BRITISH AGRICULTURE.

Otago Witness, Issue 1957, 27 August 1891, Page 7

BRITISH AGRICULTURE.

(Fbom Oub English AGbioultubaii Gobbe-

BPONDBNT ) London, July Hi HAKVEST PROSPECTS

The high hopes raised by the great improvement in the crops whioh resulted from the very favourable weather of June have been Bomewhat dimmed by the rainy period which set in with July. The last two days have been fine, but there are Bigns pi more rain. Some of the heaviest oropß of wheat and barley have been laid by heavy storms of rain. Oats are not tbiok enough to go down, aa a rule. Wheat, now everywhere in ear, is a good standing orop generally, not as thick or heavy aB it sometimes is, but good enough for an average yield if the reat of the season should be favourable. Barley is the best of the oereals. Peas promise well, while beans are short and rather weak. The potato orop has greatly improved, and now promises to be abundant, provided that it is not badly attacked by disease. Turnips have got on nicely during the rainy weather; but mangels are backward, and have suffered in many parts of the country from an attack of the mangel leaf maggot. Haymaking is now in full swing, about a month later than usual. There is a fairly good crop, but unfortunately a considerable quantity has been injured by the rains. Harvest will not be general even in the early districts muoh, if at all, before the middle of August unlesß we have a very dry and hot season from this time forward.

MARKETS. The wheat trade ia still dull, and unless bad weather comes it is not likely to improve muoh on this side of harvest, as the July report of the Amerioan Department of Agriculture Bhows that the favourable June estimates will be realised. In other words, over 500,000,000 bushels will be produced, and an export surplus to all countries of fully 18,000,000qr, and perhaps 20,000,000qr will be available. Then the final report of the Indian Agricultural department states that the produoe of the wheat crop is about 30,789,000qr, or 3,236,000qr more than that of last year. In spite of theße statements the statistical position is still favourable to higher price 3 during the coming cereal year, for we shall have in Europe one of the greatest deficiencies ever known. There is no doubt now,in spite of all the oontradiotory reports that have been issued, that the Russian wheat crop will be much below average. In great districts of that country, indeed, famine is seriously »PPW' hended, and there is even now not enough old

grain to feed the peasantry, and the new orop 19 so poor that it is not expeoted to provide for seed. This extremely bad state of affairs prevails only in portions of the empire ; but elsewhere the winter wheat crop is nearly a failure, and the spring orop is below the mark. Again, the rye orop, on whioh the peasantry mainly subsist, is a very poor one all over Russia, so that the home demand for wheat will be much greater than usual. This deficiency in the yield of rye is common in all European countries, and it will affect the consumption of wheat to an extent whioh has not by any means been sufficiently allowed for. In Auatria-Hungary Germany, and the west of Europe generally, too, the wheat crop is below the average, the defioieacy in France being beyond all precedent. Roumaniaand neighbouring Danubian countries appear to be the only ones in whioh a good crop of wheat is expeoted. Then, aB to India, we have already received more than half the surplus of that empire, and the shortness of other food-grain crops than wheat will lead to the reduction of a good deal of the latter grain intended for expott. On the whole, it appears oertain that the European deficiency will be about twioe as great as the oombined surplus of America and India, so that the pressure of consumption upon supply must be extreme at some period of the coming cereal year. six months' agricultural imports. Imports of wheat and flour for the six months ending with June were equal to 8,475,000qr of wheat, as compared with 7,837,000qr received in the corresponding period of 1890. For the 10 months of the cereal year ending with June the total is 15,763,168qr ; against 15,492 620qr for the corresponding period of ' 1889-90, and with 5,502,369qr for that of 1888-9 The half year'B imports of other principal agricultural commodities are shown below for three seasons : —

Wool ... ...448.206,275454,883,704474,321,748 It will be seen that supplies of cattle have fallen off. while those of fresh beef have in*

oreased. The decrease in Bheep imports is mainly due to the scheduling of Germany fcr foot and mouth disease ; and imports ofpjgsare also affected by sanitary regulations. Witn respect to fresh mutton, the details given in the official returns are as follows J—

With regatd to butter, the imports from New Zealand and Australia are given under " other countries," the figures for the three years in the same order as that followed above being 49,1200wt, 64 J 2sscwt, and 73,4450wt. No doubt the increase in wool is due chiefly to extra supplies from Australasia, the oontribu* tion to this season's total being 346,950,3261b. THE WOBOBN EXPERIMENTS. i One of the most important contributions to the new number of the Royal Agricultural Society's Journal i 3 Dr Voeloker'B report on the experiments carried out at Woburn for the society in 1889 and 1890, the details for twoyears being given together, because he was ia India laat year. The two Beaonß were the thirteenth and fourteenth of continuous I oropping of certain plots with wheat ana barley respectively. Daring the period the fluctuations in the average yield of two plots whioh have not been manured sinae, the experiments were began have varied greatly, the range having been from 8 8 bushels per acre in 1879 to 25-3 in 1881. For 1890 the average was 14 9 bushels, which might be taken to indicate a great measure of miscalculation, but was probably the result of climatio conditions less favourable to the Woburn field than to the country generally. At any rate as recently as 1887 the produoe of these unmanured plots was nearly 23 bushels per acre, a quantity only twice exceeded. When land is well cultivated and kept free from weeds the exhaustion of its fertility, as proved by 50 years' experience at Rothamsted, is extremely slow. In the case of barley, again, the yield on the upmanured plots, after falling to 12 bushels in 1889, rose to 27 laßt year, a quantity only three times exceeded. With respect to the effects of the various manureß, the experiments have continued to tell the old Btory, to the effaot that non-nitrogenous manures alone have Boarcely any effeot upon the produoe of wheat or barley. Thus a dressing, consisting of 2001b of Bulphate of pota3b, 1001b each of sulphate of coda and magnesia, and 3£cwt of superphosphate produced less wheat than was grown on the unmanured plots in 1889, and only a bushel more in 1890, while the Bame manures, applied to barley, increased the produce by only one bushel in 1889, and by a little over five bushels in 1890. This last result was quite uncommon, the effect of the dressing deescribed having been an aotual decrease in tha great majority of season. On the other hand the addition of a moderate quantity of either , nitrate of soda or salts of ammonia (half sulphate and half muriate) to the manures abovenamed gave a great increase of grain. In 1890 the application of 2001b of ammonia salts alone increased the yield of wheat, as compared with the mean produce of the unmannred plots, from 15 to 24*7 bushels an acre, and 2751b of nitrate of soda gave 31 2 bushels. The addition of the non-nitrogenous manures named above to the ammonia Baits give no increase in 1890, though it gave nine bushels in 1889 ; but, added to the nitrate of soda, it gave nearly three bushels extra in one year and Hi in the other. When the nitrogenous manures were doubled in quantity and given with the same quantities of non-nitrogenous manures, the yield rose to 39 bushels where ammonia salts were used, and to 42 3 bnshels on the nitrate plot. In the wet .season of 1887 ammonia salts did better than nitrate of soda, the converse being the case in the compara* tively dry season of 1890.

" THE BOOK OF THB FABM."

A new addition of one of the most famous of standard agricultural works baa just been completed by Messrs James Maodonald, of Messrs Blaokwood and Sons, of Edinburgh and London. " The Book of the Farm/ by Henry Stephens, was one of the chief authorities for farmers of the past generation, being the most comprehensive and trustworthy compendium of practical farming ever written! But practices and live stock change in oharaoter, and it is more than 20 years since the last previous edition was issued, during the life of the author. A new edition, therefore, was deemed desirable, and it bad to be in great part rewritten. It is a question whether it is fair to take a deceased author's book and bring it out bo modified, extended, and interpolated that no one can distinguish his work from that of the new editor, or various assistants. The result, however, is a very useful book, admirably printed and illustrated, and generally accurate in the numerous details of practical farming, live stock, science, &c It has been brought out in idx divisions, but is now ready in three volumeß, half bound in leather, extending to 1640 pages. The prices, 3gs, makes it a luxury for the few, but it should be in the library of every agricultural college and sohool.

A SCOTCH PROFESSOB ON AUBTBALABIA.

Professor Wallace has just published, through Messrs Low, Masterton, and Co., of London, his book on "The Rural Economy and Agrioulture of Australia and New Zealand," the result of bis travels in the colonies in 1889. He spent six weeks and a* half in Australia, on« day in Tasmania, and four weeks in New Zealand. Western Australia waß not visited, and only a little bit of Queensland. The profeeaor ju«fc gives bis route, day by day, in very condensed form, and afterwards diecourses upon some of the leading features of the colonies visited. It cannot bo tai-i that he has greatly added to cur kaowledge of the agrioulture of New Zealand, as he devotes more space to the general features of the country — the Maoris, the live stock, and the frozen meat trade—than to the farming of the colony ; but there is a good deal worth reading ia such chapters as those on the forage and the grasses and pasture plants of the colonies. There is a short chapter on New Zealand flax. Some of the beßt parts of the book are those treating of irrigation in Australia and California, the irrigation colonies on the Murray river and their prospects, and vine-growing in Australia. The live stock of the colonies reoeive a great deal of the author's attention. On the whole the book is a good one, and there ia muoh in it to interest readers at Home and in the colonies alike. Unfortunately the admirable illustrations from photographs and the useful coloured maps with which it is embellished make the price high.

THE SANDRINGHAM SALE,

At the sale of cattle and sheep from the Prince of Wales' herd and flock laat week fairly good|prices were made. Forty-six shorthorn cowa and heifers averaged £44 16* lOd each, and 16 bulls £35 03 lOd; while 100 ewes ay raged £4 13s, and 12 rams £11 2s Bd. The Prince has been very eucceaaful at shows with his Southdown sheep, but less so with his cattle. He keeps two herds, one of Booth and the other of Bates blood.

THE TRANSATLANTIC OATTLE TRAFFIC.

Mr Chaplin's bill to give extended power to the Board of Agriculture in connection with the transatlantic cattle traffic has been blooked,

and there will not be time to deal with it this year. But our Minister of Agriculture is hard to beat, and he means to use the powers which he has already, as head of the Board of Agriculture, but which have not hitherto been used to their full extent. They will. Buffioe to enable him to insist on deoant conditions being maintained to prevent unnecessary suffering.

JLBB». IOWU. lOtfla fettle ... Iheep ... •igs ... ieef, fresh ieef, lalfc button ... Saoon ... lams ... ... fork, freih ?ork, salt feat, preserved ... ileat, unenumerated latter ... tlaigarine Cheese ... Potatoes lops ... ... No. 233.4(2 265.478 14,504 Owt. 6J2.670 131,502 612,145 1,679.082 449,524 84.550 149.641 252,171 60 539 945 316 623,271 536,193 1,181,502 57,994 Lb. Ho. 309,621 67.367 2,866 Cwfc. 917,617 133,883 833,200 1,966.810 104,557 21,597 149.355 800,797 57,199 1.044,855 540,002 616,318 1,354,593 55,858 Lb. Ho. 223,479 61,407 8 Cwt. 537.137 103,553 856.914 1,893,054 647,954 55,778 U2.024 353 532 79.435 1.062.045 622.T55 533.120 2,017.104 47.176 Lb.

1889. From Owt. rermany .„ ... 47.915 [olland ... ... 21,713 .ustralasla ... 305,183 .rgentine Bepublic ... 181,604 itber countries .„ 5J.640 1890. Owt. 108,525 15,366 440,522 190,680 78,207 1891. Owt. 29.01$ 12.75! 558.3H 192,24! 84,585