MOTOR FARMING.

Otago Witness, Issue 3085, 30 April 1913, Page 17

MOTOR FARMING.

The world is moving on, and wo of this generation are gradually getting accustomed to tlie idea of doing our farm work —or. at least, the heaviest part of it—bv motive power instead of horses. It is pretty certain, however, that the progress ot motor work would be much more satisfactory if the makers of those implements would adapt themselves to ordinary farm work more than they do. The steam plough and' the fit cam cultivator have never been the success which was anticipated at one time, simply because they are too large and cumbersome for ordinary fields and farms, as we have them in this country, while where it was possible to do cheap work flip drivers wore too afraid to dig the implements in for fear of bursting their boilers, or for fear they would not get over the acres quickly enough. The point to he kept in view now by agricultural engineers is to make combined motor-driven imp'ernenls small enough to do the work of two, or at most four horses, and to suit our small fields by being easily turned at the headlands. A motor which can pull a onefurrow plough is enough, because that fm-. row should be as deep as the “staple” of the soil will al'ow, up to a foot if possible, with a corresponding width, and

if a sub-soiling tine runs in front to rip up the bottom of the furrow to another lialrfoot, so much the better. To save turning at the headlands a right jjuJ left plough, working back.vards and forwards in the same furrow, is another advantage. The same motor must be able to pull a corndrill, a harrow, a cultivator, or all combined at once; be able to trail a waggon or lorry with two to three tons of stuff loaded on ; must also be able to draw a string-binder, and, as a stationary engine, drive a thrashing machine or chaffeuttor, etc. The problem is not to do the work on a large scale —for the work on the Canadian plains is an example of what can be done in this line which cannot fol’ow in this country,— but to reduce the size and cost of an outfit and the scale of work it docs to suit ordinary fields and farming, and to take the place of ordinary horse work. We are getting on that way a little now, however, and this season has seen distinct advances in this line; but there is a long road yet to go before oil supersedes horses to a very great extent. If deep ploughing and sub-soiling alone wore more practised and catered for by implement and motor-makers, it would be a great advance.