NOTES FROM THE NORTH.

Otago Witness, Issue 2360, 18 May 1899, Page 6

NOTES FROM THE NORTH.

Br Foebes Btjhn, F.H.A.S. Evidently the freezing works in Canter-

bury are in advance of their The Freezing provincial supplies of sheep Trade. and lambs suitable for the

export trade, and to keep their outputs from decreasing freezers must bo obtained elsewhere. Otago and Southland have for a long time assisted greatly in swelling ' the list of Canterbury exports, and now the. North Island is being tried for sheep of a suitable class to keep the Canterbury freezing works going. Either the sheep-producing capabilities of Canterbury have diminished or the greed of those who are interested in the erection of freezing works has led them too far ahead. If the Canterbury freezing worses were dependent on their home supplies alone they would find their operations seriously curtailed. No reason — at least, no satisfactorily reason — can be given why Otago and Southland should not freeze their own sheep and lambs, and the query is more difficult to answer in regard to the North Island trade. A writer in a Canterbury weekly in regard to the importation of sheep from the north throws out a most generous piece of advice — viz., that these sheep should be considered as- forward stores on their arrival. This, of course, means a short keep so that they may graduate as . " Prime Canterbury." Sheep that are considered fat in the north to be regarded as forward stores in Canterbury means considerable loss and shrinkage, and could be avoided if they were frozen in their own island. Things are unequally divided, and in many districts in the north the producer is placed at a serious disadvantage by the absence of freezing works in suitable localities, or compelled tc take price 3 that are tabled by .the freezing companies. I know of one district up the East Coast that has produced about 30.000 freezers this season, and these sheep have had to be travelled plong bush tracks and bad roads a distance of over 80 miles to the nearest freezing works.

* All round- the prices ruling for 'rams thi3 season have befen low. Either The Late , the supply was greater than Ram Sa'es. 'the demand or the quality

of the sheep was inferior. I am inclined to think the former cause was responsible for prices that leave little or no margin of profit for the breeders, although there is always a lot of rams offered for sale that should have been turned into wethers. It struck me in looking over the sale lists that in many cases there was not much difference in price between those s'ueep which basked in" the mystic advantages of being " registered " and those which could lay no claim to be counted as select ; and this leads me to make a few remarks in regard to registered flocks and the Flock Book. The idea of the formation of a flock book was a most laudable one, arid if carried out in a proper manner it would undoubtedly have borne good fruit. The free, and easy manner in which the New Zealand Flock Book w&3 founded and is carried out compares very unfavourably with the modes of procedure of those responsible for the flock books in tine old country. Flocks are carefully examiued, and each individual sheep has to be up 'to a certain standard before they are eligible for registration. These are tattooed with the society's brand, and only the progeny of these sheep can be entered in the Flock Book. Still further, every four years these registered flocks are oarefully examined by competent judges, and the inferior sheep discarded, thus ensuring a high order of merit of thoFe contained in the pages of thff Flock P>ook. Until suchlike proceedings are instituted by those responsible for the New Zealand Flock Book I am afraid the mere fact of any flock being registered will neither tend towards the improvement of our sheep" nor induce purchasers to give more for rams of this description than for rams whose appearance only is their sole recommendation.

I was rather surprised at some of the views , advanced at a recent discusPloughing sion at a meeting of a South Matches-. Canterbury- agricultural so-

ciety held for the purpose of discusssing the profa and cons for holding a ploughing match. The idea heems to be prevalent that the?e matches tend to teach young ploughmen to ocrike out well, and plough in such a manner that the ground is well turned over and never missed. In my humble opinion the reverse is the case. Take, for example, striking out on lea in the orthodox style — the laying together of the furrows nice and level, without the vestige of a " crown." The first and second furrows are mere scratches, and the third little bettor. In tact, it is the fourth furrow before the plough is at the proper depth. Now, consider the width of ground that is mis«ed every time a strike out is made fit for a ploughing competition. Again, a certain amount of "comb" is supposed to be necesi-ary on the edge of the turned-up furrow, which is effected by putting on a " false cut," leaving the bottom of the furrow about an inch deeper on the " land " side than on the other. If the "finish" were left as it is at ploughing matches it would be a sorry look-out for the reapers and binders. Before the introduction of drill-sowing machines it was necescary to prc3s your furrows close together, as is done at ploughing matches ; but we require no such work as that now. Then it was, sow your seed first, and then cultivate your ground; now it is, cultivate your ground before seed-sowing. If the society in question wishes to educate the young ploughman as to how his coulter and shares should be properly set, co that the least possible draught is ensured, let them purchase a dynamometer, and test the weight the teams are pulling. They might be able by doing so to diffuse some useful experiences, which they are not likely to do by merely returning- to the old-fashioned ways of their forefathers. If the practice of throwing out two, or even three, furrows when striking out and then throwing the furrows back again were encouraged and explained to ploughmen, tho farmers would be taking one step towards economical work in ploughing.

There seems to be an erroneous idea fixed in the minds of many farmers Lime. aa to the true position held by lime when applied to land. Lime in itself is not a manure, but when applied to land it acts in two ways — mechanically and chemically. In clay soils lime acts mechanically by making the land more friable ; chemically, by setting free plant food that otherwise could not be assimilated. There are few soils indeed that do not contain naturally bufiicicnt lime to build up the plants' structure. By applying li -** Aftan and in moderate auautities you

set free suffioient available food for the plantir for the time being. When applied, in & large quantity you waste by setting free from nature's storehouse greater quantities than the plants can make 'use of. It is a fallacy to think that it is unnecessary to manure land merely because it has had an application . of lime. • •- *