OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

Otago Witness, Issue 2975, 22 March 1911, Page 20

OUR CANTERBURY AGRICULTURAL BUDGET.

(From Ou\r Ovvn Courespomdent.) —General Farming Notes.— While a number of light showers of rain have fallen during the past two weeks, the weather for the most part has been unusually warm (up to 88deg in the .shade), and distinctly unlavourable for farming conditions. Feed has diminished in a very rapid manner, and pasture that was green a few weeksi ago has been parched brown, and vegetatioin of all classes has been mere or less destroyed by blight. Indeed, on the light soils near the soa coast stock food is very scarce, and after inspecting the barren fields, one can hardly credit how tiv.> sheep and lambs manage to subsist. Pastoral conditions are certainly better in the districts nearer the hills; but here again the dry weather is also leaving its Indelible mark. Another serious effect of tho weather lies in the fact that water is becoming scarce, and several county councils are experiencing no little difficulty in maintaining their services. The rivers have not been to low for years, and the supply ih natural creeks in a number of instances has given out entirely. Generally matters are anything but cheerful for both agriculturists and pastoral ists, and if rain does net fall at a very early dato, the prospects for the winter will necessarily be unpromising. There is one consolation, however, and that is that Canterbury, in common with most parts of the Dominion, quickly recovers from a drought. One peculiar feature of the dry spell of weather is that it should have been experienced at this . period of the year—a fact unprecedented in the history of the province. Owing to the shortage of feed, dairying has received a severe set back, and supplies of milk to factories have dropped to a very low level.

All classes of store sheep and lambs have also receded in value on an average of 2s per head, as compared with prices ruling' several weeks ago, when the feed prospects were brighter. Indeed," there is very little demand for store sheep othor thla.n reliable young breeding ewes, and at the ewe fairs at Culverden and Ashburton last week, good clearances were effected for this class of sheep at prices between 2s 6d and 3s per head lower than those that were ruling at a corresponding period last year. Aged and inferior-bred sheep are difficult to dispose of, and as they are in anything but good condition, a continuance of the present weather for another two weeks will mean that a comparatively large number will have to be sent to the freezing works for boiling down and potting purposes. Already, a fairly large number have been dealt with in this way. Farmers who have t no reserves of turnips, are experiencing much difficulty in fattening off their, lambs and wethjerfi, and although a large number are being sent forward to the freezing works daily, they are not in very pirime condition. At. last week's ewe fairs, breeding sheep (four, six and eight-tooth) sold ait an average of 13s" 6d to 14s, while up to 18s lOd was obtained for bestti quality holfbred sheep. Large consignments of sheep are being, brought by rail into Canterbury from the south, and the majority of these are being "hawked," as it were, by dealers -from one stock sale centre to another. The soil, tco, is in such a. baked condition near the surface that farmers are obliged to face a great deal of difficulty in ploughing grass land; while -the roads generally are cut up irn a shocking manner. ... Threshing has recommenced, and in the course of another two weeks comparatively little wheat will be left in the stacks. The grain is now in capital order, but the prices offered by mercWante are not inducing holders to part except in those instances where farmers are in urgent need of money. A fairly large quantity of the wheat that is now being threshed is giving returns on an average of 37 bushels r>er aoref and I have heard of instances "where farmers, who had several hundred acres in crop last season have obtained over 4 bushels per o«*f- , Pea crops are threshing remarkably well, the yields in a large percentage of cases being over 40 bushels per acre, which must be considered a very remunerative return. The onlv drawback, however, m growing peas is that they require a lot of harvesting and involve a great deal of labour. The weather this season has been favourable to the successful harvesting of the crop, which has been cultivated' fairly extensively. _ Cbaffoutters art. now busily engaged m the province converting the oat crop into ohaff, but in view of the shortage of natural feed' farmers will be obliged to reserve more than the ordinary quantity to tide their stock over the winter. Good heavy samples of oa-ts for sowing purposes are still in keen demand, and prices are herdenin«. Quite a large number of farms are now on the market for sale, but comparatively few are changing hands at public auction. The settlers on the Rosewill Estate. South Canten-bury, have enjoyed a particularly Rood season up till the present. One settler informed me a few days ago that he haldl reaped 43. bushels of wheat pear acre, and that a number of his neighbours had also obtained equally gratifying results. In reply to a letter from Mr W. K. Watson, eeoretarv of the Ashburton. Co-opera-tive Dairv Company, Mr Ouddiie, of the Government Dairying Department, wrote as follows:—"In reply to your letter of the 13th inst., I may say that rape is not considered a suitable food for dairy cows, and your company would be well advised to notify the suppliers that milk or cream from cows fed on rape cannot be received. The milk, as well as the cream,,_ will become badly tainted with feed of this nature, and pasteurising the cream will not eliminate it. If this practice is persisted in, complaints are sure to be made regarding the qnaJitv of the butter. While it may be considered a suitable food for dry cattle, or for sheep, something that will not taint the milk should be used for dairy cows. So far as we are awaro no experiments have proved that pasteurisation will enable the manufacture of a sood butter from milk or cream that has been tainted in this way." Recently Mr John G-rigg, of Longbeach, who leaves shortly for an extended trip to Great Britain and the Continent, was entertained at a banquet by th« leading farmers and residents of the Ashburton County.

Among these present was the Hon. T.hos. Mackenzie, Minister of Agriculture. In the course of bis remarks, Mr Mackenzie indicated that there were going to be some important changes made in the Agricultural Department, and while (said Mr Mackenzie) the officers of the department havo done good work in the past, he desired that the work in the future should be carried out <yn more effective and practical lines; which, he contended, would be of imimonee benefit to the farmers of New Zealand. Mr Mackenzie, who _ holds opinions identical with those embodied in a letter I wrote two weeks ago, generally made a very practical speech, and his visit to Ash burton was much appreciated. Without attempting to sound a pessimistic note, it must be admitted that matters pertaining to the farm are becoming very serious, and to set things right at least 24 hours' rain are required. The weather- this (Monday) morning is again intensely hot.