AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2666, 19 April 1905, Page 21

AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL NEWS.

The dairy shipment which left Wellington ©n Thursday for London by the Tongariro comprised: — From Auckland — 1034 boxes butter, 308 cases cheese. From New Plymouth — 4274 boxes butter. From Patea — 2549 boxes butter. From Wellington — 2662 boxes butter, 1449 cases cheese (including New Plymouth and Patea). From Lyttelton — 191 boxes butter, 55Q. cases cheese. From Dunedin — 291 boxes butter, 436 cases cheese. From Oamaru 186 cases cheese. From Bluff — 1723 cases cheese. Total, 11,001 boxes butter, 4652 cases cheese. The production of fat poultry d&es not increase- (says the Lytfcelton Times). An advertisement for 10,000 head has brought very f«w r responses, although good prices ar? offered. The fowls are wanted for export to South Africa. A -well-known Palmerston sheep farmer, ■who has had 40 years experience of sheep dealing, predicts that there will be a serious slump in the value of sheep before the end of the year, more especially as regards the ■prices at present ruling for ewes. A correspondent points out (says the Christchurch Press) that this season, owing to a scarcity of honey in the red clover crops, the humble bees were attracted to other flowers for honey and pollen. Last ■winter being wet- many of the nests of the tumble bees in low banks and drains were swamped, and there have not been so many bees observed in North Canterbury as usual. At the Amuri saleyards, Oulverde-n, on Thursday last, there was a good attendance of the public. The total sh&ep entry was 20,465, made up of 1779 fat lambs, 970 fat sheep, 5638 store lambs, and 12,078 store sheep. Bidding was brisk for all good lines, but rates were easier. Fat lambs leached 17s lOd, store lambs 16s 9d, fat wethers 22s Bd, fat ewes 19s 3d. A line of merino ewes from the Molesworth. country was sold for Parnassus at 13s sd. The warehouseman of the Lyttelton Harfoour Board has written to t.ac Agricultural "^nartment, Christchurch, stating that the Hrrbour Board has decided to withdraw the accommodation for cool storage of eggs at present furnished at its cool stores, as the business hitherto done does not justify the extra expense aaid sacrifice of room.

In the North Canterbury district some of the potato crops, in spite of the fact that ihj haulms have withered off prematurely, will give good yields. There is nothing like the demand for potato diggers which there has- been in former seasons, but this is mainly due to the wet winter and spring, "whereby a wide area of seed was destroyed. Nine hundred and fifty s»heep~lrom the Chatham Islands were landed at Lyttelton from the s.s. Toroa on Friday last. The b.-s. Rotomahana brought 510 from Wellington. , Babbite are doing extensive damage on

West Australian stations. It is stated by a ; station manager from Fraser's Range- that ( there is hardly a blade of grass to be seen there on the run. All young trees and shrubs are literally skinned, and what wae formerly good stock-carrying country is now destitute of herbage. The Gore sheep-dog trials are to come off on May 3 and 4. Very substantial prizes | are offered, ranging from £1 to £10 ; and 1 given fine weather a most enjoyable day's outing should result. Full particuiuars I will be found elsewhere in this issue.