NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2929, 4 May 1910, Page 7

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

That grass land, whether, temporary or pcrmaneift, is capable of great improvement by the application of fertilising matter on the surface is admitted by every observant farmer, and’ those who carry it out systematically seldom fail to derive considerable benefit therefrom. The improvement is largely effected by the increased amount of herbage which is obtained by the fertilisers used, but is also aided in no small degree by its superior quality in nourishing the animals,* as quality of herbage is almost better than increased amount of food. When top-dress-ing is persisted in year after year, its beneficial effects are quickly noticeable by the clearing away of all the old tufts of coarse grass formerly left by stock, a green sward of sweet and clean pasture covering the surface of the field. Its effect on the produce, growth, and condition of the stock soon becomes also apparent, dairy cows yielding a larger quantity of richer milk, j and consequently increasing the cash re- j ceipts for each season. Young stock grow ] quicker and become more substantial in; frame, yearlings often- becoming worth as j ■much as two-year-olds formerly' fetched, j Land that previously could only keep ani- j male in merely store condition becomes able I in the course of a very few years to turn | them out in finished condition for the ■ butcher. If experiments are carried out with the view of testjng the merits of j ■different .applications the response given j by the various grasses and clovers to even i a slight application wall surprise anyone j who has had no previous experience of im- ' proving the herbage of a field by topdressings. Even if pure earth, without the ! slightest admixture of fertilising matter of j any kind, is spread over the grass and I broken up and pulverised by the action of ! the chain harrow, the stones picked oft’ and ! then the field rolled, a great improvement will be noticeable in the pasture during the j succeeding growing season. The colour | will be of a healthier and deeper green, ' and the quantity of food available greatly increased.

Top-dressing Gra'g.

W 1 looks round a winter show and sees the splendid samples of grain, roots and other things placed on exhibition, he is apt to give the whole of the credit to the cultivator, and overlook the part played by the individual who supplied the seed. The credit given should be of a dual character, as cultivation is not alone responsible for the best productions obtained in agriculture. On the other hand, the man who sets out to produce the best of anything in the shape of a crop must, to meet with success, begin by having good seeds of a a high-class variety. Volumes have been written describing the means adopted by hybridists, scientists, and seed-growers in order to obtain what are called pedigree seeds, and there is strain in plants just as there is in live stock. It is possible that many of the so-called distinct varieties ar© too much alike to be classed actually as distinct, but so long as they are really good the name is not a matter of great importance. It is the pedigree that counts, and the reminder is opportune at the present time, when many farmers are busy getting seed wheat into th© ground. In a previous note the value of pedigree in live stock was dwelt upon, and farmers and stock-owners were urged to buy only the best strains of animals available. This advice is equally applicable to grain and roots, as it is not possible to expect that the yields of grain or the weight and feeding value of roots grown from lower grade seeds will be as good as those seeds which bear the hall-mark of some well-established and reliable firm. At the time of exhibitions everything must come in its season, and there is hardly a tim© of the year when there is not a show of some kind or another to record. Lately we have had several horticultural exhibitions, _ a dog and poultry show is already advertised, and the annual winter dairying, grain, and liv© stock exhibition opens at the end of this month. At the latter show in ordinary seasons massive roots compete with each' other on the table, and samples of grain of several varieties from different j parts of the country ar© displayed to the best advantage. At these winter _ shows j one sees agriculture and horticulture • hand-in-hand, as it were, for big mangels | and swedes are displayed along with apples and other products of the orchard, while from the poultry yard and dairy com© ] dressed birds', eggs, and various samples of J farmers’ butter. Winter root and grain shows ar© always interesting, as they display the finished work of the farmer in the Various sections. Unusually large roots and giant mangels may not meet with general approval; but they certainly show the possibilities of cultivation, apd though grain is very often below the standard, the

Pedigree Seeds.

150o f and Grain E chibits.

samples offered in competition show that in spite of unusually dry seasons there is excellent grain in the country. In this province the metropolitan winter show is splendidly supported by every member of the community, and the various lectures, conferences, etc., invariably largely assist the success of an interesting and useful exhibition.

ZvTany people often cut down old apple trees i to graft them with new varieties. Now, it is possible to be wrong in this, for one of the first requisites is a [ healty stock, and in nine cases out of ten the fruit tree fails on account of the root, and not on account of the branches. In other words, the cankered branches and blighted fruit, or the failure of fruit altogether, result Torn something wrong below. It is not suggested that there are oases of unhealthy varieties in healthy stocks, but this may chiefly be known by the stock itself making vigorous efforts to grow, and being healthy and sound in its appearance. If, as in many orchards is the case, the roots have got into something they dio not like, and the usual symptoms of ill-health appear, something besides grafting with a new sort is necessary, and the remedy must be applied at the right place. For instance/ on a hot, gravelly soil an operation was recently performed very successfully, and the orchard' reaped the advantage of it in a renovated growth. First the roots were laid bare, and the large ones were forked between as well as could bo done at a distance of three or four yards. There the roots dipped down into the gravel, and the ends were out off. The surface soil was thrown into the bottom with some fresh loam, a load to each tree, and a load of the lower soil removed from the place, all being accojiinlished without disturbing the tree. It underwent so vigorous a pruning that not more than one-third was left, and that only the most healthy wood. In other eases w'faere the variety itself was bad the trees were out back to within a foot or so of the place where the branches start from the main stem or trunk, and new sorts were grafted’. The reduction of the head was in both cases equivalent to the loss at the roots, and even those which were not grafted made excellent young vigorous shoots, which in time bore sound, clean fruit. Now. in these cases the mere cutting back and grafting would have been useless. The diminished demand of the trunk and roots would have enabled the graft to shoot strong, but no sooner would the latter come into good bearin than it would partake of the disease of the trunk, and, like the original tree, be useless. Owing to the operation described years would alanse before the roots WO’ ;Td reach, ihe gravel again, because the upper soil would be much more inviting, and there would be every chance of reaping an advantage that would compensate for all the labour bestowed on the remedy. With regard to the grafting of old trees on account of the beads being cankered the operation hs„ been carried out very extensively. In many cases such grafts have grown vigorously- for three years, but then have become diseased, like the branches which they have superseded. Hence it might be taken as a- general rule that if a tree is unhealthy the mischief is at the bottom. The roots are probably in soii that does not agree with them, and there is but one remedy for the mischief, which is changing as much of the soil as is pos- j sihle and cutting off communication with ! the old soil. This will prenare the tree to do one or two things—either to renew its original branches or to receive grafts from a new head on a portion 'of its branches, and hear fruit on the remainder, which may be cut away as the grafted portion grows.

The orafting of 01(1 Apple Trees.

The application of liberal dressings of farmi yard manure and fertilisers to orchards and fruit gardens is a profitable investment. and autumn is the best time to take the work in hand. The fertilising mbstances will be for the most part taken up by the trees our in- the flrst season, and any quantity not thus utilised will be stored up In the soil for future use. A good supply 'n the autumn may exercise a decisive effect on the next hunt crop. It is easy to understand that there should be in the soil and in the stems of the trees and plants a store of nourishment ready to be put to tood use as soon as growth sets in in the spring. One might as well.,give a horse a feed only when he has hard work to do as supply plant food to a tree after it has started spring growth. The roots and stems should be given time to assimilate a stock which the growing plant oa.n at once draw prion. Thu applies especially to phosphate, potash, and organic _ nitrogen, and not to nitrate of soda, which, when applied in the soring, is directly available AGRICOLA. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. By Agbicola. G-. G., Clinton, writes:—l am about to sow some autumn oats, the seed of which had a good bit of smut in it before harvesting. Would you advise me to pickle it with formalin, and if s 9 would you kindlv advise how to use it?——Your letter arrived just too late to he replied to last week. It would he to vour advantage to sow clean oats if possible. F#r

Man nvivor Oretifi-ds f>nd Fruit Gardens.

pickling- the Bead with formalin- the following proportions, etc., are recommended: —lib of formalin (16oz avoirdupois) to 40 gallons of water, the seed to be thoroughly mixed by turning over two or three times, md then sow within 24hours after mixing. Formalin can be obtained from the New Zealand Drug Company (Messrs Kempthorne, Pro seer, and Co.), Dunpdin.