SOUTHLAND AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2209, 2 July 1896, Page 6

SOUTHLAND AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

fFiirtk Our Own Cobbbspondeht.) The weather has been so fine daring the past month that ib is difficult to realise that ib is the winter season.- The ploughing has been carried on without, I' think ib may safely be said, an hour's interruption. As a consequence there is by this time a large area turned over, and if nezb month should be moderately fine we may expecb the season's operations to be much further forward than usual. Had it been known that the weather during the past two mouths would have been so fins the ploughing might notrhave been commenced so soon ; still, it i?, as well that it has been, because those farmers who get as much of the spring work as possible thrown into the winter are morfr successful than thote who delay the work till the spring. The ttubble is in excellent order for ploughing, ■ and the same may be" said of the lea, except th»t iv some casei it is somewhat hard, owing to the fact that the land has not as yet -been Eoaked with rain. A good deal of the ryegcats sown two years ago failed to germiuate, owing to its having been frosted, and in some oases the plough has been ' sat to work to turn the land, in order that it may nob lie longer in an unremuneratiye state. An unfortunate experience of this sorb impresses one with the importance of testing" the seed before sowing. The mild weather has been favourable to the turnip cr^p. The green top yellow seems to do better than the purple top ia a late season suofi as thid, and there is the additional advantage that this variety is better for lats feeding. A good crop of turnips-iri raised drills should run about 15 ions per , acre under the somewhat perfunctory system of -tillage in vogue here, bub 1 have seen few crops here this season which will' yield more than 12 tons per acre, and there are more crops under this amount than above it, not a few being as low as five or six toes. Few can estimate the probable weight of an acre of turnip?, and a deplorable atnouut of ignorance was shown in past seasons' when turnips were bought largely foe f&t'ening sheep. The safer coursa is to ruy at so much per 100 sheep per week. In past seasons the prices given for eating-otf turaip3 have usually been 12s 6d per 100 sheep per week, or 10a 6d for hoggets,

Strangles.

This 10 an affection peculiar to young* horsee, although aged horses are alto" liable to infection if they escape during the firifc two or three years of t laeir live*. -As a considerable number of farm horses escape the disorder, there are some farmers whose first experience of it is gained through the loss of a colt. If young horses running in paddocks are noticed to ba dull the cause should be ascertained. The first symptom of this ailment is a general indisposition. After a few . days a stiffening oE the, neck becomes perceptible, whioh is followed by an enlargement bet wean the jaws. I need not enter, into any furih.es description, ta every

The Weather and the ! Farm.

farmer should have a veterinary work at hand for reference ; but I would mention that the remedies usually applied are not the best, and point out that I have found the following, recommended by Ma; hew, to be 'by far the best application :— Spirits of turpentine, two part 3; laudanum, one part; spirits of camphor, one parb. This should be applied with a brush to I the enlargement between .the jaws morning, ; noon, and eight until soreness, is produced. After every application the ,>part should be ' covered with three wide strips of thick, new | flannel, over which there should be placed a longer strip, each end of which should be slit, so that this last piece can ba tied on both, in front and at the back of the ears. As this disease is bigbly infectious the sufferer should be isolated. I have kept the sufferer in a. loose ; box, taking the precaution to nail old cornsacks | on the partition, which are afterwards burnt : and the place thoroughly cleansed with boiling water. I nny add that one of the most serviceable veterinary works I know of for a farmer's use is Mayhew's ." Illustrated Horse Doctor,", which costs about 10s., It has run through at least 17. editions. " >

Tho'Edendale Dairy School was opened' for' the \, second session on tho 15th- jnst.i Miscellaneous, the number of pupils on the roll , being 57, including^three ladie3. I cannot help wondering that so few ladits - take advantage of the instruction whioh is to be ■ received there free.,' I believe some would-be students were disappointed through not- being aware" that -application had to be made some time in advance. Last year the sohool was overefpwded, and Mr MacE wan wisely determined to avert' that' result this season. I spent a few hours at the school- this season, and having a' practical knowledge "of the arts of cheese add butter making,. I have no hesitation in asserting' that the instruction given at'Edtudale must tend to the advancement ef the important industry of dairying in New Zealand. Some f&rm.ers speak in disparaging terms of the dairy schools, but I- would point' out that' we cannot afford to"lag behind other countries, and that in ttie long run no one will be the ' loser Cor the cast that is at present being incurred in the direction indicated. I was pleased to sea among the students some who had no little knowledge of the dairy arts, as it shows a desire td"adopt modern principles^ Sheep appear to ba healthy this winter, but if symptoms of lungVorm appear I would recommend turpentine as a drench — £cz to £oz for a sheep or hogget given in two or three times its bulk of milk in the morning, when the stomach is empty.' " A teaspoon contains about £oz.- Sheep suffering from the lung parasite have also in some cases an intestinal parasite known as the whipworm. The turpentine is useful in both cases. To some it may seem absurd to usoany medicine for the destruction of lung pyasites, as the vetmifuge^ enjiers the fctorhach and not the lungs, but a veterinarian (Heatley) says that "turpentine is readily absorbed into the blood, which, of course, is carried into the' lungs, and acts upon the parasite with deadly effect." - The position of the -Ward Association is the principal topic of conversation', and the opinions heard on all hands ' are ai various as those* expressed in the newspapers. ' It hasfrequently, been asserted that no company succeeds in Southland, but perhaps we are not' singular in this respect. The wretched credit system has a great deal to do with so many failures', and it is painful to find that many farmers - wotk too often on bills. There are some farmers to be met with in every district who, will have nothing , to do with' bills, who will rather not buy stock and many other things if they caunot pay oash for them, and I think there will be no true success until we get back to a cash system. A man may do welltcbuy land on terms—nay, more, there would be no progress if he waited until he could pay cash— bat for everything else I am certain that' the cash system should be ! adopted if possible. Last spring, for instance, 111 1 knew of several farmers baying hoggets on bills, and selling them after the turnips were eaten for lets than they undertook to pay for | them. How can the markets be satisfactory when such slovenly methods are in practice P