AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2295, 24 February 1898, Page 5

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

In the concluding article of a series on irrigation the Melbourne Leader publishes a picture of wheat and oats grown on irrigated land, and al«o of the same cereals growu on unirrigated land. The pictures were taken from the Cohuna Irrigation Trust's area just previous to the recent harvest. The irrigated wheat and oats were stfc high and well headed, while the unirrisrated samples from the same fields were only Gin high, with small, ebrivelled ears, which would not be worth gabbering even if harvesting f.uch stunted crops* were practicable. The Canterbury Land Board, after consideration of the Mount Thomas and Oxford districts ranger's reporf, rfsolved that the board considered that ah bo much bunb on Crown property ha'! been destroyed .in exhaustive magisterial it quiry as to the origin of the fire should be instituted with »s little delay as possible, with a view ot prosecution ; and also that the Government be reooinmeucled that tbe burufe

land ba f-urveytd into suitable area", and arrangements njaJe as sooo .■>.« possible for getting the lands laid down iq grass. 4. private cablegram states that Sir %V. 3 Ptccv:s.l i^k ';!<=-c! es director oF the N=w Zetelsnd *ud Hwer J-Mate Company in pUce *;f the laic Mr J^mes M'Oouh Clark. Mure than haif of tho shaf?s in '•he company are still held in this colony, and'tha announcement will gi»e very general ratisfuctiou. Some very interesting investigation.? are being made by 'i.ha Department of Agriculture in tho UnKed S^tes in relation to rh* capacii'y of d.if--I'ccnb soila in vai'oa« parta <>i lh>3 ron*~icy xo ■sVorb and retain inoisVjre and the quantity of raoisl/ure necessary t.o diii'rirant nrcp<. Further investigations will be directed by the department towards determining the •quantities of wab« in the soil necessary foe rapturing wheat and other staple crops, and. lor this purpose e-l-»"trodes are to be plnc«d iii the ground at oiffrtient depfcas to Bhow the direction and inrensny of what the ha&d of the Hoils Di"ißion calls the wra^er waves ot the <iarth. Tix'i infecmatiou to be derived from Iht use of f .heee iuattuments ia baaod upon tiae resiotanct! of Sbo carrh to the uaseage of alternate, currents of electricity. There are. many mpnurf-s suitable for sandy soil, aud it may be w.d Ihifc thoie --vhich are in the mo^L go'ub'e fccai f-iro lhe»i^t', because ib is necessiry thao *he constituent!! i-.cosild nc very f-adily available for plant food. Bpaaking generally, s>».iidy soil vfnurvs tlia s».uie prime <orm« of pl'int foo<s tbf-t other coils rrqairo — viz , phosphoric scid, aifcrogfti), iiotasb, f-nd lime. The t'orm in which th?S3 are applied must depend largely upr>n the crops intended to be grown. If whr-at is to be grown eupsrph> BphaftuS would b« bcpik( and this may be taken as applying to all co«mlfl. If trait, mcie poraaa is required, an.l so on. The Glasgow losal anfchot-iry is aoei:sed of laxity in -he ?»atcer of jjlan;l«rs (says * Scottish paper), and horse-ownprß threaten »v iudiguafcion meptin?. 'Jbey should, however, lirsfc master tho difficult ies of the leca! authority, for It is not all p'aiii xfiilins;. Without c mpu'sorv powei'3 bo aoply the mailsn t«*sb fchfi local aubhoricy cannoo '.lo very much, and thty have no such control ever sfcablf-s as th6y pOßsea'i over cowsheds, byre?, &c. If the figures quoted by horSB-ownera are correct theie is no time for dsiay in applyiug for all necessary powers. I!; ia said that i« one stable tested with nsallein, ci: 106 Horses 101 were found \o be di&ea«ecl. Thi^ ;s simply appalling. The London Road Oar Company are said never to purchase a horsts wifciu'un Jjubaiitbmg it to the malleiu tost, and what has betn done ia Jjondon can be done ia Glasgow. Mallein and tuberculin are com- , ing. ! Is it far that at cafctle and other shows the best prizes should so often go to roy*l exhibitors ? The quß3f;ion may not be new (says a Home magazine), but th*t fact may give ib all th.* snore poitir,. It may be daid that this is no business of ours, aud concerns nobody but the judges and the royal winners. O'/udr exhibitors, however, who t-pend large sums in competing, aud have not the same means and facilities as the Queen and Prince of Wales possess, have an interest in the subject;. To give an iUuabr&trioa : At) the Norfolk show rhe Queen took fires prize for sha;:thom cows with an unimal bred a; Shaw farm, while the Priuce of Wales took the second prize, and also fcht* first for a pen of ewes, aud the first for Southdown wether sheep, and likewise the champion prize for the besfe pen of sh^ep in the whole show. On many o'-her occasions similar 'results have ensued. We wonld not sagged thab the judges are influenced by sycophantic sentiment, though it is possible ; buf, ai&urniijg that the rojal "exhibit- ia these cases are really the best, ofcber exhibitors are handicapped by the superior opp' I'tutiities enjoyed by their royal competitors for producing prize beasts. As a yule they may be said to be " oub of it," and under these circumstanceSj although, no doubt, royal, 'as well as ofcher, bretdors naturally want to geb something back for fheir outlay, the Queeu anil the Prince (not to mention oihev mtiaibe'CS of the family) might ba content to take the first position bub to forgo the firofc prizes, which might then go to exhibitors who would otherwise secure bhe actual first place. Perennial white cover will grow and maintain itself on several soils, as 15 has both fibrous and tap roots. Ib will do b<iib on creek fltte<. Ie should be sown in Apr-1 ilfi lf the weather is favourable. Glovpr may noun-h among the Ufibive grasses, bub ib will nob do so unless climate and soil are both highly favourable to the plant. Judging from the month which has just drawn to a clo-e the prospects foe 1898, or ab any rate the fir^t. hulf, a>e not; at ail bright (says the Adelaide Observer of February 5). Hot ar.d dry weather has been experienced, aad though there have been a few scstfcered thuuderstorms in the north, the rainfall for January has beeu nrac.ically nil. Produca o£ almost every description 13 backward and the yield poor, and business is consequently almost as dull aa ib can be. Farmers have finished cleaning up, bub they are nob bringing much of their wheat into the marketj being restrained by the hope of realising higher prices in the future. It is generally considered thab the yield will be slightly under four bushels, which, while'better than last year, ia not likely on the acreage reaped to give very much for export. The fruit crop dops nob turn out any befcber as time goes on. Growers will be compensated to a great extent by better prices, bub it seems certain that a promising export; trade in apples, which was being built up, will virtually have 'to bo left untouched until next jear. The present, outlook for. atockmoa ia <?^

couraging (aays the Aiistralasiau). In the north the continuance of hob, dry weather has had a disastrous r-ffect upon what pasture the longcoiit;nue.i drought bad left, and in tho districts south of ths Dividing Range the combined i ffocrs of swsitering heat and terrible bush fires nrti moss pronour.c d. The heat has either ruined or greatly checked the growth of the green fodder crops that were expected to tide the dairy-larnaers over the autumn, and the bush fires have destroyed many thousands of acres of grass. Ju»t at present many stockowntrs are an their ■nils' end to know what to do with their stock until the rains of autumn cause the gtass k> grow. Ib is greatly to be Fe&rcd that serious losses will be sustained, and tho metropolitan sbock markets will be badly supplied during the next few months. Tho oatpub of buttftt has largely decreases!, and the exporb season will most probably be curtailed on account of the falling off of tupplies. The quality of the butter, too, has been gvea.tly iiffLCtt'f" by the heat, produce of good oha:-&cter b'>it/g obtainable only from factories where refrigeratiag machine. 1 "? hss been erected. Tha aamnier geaacn o? 1897-93 is likely to be long rem.'mbsrefl as being one ot the most trying on record. In the official report on the Falkland Islands for 1896 ie i-s staled that during taat year there w*s & grea'.i '.r/iproveiient a3 regards stock. A large inipoitaMoa of ctud rains vrafi made direct from New Zealand, principally for East Falkland. Ttiere vreve also imoorted 241 animals o£ the foilo^iiig breeds :—127: — 127 Kornnay Mursh, IJ2 Lincolus, »nd 2 English Leicesters. Ths importers are reported to be thoroughly satisfied with the ramH, and if oare ba taken in tha selection of ewa*». Ib is hoped that a grfeab improvement of the flocks will rosulb in couraa o? tioat 1 . Tftere vm^ no exportation of frozen mutton during 1895. &.n officiat ybited London during the winter months with a view to as-certain whether satisfactory arrangements could ba made for the s»-.le of Falkland Islands frozou meat in England. Ib is not, however, expected thtt any large quantity will be sent unless there be a considerable rise in prices*. The reporb 3tates that at present prices for fr< isoa mutton ib is a question whether boiling down does not pay as well, if not better. To ra&Sjc. f cczan mutton pay it is necessary to breed tha fthi j «°p up to a certain standard. It is not sufficient That the sheep ehonid be large and heavy ; quality is tho first consideration and some time must elapse before Falkland Jslanda sheep reach tfeab standard. Tho annual rarei And fcwe Fair of the Timaru Agricultural aad Pastoral Association will ba held on Friday, 25th March. The Journal of the Rojal Agriiuilrural Soc'ety of England for the quarter ending 31st December, 1897, is to hand It contains s larg-s number of article* of spciisJ interest to farmers, among them being " Denitrification of Fatm-y-3.fl M&ncra," by R. W&ringtoa, of Harpenden, Herts ; >;ho second pai.fi of a descrip'ive aiticl© ou the Wobui-n Experimental Farmj by J Auguetus Voelckor ; "Production of MiiSs Ecb ia Fat," and several others. The price is 3s 6(3, and the magazine 's wall worth the money. The Journal of the? Board of Agriculture for D<icea>bw, 1897, ia also to haad. Its contents comprise a review ot the grain barvefc oJ' 1897, " Consamptiaa of Food Froducs,'' And a number of other si-tides of interest in the f^riijiag community. Its price is only Is, a»?d the money invested in a copy would be well spent. The small birds nre felt to be a greater 73Uisnnce in the Wvndhsm district chtn ntec before (3*ys tbe Wyndham Herald). Their ddwredatious are greater thia season th»a v.vial on account of thfc wet *?ason retarding the ripening of tba grain, which tha birds prefer when in a niiiky state. Mr J^m'S Walker tells us that a paddock of his, from which he generally gets 300 to -400 bushels, has bern robbed of about 200 bushels. Mr J A. Dodd expres 3 es the belief that in a certain Sve acrei of his there is not a grain left. The Tokomfciriro Farmers' Club at its lasfe meeting m*ci<-i a heroic attempt to grapple with, the rabbit difficulty (says the Bruce Herstiij). Whether tbo decidions arrived at will have any practical issue time alone can tell. The president, who seems to be the prime mover in the matter, certainly deserves credit for bhe brouble he had evidently taken to put his viaws as clearly and concisely as possible before tho members. That objection will be taken to hia pcheme of getting the Government to pay a bot,u3 for every rabbit killed throughout tha year is almost certain. The idea ia no new one. It has been suggested over and over again, bu6 it either never caught on with those interested or the opposition met with was Buob that it waa deemed advisable to drop it. Much may ba said in favour of the pchemo, but a great deal more can bo said against it. The bofe fly is attacking shesp In bhe Wairarapa district. Rabbits are now being sent in to the Mataura Freezing Works in large quantities. The other day 4000 were received. The fact of Brooksdale estate being under offer to Government ia creating quite astit amongst the people (ss.ys theTapanui Courier), and the Hon. John M'Keczie is to be asked ts come and inspect the .property personally. All Crookston is on the alert to get a sh^ro ot Brooksdalo, and if tho estate is taken by Go>i vernment there will be tha biggtsb lanu boom on record in thia locality. Brooksdale esfcata has a colonial reputation, and its fine wheaft

land will be eagerly sought for by settlers from all parts of New Zealand. Land that never Buffers from drought, is permanently watered by mountain streams, and will yield with good cultivation 60 bushels of wheat and 90 or oats to the acre (besides producing the highestpriced wool in the world) is not to be picked up every day, and no better estate could be selected tor close settlement. A special meeting of the Ashburton County Council was held on the 14-t.b, to consider the . boundaries for the proposed special districts for irrigation purposes in the Rangitata and Cold•fcream Road Board districts (says the Press). Lfcttera were read from one or two ratepayers who- objected to certain portions of their properties being included. The proposed bounfl*ries were approved, and it was decided (o hold a special meeting on March 4 to adopt a Special order in connection with the boundaries i.f the proposed irrigation districts. Residents in the Chertsey district, in need of an increased ! water supply,-sre convening a meeting for the. j purpose of taking steps towards procuring water for irrigation purposes. We do not believe in kicking cows in the flairy, nor when one raises bis own herd is (here any necessity for having them (nays the Kami World). Heifers that are well treated from calfhood and familiarised with their attendants are not likely to make kicking cows. Kicking generally results from either nervousness or viciousness, both of which are engendered by ill-treatment. Some cows when unkindly treated become timid and neivou3, ivhile others grow sullen and- bad-tempered, just as tyranny and ill-treatmenfe will produce corresponding effects upon men. In a case of the cow a kicker is usually developed in either case, and the fault is often transmitted to her calves, either by heredity or teaching ; one cannot be certain which. It is transmitted, in very many cases, and when a good 'milker that is also a kicker has a calf that it is desirable to save, only the best of management will eradicate the tendency. Buckling a strap around the raised forefoot of a kicker in such a way as to compel her to hold it up will prevent kicking, bub it is doubtful whether ib will ever cure the disposition. The heaviest sheep ever killed in her Majesty's dominions was b wether bred and fed by Thomas Kingdon, of Thorverden, Devon, and slaughtered on the 28th March 1846. Its weight wag 781b per quarter, or 3121b. At the same time a ewe, twin sister to the above, was slaughtered, and weighed 571b per quarter, or 2281b. A painting of these two enormous sheep is preserved in London, but unfortunately the report is silent as to their particular breed. A novel proposal was made to the Victorian Council of Agricultural Education recently, when a letter was received from Mrs Rickarby, of Simpson street, Basl, Melbourne, suggesting ihafc Longereuong College should be utilised for giving girls and young women instruction in Jigciculture, She sainted out. that-, there were

many fine girls wasting their lives in close, pent-up f-bop3 and factories, when their superabundant vitality might bs used for their own benefit by following healthy outdoor employment. The fol'owing industries, she remarked, could be carried on entirely by women :—Cultivation of cereals and root crops, butter and cheese making, rearing of poultry, bee-keeping, rearing silkworms, cultivating scent plants, planting snd grafting fruit treep, preserving frui f , pickling vegetables, baking bread, brewing beer, making cider, and "tanning the skins of the smaller animals." To make the Longercnong farm pay, she added, the " Government sfccoKe" would have to be abolished, and ordinary common sense .brought; into play on somsthing the same lines that an ordiuary " cockatoo " farmer would work his farm. The girls' time would not be wasted on cards or dice or billiards, but half of them would ba in the fields, 'and the remainder cooking, cleaning, b .iking, brewing, knitting, and cleaning the furm implements and dairy appliances. It would not be an Arcadian farm, " where the flours of idleness were more than equal to the hours of work." It was decided to thank Mrs Rickarby for her suggestion, and to inform her that it was not possible at the present time to embark on such au undertaking as she proposed. Exportation of butter from India has a novel sound, but the London Standard takes the responsibility of asserting that butter is made in Bombay, and, what is more, is being importad into England. As to its nature and J,he danger of using it, the paper in question says:— "A correspondent who formerly occupied au important official position iv India informs us that a ton of butter made in Bombay has either reached or will shortly reach Eogland. He is of opinion that the authorities should be warned of the danger of allowing this butter to come into consumption, seeing that it was made in a city in which fever, cholera, and the plague are prevalent. The filthy habits of the pefefcy Indian dairymen are notorious, and they would think nothing of keeping milk in their single room, eves if it were occupied by a victim of ono of the diseases named above. The reason of the exportation of butter from Bombay, which is quite unusual, is that the population of the city has been roduced 50 per cent, by deaths and the exodus of people flying from the danger of disease." Meat that baa been subjected to the process of freezing, the British Medical Journal says, should be gradually thawed, aud should nol be divided into butchers' joints until the thawing has been thoroughly accomplished. It will then be found that there is less transudatioa of the sanguineous fluid, and consequently a diminished loss of extractives, serum albumen, and lnyosin. Moreover, the cooking oE this meat requires particular attention. It should be plunged into boiling water ; the heat coagulates the albumen of the surface of the joint and prevents the exudation of fluid, containing extractive?. Even

before roasting the joint it should be momentarily dipped into boiling water. Riverina wheat-growers are shipping a portion of their wheat to London in order to cope with the speculators. Already about 1000 tons have been offered, and some 1600 tons are still required to fill up the vessel that has be:n b°>pjken. Growers contributing are to have di tier buthel advanced to them, aud only prime grain is to be accepted. The total cost of eonvejiug the grain to LondoD, including freight, wharfage, sfevedoring charges, insurance, &c, is given at BJd per bushel, which is very much lower than has usually to be reckoned on. Arrangements have been made to have the gram properly handled in London, where it will be placed to the best advantage. In 1870 a polled cow belonging to the late Mr J. Frernlin, of Offham, Wert Mailing, Kent (says a correspondent of the Field), gave birth early in the year to heifer .triplets, which -vero reared, fattened, and the next year sent to the Maichlone Christmas market and cattlo show, they being then 22^ months old, and were disposed of there for £100 to the late Mr Thomas White, butcher, of Tunbrldge Wells. They were not entered for competition, but were awarded a special prize by the judges oi the show for excellence. They were all polled beasts, and of one colour (roan). A circular giving directions for the cnlnvation of sugar beetroot has ' been prepared and published by Mr S. Stein, of Me3srß CrosSeld, Barrow, and Co., 323, Vauxhall road, Liverpool, who is prepared to give the farmers any help they may require so as to ensure the sueceßs of the experiments they may resolve to carry out. Mr Sfcein appears confident regarding fehe cultivation of this crop in the United Kingdom, provided the. bounty system ware abolished h? Germany and Franca— a by no meaDS improbable contingency, he thinks. lie remarks : "At present it is no doubb impossible that sugar can be produced in the United Kingdom at a profit, any more than it can be in the West Indies. This is a consequence of the action of the export bounties, which in the past have unduly stimulated the production of sugar in Europe"; and, as supply has exceeded demand, prices have been depressed below a paying level. There is every, reason to believe that under free trade conditions — that is to say, in the absence of bounties — sugar could bs produced as cheaply in the United Kingdom aa in Germany, as experiments prove that nob only the weight psr acre is as large here ao in Germany, bub the saccharine contents of thf» roots are iully equal to these of fche best German districts." We are nob-quite so s&nguiue as l&v Stem as to tho euceess of sugar-beet growing in this country, as, granted that the a&il was suitable and that the beet* sugar unaided would hold its own with the cane product, vre aro afraid the exigencies of our climate w^ald prove an insurmountable obstacle. Any w-iy, farmers had better experiment cautiously to begiu with. Lesa than four bu3hels per aero average for the woe-it etooiu South Australia, whiah leaves only a sma'l juargin over home requirements, ia tha estimate oi the Adelaide Advertiser, which adds :•— " Every year the South Australian agriculturist is realising more forcibly the folly ot depending wholly on wheat for his livelihood. The farmers are going in for a few sheop, tv little dairying, a piggery, and, perhaps, in suitable localities, for fruit-growing. The average lariner in this colony is quite alive to the « );ua ion, and it can no longer be charged sg.uusfc hJin thai he is a man of one idea — wheat and nothing but whwfc. Many a family in the country has pulled through the long period of depresMjn by the assistance of the receipts from the fowlyard, the piggery, and ih<j frui& garden, and will not soon forget the Jpfson learned ia the bliter school of adversity. With a libtlo asu^Unco for thoae whose crops Jjave failed ib only needs a good rainfall this year to pub fche agriculturist in a good position again and raise the industry to ita past prosperity."