GLEANINGS FROM WAIAREKA.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 4458, 27 August 1889, Page 2

GLEANINGS FROM WAIAREKA.

[By Beafer.] This winter having been, perhaps, one of the driest on record, all farming work has been pushed well ahead, and farmers have nearly the whole of their grain orop sown. It ia an admitted faot, OBpeolally in this distrlot, that an early orop 1b always the best. Should wo, therefore, have anything like a deoent spring, a good harvest may be expeoted. Of ooarse there are many contingencies whioh may occur and make the farmer's lot anything but a happy one. I notloe that most of tho grain crop in this quarter has been drilled in, whioh, I think is a stop In the right dlreotion. Farmers evidently see that, with tho small prioos for grain and a soil gradually getting poorer, tho old methods of working mast givo plaoe to now and improved ideas, not tho least of whioh Is the grain drill. It is to be hoped that the Canadian Thistle Bill will pass through Parliament. I know of several patohes of the pest whioh are being allowed to grow and flourish without any steps being taken to oheok their careor. This pest, lam afraid, will beoome one of our farmers' greatest plagues. I noticed last year that one farmer who had several bad patches growing amongst his crop, jast when the crop waß almost ripe, put a man on with a soythe and out them down, apparently either forgetting, or being ignorant of the faot, that they had already done almost all tho damage they oould for that year. There seems to mo only one way of rooting out this pest, and that Is by summer fallowing for at least throe years. This plan would, however, como rather expensive, and in its Btead I would suggest that a root orop be taken off the land the first year, that it bo allowed to lie fallow the Beoond, and that again a root crop be taken off the third. Should the ground be kept thoroughly oloan for three years, I venture to say that there would be very little of the pest left. It Is not often we have a death In our locality, and it is, therefore, with rogret I have to notice the deoease of Miss Bessie Mitchell, whoße funeral took place on Sunday, the 18: h inat. lam sore tho whole dlstriot feels deeply for tho bereaved family in their sad afillotion. This was I think shown by the largo gathering whioh followed the remains to their laafc resting place. I understand that tho Waiareks Mutual Improvement Sooiety Intend holding thoir annual sooial next Friday evening, whioh promises to be a brilliant saooess. From what I can gather, last session appeared to have been muoh more successful than the previous one. The offioers for the coming session were oleotod last Saturday evening, and are as follow Hon. President, Rev. J. Will; President, Mr John I*dale; Vice-President, Mlsb A. Bain; Editor, Mr James Garrow; Secretary, Mr John Somera; Treasurer, Mr W. Harkness; Committee—Messrs Falconer, Allen, M'Gregor, and Chalmers,