NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3400, 14 May 1919, Page 10

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

One refers to the stock markets and present prices with some trepidation. If there was plenty of feed the position generally might be viewed with equanimity. If fine open weather prevailed for several weeks, it would help a lot, but in Otago-Southland a. good deal of .artificial feeding during the winter months is absolutely necessary if stock are to be kept in any sort of condition. Some cause for anxiety lies in the fact that the stock numbers in the- province appear over-many, while the condition to-day of a fair proportion is only so-so, the temptation to carry more than usual on pastoral country owing to the low prices going may jeopardise the flock proper; certainly there is the risk that, owing to the holding being heavily stocked, the next clip per head may bo lighter, perhaps tender, and the ewe “winter” in not A 1 fettle. It is a problem to know just what is best to do. Even if there was ample space available at , the works so that “fats” and “seconds” could be taken freely, the question of getting a full board of butchers is a matter of some concern with not a few companies. The lucky ones that have space cannot handle the flood of “fats” fast enough to make any impression on all offering. It is a sorry business for all concerned,' pinching farmers the more horribly in as much os so many of them do “dealing” connived at by the stock and station agents, and. in consequence, neglecting legitimate farming. A has secured as much for his lambs and surplus ewes and wethers as his neighbours, who In the past cultivated a fair area in roots, rape, etc. This has more than once, so B goes out of cultivation as soon as he can manage it; all goes well till the inevitable happens—too many depend-

The Stock Markets.

ing on tho other fellow to grow the feed,-* and then comes the day of reckoning. The of shipping, etc., has but brought! tho business up with a round turn rathefr sooner—that's all.

It is particularly desirable that the most should be made of our hay and straw stacks, in view of the cold weather commencing so early, and the very moderate prospects of there being any plenitude of winter feed in the fact of the number of stock in more or less thin condition in the province. The feeding of hay or stray from suitable racks is preferable to allowing the material to bo trampled under foot. Nor should overmuch be fed at one time. It should, in fact, all be cleaned up in an hour or so. Generally speaking, wheat straw is the least nutritious, and one cannot rely on it to any great extent. Sound oaten straw, on the other hand, makes good useful food for cattle and horses, and probably in nutritive value is about half as good as hay for store animals. It is too valuable to use for bedding purposes. _ Where one has hay and straw, if some ingenuity is displayed, economical feeding might be effected by chaffing the hay and mixing it with straw draff. Milking cows, of course, must get the best feed going, and only when the How of milk shrinks should there be any tinkering with her feeding. Something may he done, ih view of the shortage of feed to increase tho fodder crops, and at least an attempt made to have something coming away in early spring

Economy In the Use of Foodstuffs.

The following not© is based on information supplied by farmers to the English Board of Agriculture : —The modern and most approved method of sowing wheat—namely, by drilling—is not adapted for wet weather, and work might in a wet season be seriously hampered, particularly on the heavier classes of soil, which, once thoroughly soaked in lata autumn, are apt to remain wet and urn workable for many weeks. Farmers in such circumstances might consider the question of sowing seed broadcast. About one bushel per acre more seed will be required than that normally allowed for drilling, but this should be by the advantage of earlier sowing, the saving of labour, and the larger area that can be tackled. A well-set-up furrow, properly harrowed- after sowing, provides ample _ covering for tha v seed and, at the same time, enables water to get away more freely than the finer and deeper tilth usually prepared for drilling. The practice of broadcasting and ploughing in is occasionally followed on free-working soils after potatoes, mangolds, or turnips which have been cleared late in the season. In such cases the surface soil is already friable, and the usual preliminary ploughing and harrowing may thus bo dispensed with. The seed is sown oh tho surface and immediately ploughed in to a depth of 2m or 3in, and tho land need not, as a rule, bo harrowed afterwards. This method provides a seed-bed of the requisite _ firmness below, while at the same time it_ is left in a mellow, yet not too fine, condition above. The practice is not suited to heavy land, as there is a danger of the plant not coming through. AGRIOOLA.

Broadcast Wheat-Sowing;

ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. By Ageicola. “Inquirer,” Hokonui, sends a sample of blight which has appeared amongst grass seed stacked in a barn. The seed apparently is not affected, but the floor is covered. What is it, and will it damage the seed?—lt is the chaff mite (genus Tyrogiynhus), and occurs at times in bran, chaff, cereals, grass, and turnip seeds. In quantity they would cause material damage. One sees the mites in many of the stores hereabouts. They depreciate the feeding value of fodder if' in large quantities. Dr Cockavne conducted many experiments to control them, when infestation occurred in the fodder belonging to the Defence Department stored in Wellington in 1915, waiting shipment. They appear to succumb at low temperatures. The mites _ died when exposed for one'hour to the direct rays of the sun Temperature _ 80deg Fahr.h Sieving or blowing in combination with low temperatures mav prove useful methods for destroying the mites. Good dry conditions in the shed are advisablej and an abundance of circulating air and light is desirable.

"New Ohum," Arrowtown, sends plant for identification, and queries its feeding value. He also asks the difference in feeding value of raoe and peas if fed green to stock ? One of the poas, a native (Poa. imbecilla variety) of secondary value, but having a certain use as hill pasturage. These native" grasses have really not been tried out, and one is loth to condemn any of them. In suitable environment possibly of considerable value. The difference in value of a foodstuff cannot -be expressed in numbers, nor can it be measured tea balance. It depends a good deal on the extent to which each constituent of a food is digestible. It depends, too, on the kind of animal, whether horses, cattle, sheep, or pigs. Rape may be termed a succulent food in contrast to the usual dry food, such as hay or pea straw, etc. You alone can determine what additional purchased food can be most profitablv associated with the produce, on the farm.