AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2239, 28 January 1897, Page 4

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

j The Department of Industries has received | inquiries from a large number of poople in j various parts of the colony who desire further j information with reference to the prices likely I to be obtained for New Zealand produce in ! West Australia. The Government considers it ! highly desirable that an effort should be made j to open up extensive trade relationn with West ! Australia, and inquiries aro being made as to f the cost of chartering a vessel to go across to ! Perth with a trial load of our produce. Tbe Assets Realisation Board have (the New Zealand Times is given to understand) disposed of the Waverley and Busbey Park estates, the !r! r prices realised ia both cases being in excess of j the latest valuations. In the case of Ihe Bushey j Park estate, M'Kenzie Bros., of Shag Valley, are the purchasers, tbo price being £8 per acre, stock, plant, and implements to be taken at valuation. • - Speaking to a well-known Tsieri farmer tbe other day (aaj s tbe Advocate) he expressed tha opinion that the wheat market would remain firm this year, and expected it to open at 4s per bushel. " The Taieri farmers should have a splendid return this year," he said, "for the crops in the interior are in a very bad state. With good crops all over the district, and every prospect of good prices being maintained, the farmers here should have little cause for complaint." A well-known settler, who has in his time lost a great deal of fencing and some outbuildings by fires, has (says the Wairarapa Daily Times) ! adopted a very clever yet simple metbod for I preventing this destruction. He says that if 1 water and clay are mixed into a thin paste and plastered on every post or building by means of a large brush, a fierce fire can sweep right across without having the slightest effect on ! the plastered material. This method he has ; proved to be a thorough success on some of his i owu fences and yards, and strongly advises »11 ' other settlcrj who are in danger of bush or '; gmst fii't-H to follow his example. j We (Southern Standard) noticed one day last 1 week a 10-icre paddock of turnips of raised I drills on Mr James Kirk's farm, Merino Downs, which givutf promisn of beiog a good crop. , Half the paddock was sown with guano and the other half with bone superphosphate, the money value of manure being in both cases the same. The braird is rnuoh- better where the superphosphate was used, although the seed was ' three weeks later in being sown on this portion, ' and this shows the importance of making experiments to determine the relative values of ! different manures. The best manures for turnips arc those whiob^xratain large quantities of phosphor." c acid and potash, but as Mr Kirk finds rhat artificial manures are not equally efficient on all classes of soils, he is not altogether guided by analyses. Mr Kirk expressed tho opinion that turnips grown with the assistance of gnano sprout earlier in spring than do those^ whose growth has been forced with superphosphate, and if this is a fact it is another reason in favour of using the latter. The Tuapeka Times says :— •' The settlers round this district have been busily engaged in getting in grass for seed and hay. The crop, though not of the very beet, may yet be considered good in view of the dryness experienced. The seed is good and heavy." From the practical trial beld on Monday (says the Chrisfcchurch Press of the 20th) of the invention of Mr Glass and Dr Britbin there appears to be no doubt that ib is a valuable one as affecting tho future of the frozen meat industry. The great drawback to onr. meat fetching a good price in the London market has been bone taint, the present method of freezing apparently not reaching this part sufficiently. But under ths invention referred to it is admitted by experts that bone taint will be impossible, whilst the freezing of the carcases generally will be greatly expedited by its use. So far as can be sees, the instrument will be o£ the greatest use in connection with the expoifj of beef where there is a large depth of meat to be frozen, but it is equally effloaoious in mutton. It is intended to take steps to introduce it into the other Australasian colonies at an early date, | The Bruce Herald says that turnip-thinning j is now general throughout tbe Tokomairiro j .district. It is noticeable this year that most o£ the work is in the hands of boys. Both by con* tcaot and day work tbe farmers find it cheapen to employ boys, *nd the latter make very satiri factory wages. The recent rain brought tb4 turnips on wonderfully, and they give promisA everywhere of yielding well. Mr J. M. Sinclair, the Victorian mperintein dent of exports in London, has reported very favourably on the Swedish radiator batteo ' i machine. It is claimed for this machine that it} i performs the whole oceratJon of butter-mowM*

and thus dispenses with handling the cream between the creamery and the factory. It would probably have been tried in the colonies ere this, but the company insist on a stiff royalty, and also wish the Governments to carry out trials at their- expense. The Victorian Minister ha<« declined to do this, but offers facilities to the company for experiments at the cost of the latter. The* Canadian Government proposes to further develop the dairjing industry in that country by granting a bonus of 50dol to evevy creamery that provides cold storage accommodation. The dairy factory system is being adopted in England. The Co-operative Wholesale Society, writes the Lancaster Standard, intend to establish half a dozen creameries in England, such as they have in operation in Ireland, and they are now at work sounding the farmers in different parts to ascertain the extent of the support they aie likely to receive. The initiative has been in tho extensive agricultural parish of Dais ton, near Carlisle, where a meeting of farmers has been held and the subject discussed. An English exchange states that Dr Gustav 1 de Laval successfully uses a milking machine on his farm, near Stockholm. The cows while being milked are said to be perfectly contented. According to the Sydney Mail Mr John Mcl- ] rose, of Ulooloo, South Australia, is the owner of the only Dorset horn atnd in Australia. Mr Melrose has successfully crossed bis Dorset* with merinos, and at the annual sheep-breeders' dinner a saddle of Dorset-merino was one of the rarest dishes on the table. It was pronounced to be of excellent flavour and quality. Buenos Ayrei papers of November 2 report that arrivals of the new-clip wool were increasing daily. About four million kilos'were unloaded at the two principal markets during the week ; still operations were not in full swing. Larger quantities were expected from outside, but the intermittent rain in all quarters delayed shearing in many partidos. As for Bales, prices for Lincoln and Mezela wero disappointing, though fine qualities wore in good demand. The stock of old wool still exceeded 2000' tons, and moved off very slowly at low prices. Some i superior cross Liocoln changed hands during the week at full rates. The season's clip, as foreshadowed, will be both large in quantity and excellent all round in quality. Japanese woolbuyers were stated to be. on their way to tho Plate for the purchase of supplies. The Getman and French buyers will thus Have to ineeb ] new competitors, and the wool-growers will be ; pleased to have new customers for their wool. j Tho Scottish Farmer of November 22 says : — ! "America has grown this seaiou the biggeafc crop of maize on record A low estimate puts the yield at 2000 million bushels. No matter what the European deaoaud may bcr, it is said that quantities will have to be iued as manure and fuel. However, after taking the usual liberal American discount off these statements , it still seems probable they have an exceedingly big crop. Official estimates put the yield ■ per acre at 27£ bushels, and this is higher than j it has been since the crop covered anything like j its present area. The generous supply I*6 having i an effect on the markets, and already prices ! have fallen considerably from {heir recent high level, and are likely to fall still more, for large quantities are on passage. As a great many farmers now use maiza for one thing or another, it is well that these facts should be known." We (North Otago Times) hear from the southern part of this district that both wheat and oatn are likely to turn out much butter tban was at first anticipated. The shower of rain has worked a great improvement, which the subsequent dry weather has not been able to undo yet. According to the New York Farmer, the Thistle Cheese Company of Utica manufactures a cheese that is put up so that no rind can form over it. The oheese is made square, and is coated with a thin co&t of she!l*.c, which is put on when the cheese is fir&t taken from the hoop. These cheeses cure perfectly under their air-tight covering. They are about 51b weight, and sell readily at 9c to 10c per lb. The shellac does not injure the cheese in the least, as it hardens and does not penetrate the cheese, which can be eaten up to the line where the coating forms. In a. memorandum to the Victorian Secretary for Agriculture, Mr C. Frei eh, Government entomologist, draws attention to the " jumping beans" which are being offered for sale at various places in Melbourne. According to the Melbourne Weekly Times he states that the bean contains a rapidly-maturing larva of some insect, and judging from, the appearance of the grub he should say it was a very undesirable introduction. Mr French understands that a large quantityf of the seeds has been imported, and as the pest is a new one he would suggest that those in possession of such grub-infested seeds should at once destroy them by burning, as should the insect become domiciled in the city there is no knowing what damage might be done, especially in scad shops, grain itores, &c. An experiment to test the value of Dr Wynne's system of rendering cattle immune to Texas fever (writes the Queenslander) it being carried out under the direction of the Stock department. A quantity of blood was drawn by Mr Bunt from an ox suffering from an acute attack of tho fever, and after being treated as directed by Dr Wynne was forwarded by post to Brisbane. On the 4th inst. a certain quantity of this Was injeoted by Dr Quinnell into two quiet (attle at the Government quarantine station, and the change of temperature noted. After a time these cattle will be forwarded to the north jmd placed among tick-infested cattle under the

observation of a veterinary surgeon. Ifroin the journal quoted we learn that in the Cook district the local- inspector of stock states that many .of the deaths of cattle recently imported ' in the noith have only indirectly been ciiued by