PITS FOR KEEPING MANURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 1419, 1 February 1879, Page 14

PITS FOR KEEPING MANURE.

The excellent designs here given were made by Mr R. Scott Burns, the eminent English agricultural engineer, and were recently published in The Country, an English rural journal. Although originally intended for the circumstances of English farmers, there are no points in which they are not equally applicable to our own necessities. With regard to the covering of the manure, we consider that if English farmers find thia needful or economical, it should be much more so with up. As a protection against the rainfall, we need it much more than they do, for the average rain- fall in England is but 30 inches against 45 to 50 here, and^fc rain descends sometimes in torrents, wnwe theirs consists mostly of frequent showers. If, as a protection against drying and baking by the sun, a cover is needed, then with our more ardent summer's heat, we should require it the more. The frequent adoption of manure cellars beneath the barn or stable, is a substitute for covered yards or pits the wisdom of which is certainly questionable on the score of healthfulneps and cleanliness, and many farmeis may have reason to charge thektfsof valuable animals by unexpected and unexplained disease to their manure cellars*. The covering of the manure pit may then be considered as advisable whenever or wherever it can be afforded, This may be dove in as simple a manner as poasib'e, by a plain board roof, supported upon posts, or by a more costly building, whioh may be made to serve at times the purpose

Fig. 5.— GROUND PLAN OF FIGURE 4. of an open feeding shed as well. # The roof should in any case be provided with eaves* troughs and waste, pipes, the flow from which oould be turned upon the manure if, deeired,

or conveyed away by drabs when not needed to moisten the heap, or to dilute the liquid manure. At figure 6is given a cross section of a covered pit, suitable for a Urge farm, where everything io carried on with ara pie means, and a view to the greatest economy tnd profit. In farming there can be no profit without outlay ; seed must ba sown and the soil fertilised before a harvest is returned; and one of the greatest drawbacks of American farming is inadequate capital to invest in the enriching of the soil. Therefore we do not believe the cost of such a structure as this to be at all an extravagant or unnecessary outhy upon any otherwise well appointed farm. At any rate the plan may be modified to suit a slender purse, or the ideas of a cautious farmer, who likes to feel his way at first. The pit and cistern differ in no way from those last described, except in form. Upon the retaiuing walls timber silk are laid, into which the posts are framed. The Btructure of the frame at the end is clearly hown in the engraving. The dotted Hoes are intended to iudicate a method of framing

Fig. 6.— SECTION OP PIT, SHED, AKD CISTERN. differing from that shown by the unbroken lines. These latter serve to give a otiff aDd strong frame with a high elevation, sufficient to admit a load of straw beneath the collar beam, The entrances, of which there are or may be six, are closed by gates. At figure 7 the side view of the shed is given ; the dotted line represeating the floor of the manure pifc. The dotted linen in figure 6 show the position of the drans from the . stableß and feed £ sheds, by which » the liquid ma c nure is carried iz< off. It is obvious that these plans i g are intended to I ft be used in con \ o nection with a j £ system of saving i£3 and using the I •* liquid manuresln j § regard to this we | S can now only s*y ! I that any farm ! «> carried on under tfa a system in which £ the saving oi liquid manure it neglected, cau realise only s part of the profil it migbt b3made toyieJd, and thai its owner ignores one of his most WHEAT AND WHEAT GROWING. Notwithstanding all tkat has been said anc written on this subject from time immemorial, the matter is of such vast importance to the human family that any suggestions, either foi tbe improvement of the stock ou hand, or foi the more certain production of lucrative return?, must prove of interest to those engaged iv sucli pursuits, particularly so in a youug country sucl as New Zealand is, where many of those whe have taken to the tilling of the soil are persons who have received no previous training fitting them for their new sphere in life, and who seen: to think, judging from the way they go_ tc work, that farming consists simply in ploughing and sowing ; nor are they likely to find then mistake out till Nature herself steps in and teaches them the lesson that, however generous she (may be, a return must be made in the shape of manuring the land and a judicious eyetern of cropping.^ As this paper is designed for tbe perusal oi amateurs, it may not be out of place to devote a short space to the consideration of the natural history of the wheat grass. Botauically it bolonxs to the Triticums, a genus of plant tc which the numerous varieties of wheat belong : the natural order i* Cframinacem. Of the family of the grasses wheat is by far tbe most important of all the corn-producing grasses. Many attempts have been made to assign it a natural habitat, without success," or even the rdate when it first began to be cultivated- One thing we are certain of, and that is, that it has been cultivated from the remotest age, and thai probably the wheat in cultivation to-day is ncf rery different from that known to tho ancient Egyptians four thousand years ago. It has been asserted that various kinds of grasses, by loog and careful cultivation, pass into wheat; this k said to have been actually done with that tribe of grasses common to the South of Europe, and known by the generic name of (Egilops. Those species common to Britain are all perennials, and belong to the genus Agropyrwn, which may in time be converted to a grain- producing plant. It must, however, be stated that the evidence of such results having ever been produced are Dot^ sufficiently authenticated. More than 200 varieties of wheats have been described, and others are being continually added to the list, while older varieties become merged with more recent ones, or die out. The production of new varieties is most frequently brought about by natural fertilisation. The observant farmer notices a tuft of wheat amongst his crop differing from tbe rest either in colour, tizo of the ear, or plumpness of grain. lie marks tbe plant, saves the seed sepai ate from the rest, sows ib tbe following year on a bit of cloan good land, and so on,— when in a few years we have new variet) placed in the market, somctimee superior to any in cultivation. The celebrated Hopetoun wheat originated in this way in 1862. Mr Hunter, of East Lothian, observed a plant of wheat, which struck him as something good growing in a field in Berwickshire ; he saved it, and in time produced tho well knowo varietj known as Hunter's wheat. We mention those facts for the purpose or' suggesting to the New Zealand farmers ,tho idea of keeping a watclj

for anything now. It is not at all improbable that something very superior might be obtained rom our strong virgin soil, and peculiarly adapted to it, if intelligent observation were brought to bear on tho matter. It is well known that soil and climate have much to do in changing the character of the wheat plant. Experience acquired by growing a number of varieties, not necessarily on a largo scale, is the sure mrans whereby the farmer may select that or those kinds best suited to the conditions of his farm. It should always be borne in mind that ib is necessary that the seed sown upon the farm should bo changed periodically. It is well known that seed brought from rich, dry laud, and sown upon cold, wet land, soon degenerates ; while that brought up from poor bud, and sown on rich, loamy soil, rapidly improves ; and so with those species known as spring and winter wheat,— for although they would seem to be totally different, judging from their time of sowing, still experience has shown that the one may bo transformed into the other by the common means of culture, not suddenly, but gradually, when the appareut distinguishing characteristics will bo found to disappear. _ Tue ordinary winter wheats are tho&e varieties wnich are hardy enough to combat with the severest weather during the winter, such as Hunter's Whito and the White Velvet Chaff. Those varities which are less hardy, and run to reed rapidly, are known as spring wheats, such as the Whito Tuscan and Purple Straw. With regaid to the proper time of sowing, every practical farmer knows that tho early autumn sown usually produces the best yield ; in fact, it may be said to have two chances of success for the one which the Spring sown will have. Early in May is admitted to be the best season for coni--nritting the seed to the ground, provided, of % course, that the soil is dry and deeply cultivated. " Late spriug wheat, as a rule, will be found less than either a barley or an oat crop. Clay loams, naturally deep and dry, may be described as good wheat landa, but fair crops may be produced on almost any soil by careful culture. In New Zealand the plan pievailsof growing wheat so long as the land will stand it, and. when Nature rebels, to sow grass seed, in the vain hope of renewing tho soil in this way, -the result, as maj too frequently be witnessed, bding a broad sheet of acrid sorrel Where q, system of rotation has been established, the proper place for the wheat crop will be on grass or clover lea, broken up to receive ".it. Naked faU lows are sometimes resorted to as a preparation for wheat, but the introduction of turnip and rape culture has, in a great measure, extinguished this wasteful system. Turnip land is seldom ready in time for autumn wheat ; such land will generally pay better, as before stated, sown with oats or barley and grass seeds, or, if very light, laid down with grass and clover only. The lighter the land the greater will be the necessity for judicious management. The deep, rich soils will take care of themselves, at least for a time. Such soils as that referred to by Sir Julius Vogel in a lecture delivered recently at the Colenial Institute, when he stated that a large area of the Canterbury plains was so extremely fertile that two orops of wheat may be grown after a grass crop fed off, and the same course repeated indefinitely without any appreciable diminution in the fertility of the soil. We venture to submit that those who know Canterbury best will agree with us when we assert that srach spots are few and far between, and that such a system would in the end lead to the utter impoverishment of the soil, however rich, The supremacy which New Zealand now holds in the average wheat return per acre over all the Australias cannot be maintained by such a system. If the farmer is to have a generous return, he must Ret generously by his soil ; he must remember that it has been ascertained by careful analysis that an average crop of wheat, say of 28 bushels, with its straw estimated at one and a-half of the weight of the grain, and chaff one fifth the weight of the grain, be moved from the farm, we take away the following mineral ingredients, viz.: Silica, 801b; potash, 301b; lime, 81b ; magnesia, 61b ; phosphoric acid, 201b ; sulphuric acid, 41b; and iron, about lib. G-aeparin, a French agriculturist and agricultural chemist, stated that out of 25 varieties of wheat tested by him, only two, one English and one Scotch, contained so little a3 2% of nitrogen (equal to about 12% of flesh-producing matter) ; the others contained within a fraction of 3%, or upwards of 17% of flesh-producing matter, equal to about 331b of nitrogen in the 28 bushels in the former, and 501b in the latter case. With such facts before us it is needless to dwell upon tho necessity of restoring to tho soil equivalents for every crop removed. The early history of wheat-growing would, if detailed, fill a large volumo of highly interesting matter. Wo shall refer to one or two persons who did much towards spreading a better knowJcdce on tho subject. Wo refer to Jethro Tu]l, who flourished about a century apo, and'tho llev Mr Smith, of Lois Weedon, in England, who were the first to cultivate wheat in drills, and they argued that by careful tilling, deepening the soil, and constant stirring, the land mioftt be made to produce wheat for ever. Tull's idea of manure was to assist in pulverising the soil. He states in his work on " Husbandry," that " The use of manure is not to nourish plants, but to dissolve or divide terrestrial matter, which then enters the roots," oi", as we would say, becomes soluble. He succeeded in growing good crops for a number of yeai s on the same land, but the end, however long delayed, would, according to the assertions of modern agricultural chemists, surely come when the land would be exhausted. With regard to tho quantity of wheat which should be sown per acre, this must depends upon civcumstmces — the better the land the less will be required. One bushel per acre, if sown with a machine in drills, will be ample ; should the ground be light, half-a,-bushel more Avill be necessary (oats will generally pay better upon such land). The autumn sown land should not be harrowed down too fino, as tho clods not only shelter the young plant during the winter, but will form mould when rolled in spring ; finely harrowed ground will cake with the rains of winter. Should this happen, a good stroke of moderately heavy harrow will be of the utmost service in the eai*ly spring, taking care to perform this operation when the ground is dry, and following immediately after with the roller. Should the corn seem weak and spindly it may be fed off with &heep. taking caro not to leave them on too long. The better plan is to turn in a good flock, feed it off quickly ; if allowed to remain on too long they will eat the heart out of the young plant. It is astonishing how rapidly the ' corn improves after this operation. On the other hand, if the plant should be too rank and flaggyi a flock of sheep turned in for a short time will be productive of much benefit. We have now to consider an important question, and one not so well understood as it should bo. We refer to the proper time of cutting wheat. Some fanners will tell us that the graiu is not fit to cut till it is hard and the head head begins to droop- Many carefully conducted experiments have been tried in the Old Country for the purpose of solving this question. The results have invadxbly been in favour favour of cutting when the grain is in that condition that a kernal may, with a little difficulty, be bruised between the thumb and forefinger without exhibiting much moisture. It has been found that wheat allowed to stand tiJl quito ripo produced nioro bran and

less flour than wheat cut as above described. Care must, however, be taken that the corn^ bo allowed to remain in the stopk a sufficient time to finuh ripening. This will bo all_ the more necessary, a^ the new reapers and binders cit and tie everything growin? amongst the crop, which, beiDg bound up with it, prevents the rapid ripening of tboso heads which aie placed inside the sheaf. We have heard several complaints from the millers to the effect that the flour made from comparatively fine looking wheat, on being used by the bakers, turned out "pasty ;" this cm only be accounted for by tLe fact of its being too rapidly carted off the stubbles. In a country like New Zealand, subject to high winds, the necessity for harvesbng the grain while it is in a greater degree able to resist the injurious effects of the winds cannot be over estimated ; at the same time care # must be taken thai over.anxioty to see the grain in the bags must not be allowed to lead to undue haste, to the injury of the sample, as just pointed out. We must look beyond our own consumption, and consider the effect which such bad management might have in giving a character to New Zealand wheat in the outside inai'Kct. — M., in the Country Journal.