MOMONA.

Otago Witness, Issue 3334, 6 February 1918, Page 23

MOMONA.

February 2. —Tho weather hag been beautifully fine during the week. The days have been bright and sunny, and the conditions have been ideal for the prosecution of farm work of all descriptions. The Harvest.—Harvesting can scarcely be said to have commenced yet in this locality; but the warm weather which we are at present experiencing is bringing in the oroys very rapidly, and reaping will be general m the course- of a week or so. As I have mentioned in previous notes, there are some very heavy wheat crops on tho plains this year; but the area under this cereal is not laTge, and the yields which at one time promised to be heavy will bo considerably reduced by the depredations of email birds. The feathered nuisance is in particular evidence this year—indeed, I do not remember ever having seen the sparrows and linnets so plentiful at this season. It is astonishing the amount of damage which can be done by these pests. In some instances the grain has been almost entirely stripped from the stalks, and'little more than the straw remains. Such fields will barely pay for the labour of reaping and thrashing. Blight.—The potato blight has made its appeara-nce, and is spreading throughout the district. One farmer who has sprayed his potatoes two or three times this season informs me that the blight has appeared in his crop. It is difficult to account for this, as last season, in a field of 15 acres which I sprayed three times, I had scarcely a sign of blight. The cost of spraying has increased enormously since the outbreak of war, sulphate of copper being now quoted at 102 s per cwt. Feed.—Tho turnip crops are looking remarkably 'Well; but a good shower of rain would be of great benefit to them. Grass is still very plentiful—in fact, most farmers have more grass than they have stock for, and a. largo part of the surplus grass has been converted into hay.