CHATS WITH THE FARMERS.

Otago Witness, Issue 1324, 14 April 1877, Page 18

CHATS WITH THE FARMERS.

A VISIT TO THE FAKM OP 'MR GEORGE LINDSAY, BIRKBNSHAW, TOKOMAIRIRO.

One day recently we visited the farm of Mr George Lindsay, on the Eastern side of the Tokomairiro plain, and had a chat with him about farming. Mr Lindsay was brought up to the business by his father/ who. was a farmer in Berkenshire, Bothwell, Scotland. Mr Linsday is an Old Identity. Upon arriving in Dunedin with his wife and three young children, twenty-four years ago, he took counsel with the Rev. Dr. Burns as to the best conrse to pursue. Dr. Burns advised him to take up a piece of land, build a. house upon it, invest his spare cash in cattle, and work for a time for some settler. He purchased, for £46, a New Zealand Company's Land order for fifty acres, and selected what was then called " a choice," on the Tokomairiro plain ; and bought some cattle which he allowed to run. At that time there was only one settler in that section of the plain, Mr Salmond, who worked in consort with the new comer. His first task was to get timber for a house. Having built a wattle-and-dab house, slabbed outside and thatched with rushes over totara bark, he went to Dunedin for his family. It tock them five days to travel from Dunedin to the Plain. They had to carry the three children, and a quantity of clothing. Their luggage with some furniture which they brought from home, they sent round by sea to Lake Waihola. Their journey was not accomplished without some danger, Mrs Lindsay having on one occasion, in crossing a stream, fallen into the water. His next work was to break up six acres of his land. As this had to lie in fallow for twelve months, a good part of the next year was occupied in building sod walls and getting fencing stuff out of the bush for stock yards, paddocks &c. By the time hi 3 stock yards were ready, a mob of milch cows and bullocks was brought up from Invercargill, and soon afterwards a lot from

Johnny Jones' station, Waikouaiti. Flour being scarce, he determined that his first crop should be wheat. There was some difficulty then about getting wheat for seed. The only farmer in the settlement who had a supply, was Mr Salmond. He agreed to let Mr Lindsay have some, if he would thrash his crop. This he did, and obtained not only wheat for seed, but for the supply of flour for his family, the wheat being ground in a steel mill. He sowed wheat for three seasons in succession, and'his' crops averaged forty bushels to the acre. The first wheat which be grew was shipped at Lake Waihola for Dunedin, and the craft sunk at the mouth of the Taieri river.' The vessel was raised, and the wheat, having been dried, was sold to Mr James Macandrew for 123 per bushel. Mr Lindsay grew potatoes from the first. Until the discovery of gold, which led to the formation of roads, nearly all the traffic between Tokomairiro and Dunedin was carried on by sea.'

Mr Lindsay was soon enabled to add 25 acres to his 50 ; then 50 more, and finally, 135 — all at 10a per acre. Produce now gradually declined in value, until it would scarcely pay for the raising. Trade was dull all over the colonies. The depression which prevailed was quite discouraging, when all at once, the announcement that gold was discovered in Australia gave new life to business. Potatoes and other produce rose in value, and many settlers left the colony for the New El Dorado. The discovery, however, of gold at Tuapeka stemmed the tide, and then turned it, and soon all was changed. On the opening of the Otago goldfields, Mr Lindsay had twelve acres in oats and potatoes. The former he sold at from 20s to 25s per bushel, and the latter at £24 per ton, at Tuapeka. He now made up his mind to try the diggings, and went with four other settlers to Tnapeka, where they worked for three months. From the time they left home until their return, each of them averaged one ounce of gold per day. From one crevice in the bed-rock of a gully, at the foot of the Blue Spur, they filled three pannikins with gold, using oniy a knife and a spoon. On his return to the farm, Mr Lindsay broke up more of his tussock, to be prepared for putting in an increased crop of oats and wheat. Oats kept up pretty well for two or three years, but potatoe-growing was very soon overdone. In the second year of the diggings, oats brought 10s to 12s per bushel ; but, as might have been expected, prices kept declining until they again became very low.

Mr Lindsay now found that he had been drawing a little too much 'upon his farm in one direction. Oats were hard upon it, but wheat was harder. The prices of these grains were getting lower, and so were the quantities produced. They were drawing all out of the land and returning little or nothing. It was found that a change would be necessary ; so his first step ' was to purchase 25 merino sheep ; the next was to turn some of his oat land into English grass ; and the third was to adopt a regular rotation of crop 3. He knew from the first that this was the right thing to do, but the high prices led him, as well as others, into another course, and now circumstances obliged them to follow the only correct system. Many of them, especially, those who held land on lease, followed the old track too long, and drew far too much out of their land. It is eight or ten years since the improved system came into vogue, and farmers have been making up for their past sins. Like sheep, they followed in each other's track, and nearly all of them have now a rotation.

Mr Lindsay's crops this year are, 25 acres of wheat, 21 of oats, 1 of barley, 3 of rye grass seed, 25 of rye grass "and clover pasture, and 12 of potatoes and turnips. The sheep number 150, the horned cattle 14 head, the horses 6, and there is a lot of pigs. His rotation is :—: — 1. Green crop. 2. White crop. 3. Pasture (rye grass and timothy clover), for two or three years. 4. Green again, followed by white. &a. He uses bone dust and stable yard* manure, and considers his land in much better condition now' then when he started.

Mr Lindsay's first field wa3 enclosed by a ditch and bank. His next fencing was with posts and rails, with a small ditch. Rails are not now to be had, and as the cheapest fence is of posts and wire, with a small ditch on each, side, many of the settlers adopt this system of enclosing their land. It is easier kept up, but affords no shelter, an objection which does not apply to the thorn. The latter undoubtedly makes the best fence ; but we are assured that it does not answer . on a farm where sheep, are kept. In proof of this, we were shown a very long white thorn hedge, five feet high and three feet thick, planted twelve years ago, which was ruined by the sheep, when it was strong enough to keep out cattle. They eat every green leaf and tender shoot as far as they can reach, and the plants soon perish. Foreseeing the fate of this fine hedge, whins were planted along side of it two years ago. Upon our remarking that they were troublesome and dangerous, we were told that they would be trimmed every year, and as to the danger from fire, they might burn, but they would not be near the homestead, and crops in the field tvill not burn here as in Australia. In answer to an inquiry about walls of sods, we were told that in some parts of the plain, where the soil is stiff, they have been known to last twenty y^ars, but in other parts, where it is very friable, they will not stand more than two or three years. The firat sheep that Mr Lindsay got,

eight or ten years ago, were merinos. He has been crossing ever since. He has now pure Leicesters. These he does not like, and he intends to get back to, half or three-quarter bred. He started with ordinary colonial cattle, but he has kept an Ayrshire bull, and they, are now threequarter Ayrshire. They are better for milk, but not so good for butter. He has milked eight cows for several years, and makes butter and cheese. The butter is salted and sold in the winter., Last year it brought Is 6d, and the year before Is 9d. The finest animal we have seen lately in the shape of a draught horse is on this farm. (To be concluded in our next.)