THE RURAL WORLD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 21734, 27 August 1932, Page 3

THE RURAL WORLD.

FARM AND STATION NEWS.

By Rusticus

British Meat Imports Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and Brazil between them supplied 68.4 per cent of the meat sold at Smithfield in 1931. Scotland supplied 6.7 per cent, and England and Wales 14.3 per cent. The average price of Scotch beef was 117 per cent, higher than the mean rate ruling for chilled beef, and 31 per cent, higher than any other fresh-killed supplies. New Zealand Bred The Royal Championship in the Clydesdale section at the Brisbane Royal Show this month was won by Hero Bold, an importation from the stud of Mr W. J. Doak, of Canterbury. A bay horse, rising seven years, by Baron Bold out of Bonnv Ella, he‘is a-typical Clydesdale, full of quality. In all respects, however, Royal Gaiety, last year’s champion, ran him very close for the premier honour. British Goodwill While the preferences granted to the New Zealand producer will advantage him in competition with foreign suppliers of J;he British market, he owes a bigger debt to the British consumer. PrefeVences could not have saved prices from utter collapse under the increasing weight of production had the consumer not played bo big a part. He has eaten his way through the record production of butter and the abnormal imports of mutton and lamb, especially from Australia and New Zealand. The British consumer has been our true economic salvation. More important than tariffs and quotas is to retain his goodwill and, by buying British goods, to maintain his purchasing power. New Zealand should never forget he is the principal factor. Other aids may be sought and may be valuable, but they ftie all subsidiary to the British consumer himself. Special Spring Feed One of the most important objectives of spring field work should be the eventual provision of ample reserves or feed for use during those times when the feed directly available from pastures is less than the requirements of stock. For use In the winter period, mangels, carrots, chou moellier, swedes, and turnips are all suitable. Except in the more .severe and southern districts, mangels give excellent returns when accorded good fertility and good cultivation. they are extremely reliable, being practically free from attack - and any serious disease; they can withstand dry periods relatively well, and under suitable treatment their total yield of nutriment per acre is very high. Because of these facts they should be grown-much more extensively than m the past. Swedes and turnips may often fittingly replace mangels when the farming ie of a more extensive type so that the good treatment desirable for mangels cannot really be accorded a crop Garrots are suited to free fertile soils on which, as Taranaki results demonstrate, really-good yields can be obtained. Chou moellier rightly has won considerable popularity in recent years for use on good ground, especially on ground that n inclined to be so wet at the time of feedingoff as to make the use of not altogether suitable. Chou moellier is also very suitable when club-root infection is known or expected to be present in the land to be cropped-—the plant, though not completely immune, being very resistant to attacks of this serious disease, ■For use in summer rape and soft turnips rightly have a wide vogue, and m the warmer districts green maize and millet, provided they are utilised when in a young 1 leafy stage, are fitted to give good results. Cultivation for .all these crops should be proceeded with as early as possible. Cultivation subsequent to ploughing is usually very valuable, not only. in mellowing the soil* but also in destroying crops of weed seedlings which at times develop in great numbers. The Wool Inquiry There are few wool producers who. will not welcome the news that a committee has been appointed by the Commonwealth Government to investigate the disabilities of the woolgrowing industry (says the Australasian). Following alarming statements made some weeks ago in the Victorian Legislative Council by Mr Currie, to the effect that the industry, owing to high costs and low returns, was verging on collapse, there arose an urgent call for action to avert disaster. The committee has been appointed at the request of the growers’ associations, and its inquiries will cover a wide field. The committee has been asked to complete its report with the least possible delay, and it is expected that the report will be issued soon after the wool-selling season commences in Sydney. Some fears have been expressed that recommendations for price stabilisation will be-made, but there need be no apprehension that the existing excellent marketmg facilities will J>e interfered with, for all the evidence that can be gathered .goes to prove the fallacy of tinkering with the laws of supply and demand by plans designed artificially to raise j prices Leaders of the trade have stated that they are possessed of all the ■ material necessary to tell what is wrong with the wool industry. They can point to all manner of disabilities, and some of them feel that the committee can discover nothing not already well known. That may be true, but it is one thing to know the disabilities and another to lay down remedies.- The committee can at least make recommendations, and these recommendations, coming from men appointed by the Government, must carry weight, perhaps enough weight to turn the scale for the first time in many years on the right side. Doubtless special efforts will be made by those possessed of full data concerning the pastoral industry and its handicaps, .parti cularly the fixed charges, to assemble that data for the guidance of the committee. It also may be assumed that constructive proposals will be submitted. By adequate assistance from the best elements of the wool trade the inquiry committee can perform a service of immense value to Australia, and the value of the committee’s report will depend very largely upon the advice and assistance tendered by the industry itself.

Ensilage and Hay Haymaking and especially ensilage are important means of obtaining reserves of feed for which preparation, may be commenced at this season. Fields intended for either practice'should be thoroughly cleaned off and closed up as soon as they can be spared from grazing. All materials such as wire, timber, etc., likely to cause delays or breakages in mowing should be carefully removed. Early dosing up of such fields is valuable in that it favours the possibility of early mowing, which m its turn gives greater probability of a good aftermath that is generally markedly useful when the dry summer weather makes its effect felt. A (op-dressing with super phosphate at closing-up time of fields intended for ensilage or haymaking is often advisable, especially in the case of fields not recently top-dressed. September is often also a suitable time to close up lucerne areas. It assists greatly in obtaining a comparatively early cut which is suitably saved as silage, followed by a second cut at about New Year which is valuable either for hay or green feed The general result of early closing of

Items of interest to those engaged in agricultural and pastoral pursuits, with a view to their publication in these columns, will be welcomed. They should be addressed to “Rusticus,” Otago Daily Times, Dunedin.

lucerne and the conservation of the first cut as silage is an extra cut from the lucerne annually.

Modified Optimism At a company meeting in London recently Sir Ernest Benu stated that he had come to the conclusion that conditions were natural and souuder than they were a year ago, and he thought his fellow-shareholders might with him “ indulge in a little sober, modified, and nmderate optimism.” That statement might be applied to the wool trade. Underlying conditions are nearer to the natural than they were. There is also a good season over the greater part of Australia, and a bountiful clip is in sight. The right elements are at.work to attack the costs problem, interest rates are falling, and real progress in some other directions has been made. Wool prices have not yet advanced to any appreciable extent, but there are many factors operating to raise commodity values in general, and wool might be expected to be about the first to respond. To that extent there are grounds for a little modified optimism. Wool from the early shearing districts in Australia is now arriving at the stores in quantities. Buyers are returning, and activity in trade circles is increasing as the opening of the new wool selling season approaches. The first of the sales is' very close to us, and the usual forecasts are going about concerning the trend of values. There will be bitter disappointment if values do not show a hardening tendency from the outset. The closing rates of the last season and of the recent series ia London were so low as to justifj the statement that no wool market is reality existed. That may be the extreme view, but there can be no dispute about the depths to which wool values have fallen, and some very sharp rises are needed before there can be much’ change for the better. A good deal of publicity has been given to the alleged rises near the close of the last London sales. Mail advices are now at hand from London, and it is possible more accurately to compare prices there tfith rates at the earlier sales in 1932, and with values in 1931. Market Conditions August is the holiday month in the wool trade, and turnover in tope has eased, and is quiet, but topmakers have held firm in their prices in contrast to a general easing tendency at this time last year. Scoured skin wool sales since auctions ceased have been on about the same levels as ruled last year at this time —the finer wools being perhaps a shade lower, but there is a more hopeful feeling every- 1 where and moderate optimism Cor gradual improvement. How long it will be before the movement definitely commences depends entirely upon world events. Employment must be found for the majority of those now out of work beforp the world gets back to sound business necessary for the maintenance of prices on a higher basis. Percentage rises must necessarily be high to effect any worth-while monetary improvement, particularly on lower grades of wool. A Brighter Outlook Although he had intimated at the last annual meeting that no silver lining was visible through the clouds of depression that overhung the market for all primary produce, much had transpired during the ■year, and at the moment the outlook was much more promising, said Mr T. Buckland, chairman of directors, when moving the adoption of the report and balance sheet at the annual meeting of Pitt Son and Badgery, Ltd., at Sydney, last week. Quite recently, he said, there had not been wanting evidence that the worst was passed as far as wool prices were concerned. Although the wool-selling season had not yet .opened, there had been a general demand at improving prices, during the past week or two for the available parcels of locally-treated wools. “A very serious menace facing the man on the land,” said Mr Buckland, “ is the rabbit pest. Owing to the low price of skins and the fact that many people who would otherwise be compelled to catch rabbits for their pelts were living on the dole, the scourge had increased enormously. It was not possible for landowners to cope vvitb the pest,by netting their properties because of the heavy cost of netting compared with the value of the produce on the land. “There is a crying need,” he said, " tor a drastic alteration in the tariff to allow wire netting, which is a vital necessity to Australia, to be procured by settlers at prices within their capacity to pay, and etepa should be taken by the Government without a moment’s delay to afford opportunities to our primary producers to secure netting at a low price and on easy terms.” > . After referring to the fact that the meat market had been extremely disappointing during the year, and, that after deducting heavy railway freights there had been little left for the producer, Mr Buckland said that recent advices that Australia had secured a substantial order for beef would relieve the position somewhat. Moreover, it was confidently hoped that the Commonwealth would secure some material advantage from the conference at Ottawa. Australian Sales On Monday Australian woolgrowers will test the market, when sales resume in Sydney. Au allotment of 92,000 bales, more or less, has been made for the first Sydney series opening August_29 and closing September 8. Adelaide, Brisbane, and Perth follow during September, and Melbourne’s opening sale is set down tor October 3. , . According- to a statement compiled by the National Council of Wool Selling Brokers of Australia, covering the receipts of the 1931-32 clip into store, the total disposals to the end of July and the balances in each centre then awaiting sale are as follow:—Receipts at all centres, 2,818,844 bales; disposals, 2,688,448 bales; balance in store. 130,390 bales. “New” wool, 1932-33 dip. received 104,522 bales; disposals 2475 bales; balance in store 102,047 bales, of which 50.666 bales are in Sydney and 29,285 bales in Brisbane. Pasture Seed Mixtures The following three seed mixtures will suitably cover the requirements of the great majority of farmers:1. For a temporary pasture of one to two years’ duration: Italian ryegrass, 251 b to 301 b: red clover, 61b;—total 311 b to 361 b per acre. Temporary pastures that such a mixture would provide are of con siderable value as a means of spelling and building up the fertility of land which has been impoverished to some extent In a period of cultivation, and as a means or freeing land of weeds, such as blackberry. prior to the sowing of a permanent pastii re. In general, temporary pastures are most effective when sown in the autumn, ns they are then likely to be of special value in providing additional feed for winter and spring, but they are also at times quite useful when sown in the spring following a root or other special crop such as swedes, chou moellier, etc.

2. For what are called short-rotation pastures that are intended to have a life of two or three years: Italian ryegrass, 151 b; perennial ryegrass, 151 b; red clover. 41b; white clover, 21b; —total, 361 b, per acre. Short-rotation pastures are most generally of value on farms on which, mainly because of climatic conditions, cereals and other arable crops instead of pastures are the principal considerations. 3. For pastures which are intended to occupy the land as permanently as possible the following mixture is recommended by Mr E. Bruce Levy, agrostologiat, as suitable for use over wide areas in both North and South Islands: - True perennial ryegrass, 20lb to 251 b; New Zealand cocksfoot, 101 b to 151 b; crested dogs tail, 31b; timothy, 31b; New Zealand white clover, 21b; red clover, 31b; —total, 461 b per acre. This mixture is recommended for use on country with a carrying capacity which is, or can economically be increased to, one cow to two or .three acres or better, or two to three ewes to the acre or better. The larger amount of cocksfoot is to be used only when the smaller amount of ryegrass is used, and the latter is advisable cither when the summer rainfall is below that needed for good results with ryegrass, as under Canterbury or similar conditions, or when it would not be economical, even though the rainiali is sufficient, to raise the fertility of the land by top-dressing up to good ryegrass standard. Australian Export Embargo Opinions are divided on the question whether the embargo on the export of merino sheep from Australia should be permitted to continue (says an Australian writer). At the time the embargo was imposed breeders here had built up a lucrative trade with South Africa, and the South African demand for rams was at times a dominating factor at the principal stud sheep sales. There were flock owners who felt that if exports were prohibited they would be able to fill their annual ram requirements at much lower prices, and many of these flock owners were strong advocates of an embargo on exports. Impressive statements were made about the undeveloped pastoral resources of South Africa. Soon, it was predicted, South Africa would increase her numbers of merino sheep till she came to rival Australia as a wool-produc-ing country. With cheaper labour and lower taxes she would be able successfully to compete with the Commonwealth in the wool markets of the world. It became a more or less popular cry that by allowing the South African breeders to obtain some of our top sheep we were damaging the woolgrowing industry of Australia. A few studmasters refuted these contentions, but they were not well organised effectively to protest, and they were looked upon as the only people here to benefit from the export trade. So the embargo was imposed. Of late frequently we have heard, however, that adequate inquiries were not made before drastic action was taken to destroy this valuable export trade. The subject was discussed with vigour at the last annual meeting of the Sneep Breeders’ Association in Sydney, and it was referred to at the more recent meeting in Melbourne, but it was remarkable that no definite pronouncement was made, with the authority of either meeting, on the question whether or not the South African merino woolgrowing industry depends for its development upon the infusion from time to time of Australian blood. If it does, then there may be good grolmds for the continuance of the export embargo, but if it can be shown that the South African industry ia independent of new Australian blood, sufiely the advantages of that market should not be denied our studmasters. 1

English Royal ShoW The English royal show at Southampton closed on July 9, and if attendance is anything to judge by, the event is certain to result in a heavy loss to the society (says a British stock journal). Only 47,228 visitors paid for admission on the five days of the show. This is the smallest attendance since 1905—the third and last year of the unfortunate Park Royal experiment—when the number of persons admitted was only 23,978; and in order to find another attendance lower than this year’s it is necessary to look back to the show held at Canterbury in 1860, when the figure was 42,304. The loss on the 1905 Park Royal Show was only £241; but the Park Royal shows in the two preceding years, although they had from two to three times as large an attendance as the 1905 event, showed losses of £6920 and £O6BI respectively. There was a loss of £2005 on the Canterbury Show in 1860. The attendance is not always a guide to the financial result; but to-day the heavy costs of showyard erection makes a loss almost inevitable unless there is a large attendance. Last year’s attendance at Warwick was 72,259, and there was a loss of £3296. At Manchester the attendance was 100,918 and the profit £2857; while the Harrogate show of 1929, with attendance of 124,017, resulted in a profit of £8796, Nottingham, in the previous year, with an attendance of 108.677, had a profit of only £722; while the profit at Chester in 1925 was only £345, with an attendance of 112,880. Newcastle in 1908. -with the record attendance of 213,867, showed a profit of £10,054; and the 1923 Newcastle Royal, with an attendance of 186,510, showed the record profit of £19,102. Thus both records are held by the Tyneside industrial centre. The first post-war royal show at Cardiff, in 1919, had an attendance of 191,694, and showed a profit of £12,039; but nt Darlington, in the following year, although the attendance increased to 192.892, there was a loss of £7766: and with the attendance down to 125.828 at Derby in 1921, there was a profit of £9621. The Readimr and Newport shows of 1926 and 1927. with attendances of 73,860 and 62,367, incurred losses of £5608 and £10,827. Motherless Lambs ~ To rear the motherless lamb it should be fed for the first fortnight on fresh cow’s milk with a little sugar added, and gradually diluted with separator milk until worked off it: by this means the stray lambs can often be saved. DAIRY PRODUCTION I RATIONS AND FODDER GRAZING AND TOP-DRESSING If dairy cows are to be profitable they must be adequately fed—adequately, that is, not merely in the sense of bulk but in relation to definite nutritive requirements also. Pasture improvement and ensilage are both of importance us means of keeping up, food supplies, and so also is the growing of fodder crops for use in their freshly-cut form. Most farm crops grown in Ne>v South Wales will, with the addition of a small amount of concentrates, form excellent balanced rations, and by feeding the various fodders in this way their full nutritive value will be utilised by the animal, and waste in feeding will be eliminated. Waste by im proper feeding of farm crops is very com , monly observed on dairy farms, points out a departmental pamphlet, whereas if these crops were utilised in the correct manner better results would be obtained from the herds at very little extra cost. The cutting of valuable fodder crops and throwing them in the paddocks for the cattle to eat is still a usual practice with many farmers. This method is not only wasteful from the point of view of utilising the full nutritive value of the fodders, but is also objectionable on the score that the younger and weaker animals are often deprived of their proper nourishment. The feed requirements of cows may vary with different individuals, according to the weight of the animal and the amount of milk she is producing, but, generally speaking, provision of the following is of chiei importance: 1. Sufficient food to supply, ciiougn digestible nutrients foi body maintenance. A certain amount of food is assimilated by dairy cows to maintain body temperature and to replace the waste of tissue which is constantly going on. 2. Sufficient food to supply digestible nutrients for increase in weight. 3. Sufficient food to supply enough digestible nutrients for the production of milk. This factor varies slightly according to the varying milk yield of different individuals The foregoing constitute the nutritive requirements of dairy cows, but consideration of these requirements alone will not ensure maximum milk production--palata-bility, succulence, and the amount ol bulk or roughage comprised in a ration nave an importii.il healing on lU- digestibility. As a means of mci musing the productivity of the herd, a growing interest is being taken in “grassland farming,” under which system the growth of the

pasture (consisting of suitable mixtures) is controlled by the division of the farm into small areas for grazing in rotation. Rotational grazing has many advantages, not the least of which is the fact that young grass is always available, and in addition to being succulent and easily digested, grass is richer in protein at that stage than at any subsequent period of growth. Short pasture up to four or five inches in height is ideal for dairy cows. Subdivision of a farm into paddocks of from five to ten acres, each with easy access to good drinking water, an annual top-dressing with 2cwt superphosphate per acre, and an occasional application of lewt sulphate of ammonia to stimulate growth, grazing the paddocks in rotation, followed by the constant use of grass harrows to spread cow droppings, and in cutting of all surplus grass for, hay or silage, will go a lo*g way to making a success of dairying, especially when labour is hard to obtain.