deserves all the excuses that can be invented for its perpetration was contained (says "Sylvan,” in the " Sydney Mail ”) in a letter I received from a dairy termer last week. He remarked that the best way to cure scours in calves is to prevent the calves from getting scoureu. Probably the reason why people clo not take the tip provided by the venerable aphorism, " Prevention is better than cure/', is found in the fact that it isn't qkvays easy to see the necessity for prevention, but when the disease arrives a choice between cure and the loss of the animal is imperative. Some people do not think it worth while to try a cure, but they are few and far between who will lot their young stock die by inches. I have heard the proposition that it is economy to knock scoured calves on the head argued with considerable force, and where the youngsters are worth only 5s per head Miis contention might apply. But there are many valuable heifer calver bred on dairy farms in thi3 colony, and if all breeders were as careless of the fate of their young stock, and those who will not attempt to keep them in health, the future character of our herds would not be difficult to predict or pleasant to contemplate. There can be no doubc that the main cause of scours in calves nowadays is the condition of the skim milk fed from the factories. The bacteria which sets up diarrhoea is so well known to scientists that they can set up the complaint in a human being at will by simply giving milk in a certain condition as a drink. The germs are frequently present in skim milk, and the only practical way of settling them is heating the milk. Cold skim is always dangerous, and if there is a symptom of scours the temperature should be raised to well over 100 degrees before feeding. When valuable calves are affected with scours it is worth while to use the following treatment: —At the first indication of the diarrhoea give the calf two tablespoonfuls of castor oil with one teaspoonful each laudanum and tincture Jamaica ginger. Then give one-half teaspoonful laudanum, and one teaspoonful of the tincture of ginger every four hours, until the diarrhoea i 3 checked, if the calf becomes weak, give two or three teaspoonful 3 of whisky in a little hot water every four hours. If the calf is being raised by hand, add one part lime water to three parts of milk. Do not feed more than one pint of milk at a time, but repeat the quantity every four hours, if the calf will take it. If the calf is raised on the cow, do not allow it to suck but a few minutes at one time, but feed about every four hours as before. Inasmuch as the disease is very liable to be contagious, it would be well thoroughly to whitewash the calf-, pen or any part of the stable with which the calves come in contact, and to dust the dropping 3 and floor with dry, air-slaked quicklime. BEGINNINGS IN BEE-KEEPING. Mr Thamrn, a South .Australian beekeeper, read a paper at a recent meeting of the Angaston brancn of the Bureau of Agriculture. He said: —Bee-keeping, if well-managed and carefully attended to, will be found a fairly remunerative business. It is well for anyone starting to use the bar-framed hives, which are far superior to the ordinary old-fashioned box hives. If a stock becomes queenless, a new stock or brood from another hive can easily be put on, and the surplus honey taken when wanted. By the use of an extractor, the combs, after the honey bus been extracted, can be replaced, and the yield of honey greatly increased, as the bees will at once proceed to refill them, Bee-keeping requires a good deal of study and practice, and anyone starting should not go into it on a. large scale until he has had some experience. I would ad”ise him to visit some experienced bee-keeper and watch his methods, Care should be taken to have the swarms strong from the start and keep them strong. When swarming takes place, the first swarms are mostly strong, until the end of the swarming some will be found very small. The best thing to do Is to take the strongest queen bee from two swarms, and unite the two swarms into one, which is done by stupefying both with smoke, otherwise thpy will start fighting and kill one of the swarms. After a few days draw out your slides and examine them to see ir the queen bee is laying. A good fertile queen will lav several thousand eggs in a day. If you find she is not doing so, destroy her and introduce a new queen, or take a young queen which is still in the cell out of another strong hive and put in. There are various ways of introducing queens, borne stupefy them with smoke, and cover the queen with honey and put among the bees; by the time they have licked her clean they will accept her; or else put her in a cage. After 3he lias been confined for some time they will become used to her. When taking honey use a little smoke to quieten them, then draw your frames, brush off the bees, extract the honey, and replace them at once. The yield of honey can be increased by the use of perforated zinc division. The holes will admit the working bees, but not the queen, which prevents her from laying m the cells, and the whole force of working bees will be employed in filling the frames or section boxes, which are placed above. DWARF ESSEX RAPE. ■ sheep husbandry enters largely into the system of farm economy adopted (says R.D., in the "Australasian”), one of the most valuable fodder plants that can be grown is rape A special advantage in connection with this crop is that it will grow and give great satisfaction in the comparatively dry districts north of the Dividing Range, where, as a rule, the pea crop does not grow with anything like the vigour that it displays in the coastal localities. Rape growing is not carried out to anything like the extent the merit of the crop warrants. Not only does it act as a recuperator of grain-sick soils, but it is questionable whether any other crop will carry and qualify for the fat-stock market as many lambs per acre. The variety which gives most satisfaction is that known as Dwarf Essex, which is

quite distinct from bird rape. It is a hardy plant, which may be grown either in the autumn, when the weather is favourable, or very early in the spring, so as to have a good growth available during the summer months. It stands the drought well, and the oftener it is ■»at c n off the better it grows. In order to obtain the best results it should be grown ; n fields of only a few acres in extent, which will permit of the stock being rapidly changed from one paddock to another. By means of stakes, wire-netting, and a barbed wire on top, a temporary subdivisional fence can be provided at a small coat. The rape should be sown on well-prepared land, and drilling the seed at twenty inc-lies a par; will probably give more satisfaction Gian broadcasting, as it admits of the soil being cultivated between the rows. In less than two months from date of sowing tinrape should be ready for stocking. A system now adopted to some extent in America is to utilise rape fields for feeding pigs and lambs. 'llie Held is divided into, say, four or more lots, The pigs are turned into lot 1, and, after they nave been there a week, they are removed to lot2, and the lambs put into lot ,i. The following week the pigs go into lot 3, at;d the lambs into lot 2, and so on. It is claimed '<hat tiiis -system is the most profitable to adopt, the pigs being fed on rape until they weigh about lOOlb, but they are given a little hard food as well, such as polard, cracked wheat, maize, or other grain. It is advisable to allow the lambs to have the run of a grass paddock adjoining the rape field.

TO.OBTAIN EARLY POTATOES. How to obtain extra early potatoes is a problem which has engaged the attention of cultivators for a very long time in many parts of the world. The method of sprouting the tubers in sand is becoming a favourite one in America, and a trial, extending over two years, under the auspices of the Agricultural Department, has been attended with success. The tubers were set in sand in shallow boxes, with the blossom ends up, the boxes being placed in a room where the light was rather subdued, and the temperature between 50deg and 60deg. Vigorous shoots soon appeared from the exposed eyes, and a month after they were placed in sand the potatoes were planted out, the position they occupied in the boxes being maintained in the field. The tubers were not cut. Similar parallel rows of whole potatoes, selected from those in the storage room, but not exposed to the light, were planted adjoining those sprouted in sand. Cut seed of the same varieties were also planted at the same time. As they grew the sprouted potatoes took the lead from the start, and both lots of whole seed kept ahead of the cut seed. The digging- proved that the sand-sprouted lots produced better tubers, and a yield 10 per cent, larger than tlie others. The following year a somewhat similar experiment was carried out. The whole potatoes were divided into two lots, one being placed in sand, under the conditions employed the year before, and kept moistened, while the other lot was put in boxes and placed in a. light, dry room, ■ where the temperature averaged 50deg. The final result showed that the tubers sprouted in sand produced table potatoes ten days earlier than the same varieties unsprouted, and the yields were also substantially greater. There is, rf course, some extra trouble involved in sprouting the potatoes in sand, and care has to be exercised in planting, so ns tn maintain the shoots intact, but where extra early pol aloes'are required the plan is a good one, and the additional yield more than compensates for the time and rtouble involved in thus preparing the seed.—" Australasian.” THE ASPARAGUS BED. Asparagus is one of the most delicious as well as tlie most healthful of vegetables, and should have a place in every garden, large or small. It is very tenacious of life, and will stand almost airy amount of neglect; but at the same time there it nothing which responds so readily to good culture. When a bed is once started, it is good for a lifetime. In fact, it will not come into full usefulness until it is five or six years old. This should be remembered when selecting the location. The lied should be so placed that it will not interfere with the cultivation of other crops, but at the same time it should be in such shape that it can be given good culture and kept free from weeds. The mest convenient method for the farm gardener is to set the plants in long rows, so that they can be worked with the horse. A moderately light soil is preferable, but any good garden soil w/1 answer. Put ou all the well rotted manure you can, ploughing under, and work the soil fine to a depth of eight or ten inches. If the soil is well prepared on the start it will require les work to keep it in good condition. Plants one or two years old should be used, never those taken from an old bed. Set the plants eighteen inches apart in the row, and the rows three feet apart. This may seem like considerable room, but it will be found sufficiently close, for the roots will entirely fill the soil in a few years. Make the holes large, so that the roots can be spread out in their natural position. Set the plants so that the crowns will be from five to eight inches below the surface, according to the character of the soil. The heavier the soil, the less covering they should have. Cover only a few inches deep at first, firming the soil well about the roots, and allowing the remainder to be worked in by the subsequent cultivation. Give thorough cultivation during the growing season, and in the autuma cut the tops and burn them on the ground to destroy tiie seed, which, if allowed to grow, will make a mess of young plants—the worst kind of weed in an asparagus bed. The following spring put on a good coating of fine manure, and spade it in with a spading fork, as early as the ground will work well. In spading, care should be taken not to injure the crowns of the plants. This treatment should be repeated each succeeding year. If the plants have made a good, strong growth the first season, they may be cut a few times the following spring, but it is better to let them grow two years before cutting, that they may become well established and have a good, strong root system. In cutting, use a sharp knife, and sever the stalk a couple of' inches be-

low the surface of the soil.. Always cut everything clean, even though it is not fit tor use, because when a few stalks are allowed to grow up, the plant will cease to throw out new shoots. For the first few years the bed should not be cut for more than three or four weeks, but after the plants have become strong and the crowns large, the cutting may be continued for a longer period. Then allow the tops to grow and assimilate food to be stored up in the roots for succeeding crops. Fifty or one hundred plants, if well cared for, wil after three years' growth produce all the asparagus an ordinary family can use. it comes early in the season, when everyone is hungry for something green. It is very easily prepared. The stalks are in the best condition for use when they are ironi three to five inches high. When they gel too old they liecome tough and woody. Tliev will tie tender wiiee. cooked it they Will snap readily when bent.—L. A. Carpenter, in an exchange. A DAIRY HINT. 15 hat would appear to be a most important discovery in the treatment of dairy cows tor los.s ot quarter, has been made be Mr R. Gibson, of Limerick. He states that the outward application of castor oil to the udder, combined with good feeding, will convert an indifferent cow into a highly valuable one. I” a lettc-r to "Dairy ' he states that he purchased a Jersey cow with a blind teat, and the udder was covered with warts. By the outward application of castor oil he had the milk coming from the blind teat in two months, and every wart was gone. It is not possible that any application to the outside of a cow's udder will convert a poor milker into a good one, but, if castor oil will remove warts from the udder of a milker, it is worth knowing, as the remedy is cheap, easy of' application, and cannot do any harm. CHANGE Or SEED. Some people (writes the "Cable”) raise an objection to a change of seed every year, on the ground that it works out rather expensively. There is no necessity, however, for going to the expense of purchasing a full stock of fresh seed every season. If as much ” new blood,” so to speak, is introduced every year as will suffice to produce seed enough to sow the extent of that particular crop usually grown the following year, practically as good results may be looked for as if new seed were used annually. In the purchase of seed of this description it is always a good plan to aim at getting it from an earlier district than that in which it is to be grown, and, if possible, from a different class of soil. FAT INTO MILK. "Hoard's Dairyman thus discusses the problem of feeding fat into milk. “ Most of the uncertainty regarding the effect of food on the composition of milk comes from the fact that so many herds are improperly or under fed. A return to full feeding will frequently show a marked increase, hot!: in per cent, and total amount of fat produced, but when once the cow is brought up to her normal yield, we cannot, by any change in the feed, go beyond this point. Every cow lias a point beyond which she will not go. She may fall short of it by improper feeding, but cannot be forced beyond it by any combination of feeds known to tlie dairyman.” A NEW WOOL-SCOURING MATERIAL. A new wool-scouring material, named Lavolan, has been brought out in Adelaide, a trial of which was made lately in that city in the presence of a large number of persons interested in the wool industry. From the "Adelaide Observer/” we learn that the inventors claim that the process is quicker and cheaper than anything yet discovered in the colonies. They state that they can Heat wool in from ten to fifteen seconds, while the cost, so far as the solution is concerned, does not exceed 2.|d per hale. Numerous private tests have been made, and experts are reported to have said that the wool was not in any way injured by the process. The leeks treated last week we>'e the worst that could lie found on the premises. " Lavolan ” is stated to be just as effective in cold water as in warm, the only difference being that it requires a little longer time. It is also claimed that there is no danger of the wool being spoil by a stoppage, eve;, if left in the solution for a day, and that it has cleaned ostrich feathers in twenty-four hours. THE PRICE OF SHEEP. Replying to certain accusations that have been made against the Wellington Meat Export Company, Mr James McGregor, of Lower Manaia, writes a,letcer to the ‘‘ Wairarapa Observer,” in the course of which lie says:—“As a small exporter for many years, I have sent Home fat lambs on my own account through the company, with very satisfactory results, as a whole. Last year I was advised to send them to a private agent at Home, with the ; : suit tiiat i got about 2s per head less for them chan I could have got from the company here.” As to the claim that agitation has must up an alleged monopoly, and secured tbe farmers better prices for their sheep, Mr McGregor asks the public to put tnese few facts together. “First fact—-Welling-ton Meat Company mutton. Id per lo more in London than it was a short tunc ago, on a, 601 b sheep rise 5s per head. Second fact—-On account- of a short supply of sheep, and an extra supply of teed, South Island buyers have come to the Wairarapa and swept away our surplus stock by the thousand. Third fact — Hawke’s Bay, instead of sending to the Wairarapa thousands of their surplus, as they usually do at this season, were able to fatten the lot themselves. Fourth f ac t We are able this season to carry more than our usual stock. Put these facts together and you have the reason for the present boom in the price of sheep.”

LEVIN STATE FARM. In concluding a long, descriptive article on the State farm at Levin, the special reporter of the “ Wanganui Herald' says : —As it occupied me the best parv of two days to go over the farm, and examine closely into everything, I think I may claim to be in a position to offer an opinion as to its condition, which is anything but that of a neglected, di managed farm, as stated by Mr John Hutcheson, M.H.R. Much has oeen done, hut much more remains to be done. The question is, will the Government spend the requisite money on it quickly, or spread it over a number o f years/ It is the old rale of three sum, ‘ if twenty men can clear so many acres in so many days or months, how many will it take to do the work in so much less time'’ It must also be remembered that the Levin State farm is neither an experimental nor a model farm, it is a humanitarian experiment, and one that I honestly believe will prove the steppingstone to others of a like character, for the people of New Zealand have a weFgrounded dislike to the Old Country’s poor-house system, where old couples aro separated and forced to live apart on the poorest and scantiest food. State farms are far better institutions than poorhouses, with their Bumbles and unleelmg Boards: they provide homes and work for people who are still able to do enough to earn their living and to feel that they are not paupers. If it costs the country a, little to establish these humanitarian farms, it is money well spent, and if is only people who have no care for the ive’lbeing of their less fortunate fellow creatures who oppose the expenditure on the Levin State farm, or who want to discredit the present Government’s efforts to ameliorate the lot of the aged and needy.” A NEW DAIRY COMPANY. A fillip will be given to the dairying industry in the Levin distiict next season, when the newly-formed Levin Cooperative Dairy Company commences operations. The company was registered on Monday last, and has a capital of £3OOO. in 1500 shares at £2 each. The following are the permanent directors appointed:—Messrs E. 8. Lancaster (chairman). T. Hirst, T. E. Burned, S. A. Broadbelt, B. E. Gardener, G. H. Hawkins, J. McCulloch and K. Davis. Mr T. A. Hudson is the secretary. The company hopes to be ready for action about September, and in the meantime it will erect a substantial factory and set up an up-to-date dairying plant, at a cost of £*l3oo. Additional interest will be manifested in this company, as it will be the only one working on tlie co-operative principle between Wellington and Palmerston North. CITY ABATTOIRS QUESTION. The spokesman of the deputation from the Wellington Retad Butchers’ Association which waited, upon the Mayor on Wednesday and recommended two sections on the Hurt road, between Kaivarra and Ngahauranga, as a site for city abattoirs, stated "that the four members of the association who at a meeting opposed that site were m favour of other sites. One suggested site which had been considered by the association is in a gully off the NgahaurangaJohnsonville road. It is urged against this site, however, that the road through the gorge has at times been blocked, by slips. On one occasion, it is said, the road was blocked from this cause for three weeks. In reply to a suggestion that the public might be prejudiced against having abattoirs on the Hutt road site, it has been pointed out that the buildings could be erected well back from the road, and still have the command of abundant water. There is a general agreement that any site chosen must be at once convenient to tlio city and the Jolmsonville saleyards. A debatable question is whether all of tlio meat sold in the city should be required to be killed at the abattoirs. The two meat companies would not willingly consent to such a provision. And it is believed, indeed, that the City Council could Mot prevent the sale of properly inspected meat in its boundaries, no matter where it was killed. A way out of the difficulty has been suggested. It is that the companies should furnish a return of the number of bullocks and sheep slaughtered by them for city consumption, and contribute proportionately to the maintenance of the abattoirs on some basis to bo arranged. This would prevent the whole burden of maintaining the abattoirs from falling upon the City Council and the private butchers.

Mr Mac-cay, of the Labour Department, has recently received several inquiries from farmers in Victoria who desire to come over to New Zealand and take up land on resumed estates. The writers all refer to the visit of the Hon Mr Best to this colony, and have doubtless bad their attention drawn to land settlement facilities in New Zealand by the special articles appearing on the subject in the Melbourne “Age” and “Argus.” NELSON, Thursday. A poll of ratepayers of the city was taken to-day on a proposal of the City Council to establish public abattoirs under municipal control, with a veterinary surgeon as inspector, and to borrow ,£7500 for the purpose ou security of a special rate of RcT in the £. The proposal was carried by a majority of 123.