WELLINGTON AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2804, 11 December 1907, Page 20

WELLINGTON AGRICULTURAL NOTES.

Some personal friends have asked why 1 refer to the weather every The week. The reply is tha* Weatker. the report of the weathep

gives the surest and most? intelligent idea, as to the prospects of crops and grass and progress of work,- etc., in any district that can be given, and thaft it is .the main faotor as- to the success or otherwise of the agriculturist. Let* the farmer plough and till ever so per* fectly, — without seasonable rain his laboui* will be .in vain. In the Never-Neyert Country "of Australia the value of station! property is largely fixed by the readings) of the rain-gauge over a period of yearsIn New Zealand there is not the sam« need to study the rainfall j_ 'still, the records of the rain-gauge over the past decade or two are well worthy the consideration off anyone going to a strange district with the intention of settling on the land. ' Int fact, meteorology is not given tho attention it deserves, especially by those whoi have to make their living out of the landl. In a certain sense every one is dependeafi on the products of the coil, 6O that A thousand or two spent by the Government in inaugurating an efficient staff of meteorologists would be money well spent in the) interests of the community at large — even in what is termed God's Own Country. We have reverses at times that might be ia a measure averted by a better understanding of the vagaries of the weather. Since my last notes were written all the southern part of the N.I. has been favoured with 1 two steady falls of rain, which has put a great deal brighter aspect on the *arm. To the early crops that are coming ouu in ear the moisture will be of great Mnefit; while to the late*sown it means a new lease of life, and if we should have another shower to-morrow, of which there is every appearance, some return is assured. rhis-is O'lrea-dj* affecting tbe grwn market, such as it is. At the - present time grass) is growing very fast and feed is plentiful. A month ago the cuttings from lawns were at a. premium in town,, while to-day you have to pay for carting the' stuff away* To give an idea how fast grass is growing, I may' say that the man who looks aftes the railway station garden plots in Feilding has received instructions to cut the grass every five days and the lawns in the equare once a week.

The doings of the Feilding Beautifying Society are well worthy of Utility «f being recorded, in the hope $ardea FUti. that other towns will follow their example. The society have only been in existence two years, and already they have effected wonders. Previous to the society* • advent the plots in the square were looked after in a> go-as-you-please fashion by tlie Borough Council and business men whose premises were adjacent. But where the greatest imp rovement has been made is at the railway ! station. Like most country railway stations, there was a strip of land between the platforms and the street that was a dump-ing-ground for all kinds of rubbish, grow* ing nothing but toi toi and weeds. With the assistance of the stationmaster (Mr Morton), the society took thia »trip of land (about 20 chains by half a chain) in hand. The railway authorities supplied a few , truck loads of ©oil for levelling. The society. 1 solicited grass seed, shrubs, and plants from seedsmen and nurserymen, and now Feilding railway station gardens win the admiration of travellers. Besides the cleanly appearance it gives to the entrance to the town, it is to be hoped that this 'transformation of waste land will have more far-reaching effect by educating the residents to making use of the land surI rounding their dwellings, and also making I the average farmer ashamed of the surroundings of his home. If only one man I takes such a matter to heart and improve* j the appearance of his home, others will soon follow. GoocK leaven soon permeates the whole batch. The Tain has been of immense advantage 1 to those pregaring the land Itoot for root cropi. Some turCropa. nips are already sown, and everyone will be busy until the holidays, as most seeds should be got in before the first of the year. Flock-owners are makinp every endeavour to get the wool off before Shearing. the holidays, except those - up on the North Trunk line, who do not try to staxt until after ' the New Year. Shearers are now fairly i plentiful. I suppose the East Coast haying! cut out has set at liberty some who follow! up the game. Ordinary farm labour lfl very scarce— in fact, there is none to ba had any distance away from the towns. The lonic landed about 600 immigrants, but even out of such a large number fewofi them are likely to reach the inland districts. The scarcity of labour is a serioua matter at the present juncture. Haymaking will be on us in another week, and haa is a. crop that will notstand any ' duly*