NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2320, 18 August 1898, Page 5

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

The completed agricultural returns for the

colony have been gazetted. I Agricultural The Secretary for J Statistics. twre, commenting upon the ' figures, says that last year a ' deduction was made from the areas under wheat, oats, and barley, owing to the drought, and unfortunately ifc has been necessary to do so again this year. The only part of tho colony not affected was the southern part of Otago and Southland. But here there was too much rain, accompanied by cold winds in the early spring. The crops were therefore very backward, smd considerable areas intended for grain had to be cut for chaffing. In the interim return the wheat was estimated to yield 21 bushels per acre ; but that estimate was not reached, the threshing returns being j under 18 bushels. The area under wheat was 315,801 acres, and the actual yield was 5,670,017 bushels. There was of old wheat on hand at November 15, 1897, 1,149,661 bushels, making Ihe sum total of whept in the colony at the end of harvest 6,319,678 bushels. The I | imports between November 15 and February 15 were very small, totalling 219-1- bushels. The exports (wheat and flour) during Ihe same period reached a total of 48.000 bushels ; and the local consumption is estimated at 1,153,351 bushels, leaving the quantity available for all purposes on February 15, 5,620,521 bushels. I The estimated quantity required for seed for ' 350,000 acres is 700,000 bu3hels, and for consumption by a population of 773,567 at six bushels per head, 5,329,102, leaving an apparent, surplus of 291,119 bushels. The figures show that, last harvest left practically no wheat available for export. The yields of oats, barley, and rye were also considerably reduced below the interim estimate. As a matter of fact, the difference between the results of the harvest and the estimates moke the latter of very little value indeed, as I have pointed out in this column more than ou^e. The chief' difficulty lies in collecting the agriculural statistics uniformly throughout the colony, no allowance being made for climatic difference. The returns should be compiled at least a month later in Otago and Southland, while November 15 might do for northern districts. Il is quite impossible lo arrive at more than a haphazard guess regarding the probable yield in Otago before the middle of December or even the end of that month. I havo heard the opinion expressed by one of the Otago pioneers after over 40 years' experience of our climate that December is the determining month for cereal crops, as the yield will very much depend upon the kind of weather we get in t'~ .t month. If the estimates of yield are to have any value at all, they should within reasonable limits correspond with the actual yield. But until some little elasticity is imported into the central department we shall have the old idea of boots for the million all of one fiize and pattern. While a uniform date might suit admirably for taking the census, it is absurd to follow the same practice in collecting information in advance relating to the prc-'able i yield in a country like ours, possessing' s'.tcii j -, I a variation in climate. Since 1895 a bonus lias been offered for im- i provements in flaxdressing, ' Flax any process winning the 1 Bonus. bonus to effect an improve- i inent in the machines at, pre- i sent in use and to reduce the cost of procluc s tion. The bonus offered for the discovery of I a process to fill these requirements was £1750, 1 and £250 was offered for a process lor utihs- s in"- the waste products. The time for apphca- I tions for the bonus expired at the end of 1897. j The report of the commissioners appointed £ to deal with the question is now published. 1 While no less than 17 persons applied for the i bonus, tho commissioners did not think that t any of the processes justified an award. However, there were two processes combining ' the chemical and mechanical submitted to x them which the commissioners thought a x good deal of. Mr T. R. Gillman, chemist, of s Onehunga, after years of experimenting, t found the best results from boiling the green s leaf in arsenicated water for four hours. The j flax in then passed between a pair of smooth j rolls, the result being the release of the fibre 1 from its encasement of green pulpy vegetable t patter^ leaving only a slight trace of green/ I

ness of colour. The after process is a light scutch or brush to remove the loose vegetai tion. The quantity of arsenic used is &o small ■ that the cosb of chemicals in Mr Gillman's process would be trifling. The commissioners were fo v/ell pleased with the process that they say in their reporl, "Had Mr Gillman proved to us that what he claims could be used to commercial advantage, and we are very much disposed to believe that he can, we should have felt justified in awarding him a portion ot the bonus." However, before tho process can be adequately tested, much larger plant than that employed by Mr Gillman will be required, and the commissioners recommend tha Government to co-operate with the inventor in carrying his discovery to a decided issue. Mr S. S. Boslard, an Auckland chemist, working independently, discovered another chemical jn'ocess, but has asked the commissioners not to disclose tho name of the chemical he employes. Instead of boiling he bruises the green blade between rollers, then pours water at a certain temperature containing a certain i^crcentage of the chemical upon the flax, leaving it in steep about, an hour, when the vegetation and gum are destroyed. A brush through a scutcher leaves the fibre clean, strong, and of good colour. The remit appears to be that these chemists are working in the right direction to solve thi problem how to prepare a first-class fibre from our New Zealand flax, for if freed from gum entirely, the fibre is fine enough to weave fine cloth and fabrics from. It is to be hoped, therefore, that these investigators I will receive some further encouragement from ' the Government, for the subject is of con- , siderable commercial importance to the , colony.

A member of Hie Waitahuna Farmers' Chib recently brought under the A Caution notice of that club a matter t° which in its results should Fanners. convey a caution to farmers who are too careless about the credentials of those with whom they do business. Ido not profess to be smarter than my brethren in buying and selling, but I never sell to travelling agents without being positive that their actions will be fully endorsed at headquarters. When a firm of stock agents write to a farmer saying that they are sending a probable buyer to look at certain stock j the farmer has placed in their hands for sale, there is no risk in doing business with the

party so sent and accredited, but in the case of itinerant speculators in grain, one cannot be too careful. Ifc will be remembered how some 100 confiding farmers were victimised some years ago by certain travelling grainbuyers. A sudden rise took place in the price of oats in Dunedin, and before the news could be known by farmers in outlying districts, men were on the road visiting farms and buying oats at what the farmers thought wa3 a slight advance upon the current rales. When they heard how they had been "had," there was great indignation, but it was a case of " serve them right " for being so trustful in the integrity of strangers.

"Experiment," who is a farmer in the Rangitikei River district (N.J.), asks A Query for advice anent red clover About Clover, and cow grass. He intends

trying clover for the purpose of killing weeds, and preparing the land for a [ crop of wheat next year. The land, he says, I is alluvial deposit, deep and good, lying upon I a subsoil of friable clay. By this he means ! a clay that is not stiff and retentive, but easily cultivated. I should think, however, that the character of the subsoil siiould not trouble him much seeing that the top soil is in no place less than 12in deep, and in some patches 3ft or 4ft deep. He thinks clover ought to do well, and I agree with him, and wish more farmers had the same sort of land upon which to grow plover, or anything else. Well, "Experiment " wonts to know whether to sow cow grass or red clover, when to sow, and how much seed per acre. As he only wants the clover for one rea-on to prepare the land for wheat, rod elo-'or will bo the no^t suitable, being faster ut>cl ■ .inker in growth. Rod clover is only a !no'\r_! >' — f'sat is, lasting for two years ; while cow grass is of i more perennial nature. It, uho has mure o? n tap root, and is perhaps on that account a, better medium for preparing land for wheat. Any of the clovors aro good for that purpose, but especially broad-leaved red clover, as it exposes a Lirc;e leaf surface to the atmosphere, and is thus able to concentrate weak solutions of plant food, and prepare them for fertilising [ the succeeding crop. There is much confusion in many farmers' minds about the diffo- j rence between cow grass and red clover, and j many 6ay that both are exactly alike. This is not tho case, howeter, if the seed id true to name, and if a farmer buys, as he thinks, both kinds, and finds them both alike in growth, the only explanation is Ihpt he has been deceived by his seed merchant. Cow ! grass has a smooth and solid stem, while the stems of broad-leaved English red clover are hairy and hollow. Tho leaf of cow grass is narrower, and the plant is iater in coming into bloom than red clover.

As regards time to sow, 1 should advise "' Experiment" to sow as soon as he gets this reply. In that latitude, clover can be sowu much earlier than with southern farmers. He 6a«-s he wants to cut a crop of hay, but I question whether he will get a bulky crop the first summer after sowing, as the plants are too young and soft. I find the second summer's growth makes a much heavier crop ot clover hay. Ifc should be grazed the first season, to make it thicker and stronger in growth. Hofteverj my querist can please himself about

that. If tho land is rich, and the season good, he will get a good lot of feed at any rale. The quantity of seed per acre varies according to the circumstances. "Experiment" wants to smolher weeds; therefore he should sow thickly. From 61b to 101b per acre is the usual amount, and my Rangitikei friend will not find 101b 100 much for his purpose if the germinating percentage is about 20. There are about 282,000 seeds of red clover in a pound weight, and lib per acre allows 22 square inches to each seed, therefore, if all the seeds germinate, a sowing of 101b per acre gives a fraction over two square inches of surface to each seed. In this connection I would remind " Experiment " that the director of Lincoln College farm reported in the Witness of July 28 that the wheat plot after red clover gave the best yield of all with one exception, and that was the plot after a summer fallow. The director says tlie good results on the wheat plots aflei clover are entirely due to the amount and range of tho clover roots. The roots of red clover are he Fays, the largest and deepest in their range, they therefore can gather the most nitrogenous and mineral matter for the succeeding wheat crop, while also keeping the soil more open and friable.

The same farmer sends me an account of certain experiments he and Lime others are making in the for "Wheat. Rangitikei district. A 40-a.cie field has been selected, and is to be sown with wheat as follows: — five acres to have lOcwt of lime per acre, live acres Bcwt per acre, five acres 6cwt, and so on, reducing the dose by 2cwt per acre with each plot. One plot is*to have no lime, and one 3cwt bone meal, another 2cwt, and another lewfc per acre. He promises lo send me the results of these trials in due time, but I'm afraid that the quantity of lime mentioned is too small to have any appreciable effect. Much depends also upon whether the soil is lacking in lime or not. j-ie is sowing the lime with a broadcast seed sower, but no more than scwt per acre can be applied at once in that way, and any quantity above sewt must be put on by going over the ground again. This is probably a cheap way of applying a small dose, but a heavy application (2 tons per acre, say) is generally carted over the land in small heaps and spread by hand. With regard to the artificial manure for wheat, I would again draw "Experiment's" attention to the report of the director of Lincoln Col- ' le^e» regarding experiments made with last year's crops. Wheat, oats, and barley were manured without success, Ihere being no noticeable difference in the appearance of the plots, and no difference in the yields as compared with the plots that had no fertilisers. Air Bayne, the director, admits that the dry season was unfavourable to the proper action of the cereal manures, but he evidently has not much failh in applying artificial manures to cereals under any icircumstances. "Lxperiment" says they can get plenty of straw on the Rangilikei land, but the yield of wheat is not in proportion to the bulk of straw. 1 don't think the lime or the bone meal will improve matters much in that respect. Perhaps it would answer to sow the wheat earlier, feed it off hard late in the spring with hoggets, and thus check the leaf growth, increase the number of seed stalks and also strengthen the straw. I heard last year of a northern farmer who was induced to try a special cereal compound manure to strengthen the straw and keep the crop from lodging, as the land was rich and deep reclaimed swamp. From what I could gather, however, the result was not very satisfactory, and the part treated with the special cereal compound was iust as limp and long in the straw as the rest of the field. It may interest "Experiment to know that there is a wheat called lorn Thumb " which grows with a shorter and stiffer straw than the usual sorts grown, ant. on that account it is recommended for ricn. moist land, upon which wheat is apt to become twisted and lodged. I have not tnec this wheat, and have not yet ascertained whether it is a crossbred or a variety introduced from other countries. I believe the seed is obtainable in northern markets.

It may not be generally know that some of the varieties of cow cabbage are Sonsc tianleH quite good enough for culm Mtles. ary purposes. As a matter of fact, some ot these large cabbases produce a compact heart of better quality than the winter savoy cabbages. In 4me Home towns cattle cabbages are sold pprrularlv by "rcpnjrrocers. and in some places [lie market gardener does a good trade in these large cabbage*. .Ox cabbage may be orown to .oomo in during the whole of the winte>- months, if due regard is paid to the timo of sowing and the varieties grown. They ore mild Bavoured, and easily digestible, and 'their immense size is a big consideration whore a large family has to bo catered for. The two best varieties in favour in England aro beef-heart and drumhead. Apart, therefore from their value for cattle feeding, the large, firm hearts aro not to be despised on Ihe table in winter, when other kinds of cabbage are scarce. A new kind of apple, named the royal snow apple, is finding great favour in Rant. Ifc is a dessert -apple of exceptionally tine flavour. In Canada it is considered to be the best apple in the world, which is saying a great deal in its favour. On account of its recognised excellence, it was the variety selected to be presented to her Majesty on the occasion of her diamond jubilee. The royal snow apple must therefore be of exceptionally good quality, »ud I should like U}

hear of its being introduced to this colony by pome of our nurserymen. It appears thai New Zealand is not the only country exposed to danger from the importation of diseased fruit. A consignment of beautiful, rosy -looking American apples wiu recently refused admission into Germany, 01. the ground that the fruit was infested with a small insect which is known to be most in jurious to the products of orchards. Large consignments of Ameiican apples arc sent to England, and heaving of the refusal by Ger many lo accept. Ihe fruit, the English Board of Agriculture has taken steps to do likewise. Insect pests are r,o numerous that, the battle of the fruitgrower will for the future have tc be ioughl against, a foe insignificant as tc size, but formidable as to the legions of battnl lions being constantly recruited from then ranks. Tho good old times when clean fruit could be gi own almost- anywhere are gone , but now that our countiy is overrun wiui in sect pests, stringent laws are passed to pre vent what we have too much evidence of ai already existing in our midst

AGKICOLA