Agricultural and Pastoral PIGS.

Otago Witness, Issue 621, 24 October 1863, Page 6

Agricultural and Pastoral PIGS.

FROM "SPEED TIIE PLOUGH," BT AN Olit> COLONIST.]

The pig may be considered second only in importance to the cow, with regard to its service to man, and often probably more useful. The particular breeds of pigs which I have found most desirable either for the cottager or larger farmer is the Berkshire and half-bred Chinese. The latter are smallboned, fine hair, and thrive well in these climates. There are the Hampshire and Sussex breeds, also remarkably good, grow fast, are easily fed and fattened, and therefore highly cstemed. It will be found necessary, in order to profit by pig keeping, to get into n good breed — that w, such* as fatten readily, which will be found to apply more to fine bred animals than coarse haired, long snouted, and lankey breeds. The fact is, on some such auimnis goad feed ?ecms to be almost waited. On the other hand, a fine boned, short legged, and thiu silky skinnod pig will he found to fatten quick at a small co?t. The sow receives the male in fhe first year of her ago, .md the boar is able to impregnate the sow, and propagate his species at one year old. The c ow gene -ally litters from siv to fourteen, and sometimes more ; she will produce two litters a year, and some breeders make a sow produce five litters in two years. It w'll bs found necessary when the sow is heavy with young, to keep her apart from store pigs, which would be apt to injure her at such a time ; also. T recommend that when she has littered toiu-^^-me sow, with her young progeny^ sep^mJ^Aqmany others, as tho little ones ajv^^rfj^ielpless at first, and soon get injured, or perhaps killed, by larger pigs. It will be found doirable to supply the sow witli short straw at the time she is about to bring forth her progeny, us, by the straw being too long, and too large h quantity supplied, the young pigs are npt to be smothered by the sow lying on them, which often occurs unless due precaution i 3 taken. The mother should he well fed and attended to at this time, and the young pigs kept with her for six weeks, when they may be sold as roasters, or weaned upon skim milk, with boiled potatoes, or bran and meal made warm. In four or five weeks they w ill eat almost anything you may offer them. It is* false economy to stint pigs in their food. They require a good supply of root i of vegetables, cooked or raw corn, meal, butter-milk, &c. Mangold wurtzel is found an excellent substitute for Swede turnip'!, and on which they thrive admirably, given either cooked or raw. In soms cases it is of advantage to give the food cooked, but store pigs well supplied with any of the above food will be found to do well if given in a raw state. Parsnips are excellent food ; carrots are very nourishing; potatoes make good bacon, with the exception of being a little soft, which may be remedied by finishing off your bacon hog with maize or peas, given dry, for the last mouth. Maize I have found to suit them exceedingly well, causing them to make flesh fast, and that of a superior quality. A friend of mine, a thorough practical fanner, has for many years kept a large number of pigs, and found them a most prolific ?ource of revenue ; he is now justly celebrated ior the superior bacou he produces, and obtains a large sale for the same. His plan has been to buy up a number of poor stock, beside those he bred ou his own farm, and to bring them along with root crops, such as mangold wurtzel, potatoes, &e.,and finish them otf with ground oats ami other fattening material, thereby producingthe Snest pork and bacon, and paying by these means a large annual sum "towards the expenses of liis farm. Pigs, when put to fatten, should be kept close, and dry food given them. It will be found that the basis of my farming operations arc closely connected with the thorough cultivation of the soil, as by this means a much larger 'amount of live stock can be maintained off a small quantity of land than by allowing cuttle to roam over a larger area of ground to pick up a precarious living, which is always the case where such a system is pursued.-

In the production of bacon— an article in good dejnand, and sold at a remunerative price in these Colonies— l would advise that your fat hogs should be ready for killing in the month of May; from that time to August you are free from the fly, and the weather is sufficiently cool to prevent any risk in salting down. My own plan, which I have always found successful, is to provide a large tub, in which I place several buckets of clear water, into which I insert sufficient salt, with a small quantity of saltpetre, to swim a potatoe, at which time it is of the inquired strength to receive the meat which you intend to cure. I allow it to remain three weeks in this Jiquor, covered with a large stone, in order that it may be well covered. After the meat has remained the usual time, it must be taken out, wiped dry, and hungup in a warm kitchen, not toonear the fire "when it will dry a good colour, and be found exquisite in flavour.

The hams should be iminevscd in a seperate tub, and the curing may be conducted similar to the one just described, but with the addition of brown sugar or molasvjs — about five pounds of sugar to each one hundred pounds of meat. The hams should remain in the liquor about five weeks.