SOUTHLAND AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2171, 3 October 1895, Page 6

SOUTHLAND AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

(Fhom Oun Own Correspondent.) Noi much seed was sown till the middle of the month, as the weather was often The Weather wet. The time was not lost, mid however, as there was a very the Farm, large acreage to be ploughed. In a number of places thia work is not yet completed. Sawing did not become general till the third week of the month which is passing away, but as the weather has been fine Bince, the majority have the bulk of the seed Eown. Another week of fine weather should see the completion of the sowing, except on flats or where turnips were not eaten off in time. Ths'advantagej of tile or mole draining was apparent this season both on flats and ridges, the ground having been lib for ploughing and harrowing long before these operations could be thought of wbero drainage had not been effected. Tho season was too !ato for wheat, and there is b it little conn. Toca h, however, a very Ur b e area sown with oaU>. Potatoes should be planted feo:n, the earlier ia tho month the better. Only eirly tort? h&vo as yet been planted in most places. Guano is bettac than farmyard manure for tbi* crop, the quality being inferior when the latter is used. There will probably be a good deal of grass sown for seed this eeascn, and stock should bs removed without delay from paddocks intended for seed. Some keep stock off afotr the beginning of Angu«t, and in many ca c ea tbis would bo an. advantage. I think some attention should be

given to the sowing of bay for feeding sheep in winter. Hay containing a d«al of clover* eepeo'ally red clover or cowgrasn, is very valuable for feeding iheep in winter, and is easily supplied to them insido wire nutting betnenn two rowa of stakes. Kwes would do very welt on turnips in winter and spring, with the addn t'en of nutritious hay occasionally. During the l«at two or three years some attention baa been givtn to the productien of olover 8o?d«jj aud it is a subject which ia beginning ta exercise tha minds of farmers comiderably, ad facilities now exist for getting the seed pro* p*rly dre sed. A number bavc bren saving t'.ie tlovir seeds left after the threshing of Msa ryiyrass, aud in some instances their ualo baa r. alised as much as the ryegrasi seed. It ia found that a very Urge percentage of this scedf gerininate9. The importance of growing timothy for teed is also receiving more general recognition. The pasture fs later than usual tLis season, the growth being frequently checked by cold gales or slight frosts. Thq dairy factories are hesitating to coinrrencd operations owing to the tcarcity of feed and tha low condition of the cows.

A largo number of dairy cows have been offering for sale during the month* Cattle. Tvh'ch would seem to indicata that a number of farmers are giving up dairying. It jb evident, however, that if come are taking tfcis stop there »ra others who consider cows a good investment. At a rooect sale cows in low condition and with but little show of milk, wera fetching from £5 to £5 10s. Tor good cows at the calving £6 it enmly obtained, nud thosa prices inuat be considered very satisfactory ill fico of the fact that the cheese market in so dopressed, and the uncertainty prevailing regarding the. price to be paid for milk. A cow is at her prims when she ha 3 her third calf, and is con« eu'.eied profitable for milking for 10 eeasons. Exceptionally c°od cows are often kept, however, for several yoar3 loDger. About two years and a-half to two years and three-quarters io, I consider, the best age for thejttist calving. If the heifers are older and well fed they are apt to bee >ir.e too coarse, and Rora*timss the uildcn lojts its hold, whicil cause* trouble when milking, N owing to ita swinging about. Gowa exhibiting m-my of the points of the Ayr*hir<Ji which is tho besb general breed for dairying; command the best prices. The Ayishire. aaya a competent authority, "is essentially a cheese* dairy cow, on accouut of the ccmAarativcly isruftll-sized butter globules of the miik and tho abur-dance of ourd-making material which i(i coutaiuo." In purchaiitig cows fcr milkir.g it is well to remember that those which have deep necks, thick lega and tail, thick skin with hard hair, and hollow eyes are flffh producers, and »re better suited to the grazier than the dairjman. I have heard it asserted that ttore sheep during the pa»t six weeks bava The Flocks, been fetching higher prices on the south Bide of the Clufcha than further north. The turnip crop haa been very good in Southland, and tho high prices ruling for sometime have to acme exfenfc, no i doubt, beeu influercod by that Uct. Tbe turnips are now flni-hed and tha pas' nre scanty, and recent sales were dull, ninny o»" Ilia lots having had to ba disposed cf privately aud at reduced rates. I have Been fnil-mouthed ewes sold a month ego for 7s which had been bought after haivest for Is, and hoggets fetching 7« 6i which had been booghc before winter for half- a crown. The seasou was favourable foe early lambing, and the percentage is high. Tho best time for performing the operations of castrating and docking is when the lambs are between two and three weeks old, and according to Steel, a leading veterinarian, the operations are tomctimes performed with impunity from one to three days after birth. •• Moist, cool weather should be selected, but warm or changeable weather, heavy rains, and when cold, bleak winds prevail eh ml.l be avoided." The importance cf erecting ram • porsry yards in a clean place m%y be poiiJ,.d out, and if the knife is not a new one, bnt oae which has bsen used for other purpose?, it should be carefully washed with boiling water. I have sometimes taken the additional precaution of washing the knife afterwards witfj carbolic oil. With suitable weather and clem yards the percentage of deaths should !>j very small. During cold winds, eaufaily winds especially, there is a' danger of peritoneal inflammation settingin. This occurs about the third or fourth day after the operation is performed, and death takes place about tha fourth or fifth day. The mortality which occasionally cccurs musfc for the mo3t part bo attributed to the ignorance or carelessness of tho operator.

During the early part of October a i?/rJ <,f land will bo laid down to jjr-'rf 1 Laying Horn nloDg with a crop of oats, mu\ Land lo later in the month as well as Grass. early in November the grass will be sown without a crop, lit is immaterial which method is adopted where the land is in good heart. Ia our climate tha young pasture is nob likely to Buffer for wants of tho Hhelter which a cereal crop would give. Some, however, sow oats to be eateu off by sheep ; but tape ifl aown bj othera. and it" tho

land is in good heart it is preferable, ns it is superior for fattening either sheep or lambs. Borre sow rape alone for this purpose, and as jmany as 90 per cent, of lambs in fl ioks numbering coveral thousands have been mado fit for the freezing chambers. The rape is sown about the end of October, end is ready for eating off in January. The lambs are then weaned and turned on ths rape as Boon as they settle after leaning — the weanirg is i.ecessc.ry owing to the richness of the feed. As graiß usually takes fcbree months to be fit to carry tt^ck, it should be'Bown in time to be available when it would be rr quired for fattening lambs. Perenuial ryoprass h' Ids a deservedly high pKce in any fcuixture of seeds. From one and a-half bushel to two bushels per acre are usu illy eown. A bu-hel and a-balf of good seed is Sufficient on good ?and, elong with s!b of timothy and 2lb each per acre of white clover, cowgrass, and alsike. Sometimes white clover seed is so abundant in the soil that it is not necessary to cow much, and with this seed and others careful observation is required to know the best seeds and the proper quantity to sow. Alaike, wbioh is a valuable olovcr, lasting three years, grows b'st ou damp foil, aud is a suitable companion for timothy, the same dtsrription of Foil suiting them both. Last year I sowed 14oz per acre of sheep's parsley, a plant tvhich is much relished by sheep and conni Jered beueficial to them. It has grown well, but I Am afraid the thesp will eat it out. The seed is very slow in germinating, taking six or seven weskg. For the information of thoee who have not broiidra j t seeds ,wcrs I may point out that fcho band machine used for sowing turnips b-cadcast is very eervice&ble. The large slide i* raised for sowing ryegrass, the small elide when sowing the small seeds. Ryogrws is cast by these machines a breadth of about 12ft, and the small seeds about 15ft. The following table, which I gave once or twice previously, may be of nsa to some : — Eight foot iv breadth and 82} chains in length— _ pne acre (nearly). Twelve feet in breadth and 65 chains iv length —one acre (nearly). Fifteen feet in breadth and 44 chains iv length ••-one acre (nearly). Eighteen feet in breadth and 36 chains 44ft In length— one acre (nearly).