NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3768, 1 June 1926, Page 12

NOTES ON RURAL TOPICS.

The ploughing of lea and stubble lands should be pushed ahead, Farm Work as the earlier the soil is far June, exposed to wintry conditions the better for enabling readier handling in the spring. The sowing of cereals and possibly in some places the feeding off of too forward wheat may be attempted if there is no delay. Liming should not be delayed any longer. All potatoes should be lifted, and the seed potatoes selected from the best plants. Good-looking seed is not enough. They should be “saved” from the best yielding plants. The setting of potatoes in boxes for early sprouting and an early crop may well be adopted if there is suitable shelter. Once the mangold shows signs of yellow on the lower leaves it should be pulled and harvested in the recognised manner. If some swedes are also saved they may be invaluable for early-lambing ewes and milking cows. The of grass lands should not be omitted. Even if there is not much manure lying about, a good harrowing after rain stimulates the growth of grass. Tidy up all shelter sheds and plantations, and arrange to plant out trees which will do for shelter in the years to come. Burn all rubbish and tidy up the farm, overhauling the harness and oiling it with neatsfoot oil. Sort and mend all implements. Feed stock more generously as the weather gets colder and more wintry. See that old working horses have time to chew their food. Attend to the breeding ewes and rams, removing the latter after a good two months with the ewes. It is unwise to drag on the lambing season unduly. Attend to those squealing pigs, and see that warmth, ample food, and dry bedding are provided. Feed all milkers well, and by providing ample shelter for them economise in foodstuffs. There is no doubt that farm animals, like ourselves, eat more in order to keep up their body warmth if they are exposed to every cold wind that blows.

Milk production is hard work, and the cow deserves a rest by Drying •#! drying her off for some the Cows. six weeks before calving. It is too much to expect an average cow to keep in flesh and at the same time nourish the feetus and produce milk. A cow’ can only do the befit that the conditions will permit, and theee conditions depend upon the owner. Writing on this matter last year I pointed out that in dealing with persistent milkers the feed should,be cut down, and the cow allowed to forage for herself to some extent. At least avoid feeding anything of a succulent nature. If the feed is still abundant and luscious give some good hay daily, and eliminate any fodder likely to foster the production of milk. For about a week omit, say, every third milking, and then milk once daily, and avoid stripping. A few days of this, and then milk her partially, say’, a few streams daily to relieve any tightness of the udder, and gradually in aHwSs.days* leave off milking, finally trying and drawing all the teats. Once milk secretion has subsided there should be no further trouble. It is as well, however, to- handle the cow, and satisfy oneself that she is safe and sound. Individual cases may need more care than others; but the drying-off job is important seeing that on&qyants the cow to come in sound next season. Having dried helKoff be sure that she is not allowed ttevget into a poor condition. Good pasture is about all the dry cow needs if she in good flesh, and she should “come good flesh, and have some reserve With which to begin a high level of tion. A thin cow at calving time a saddening sight, while she will take Jrery nearly a season to make up her condiwin. She should' <r come in ” well and in ; g|od condition. Some days before «alving|!§prticular notice should be taken thafa|*he feeding is of sufficiently laxative to ensure her being in good tone. fggjNo breed of sheep is perhaps immune rZrgrom footrot if the conFootrot ditions are conducive to in Sheep- "disease, although British longwools are not subject to this trouble if given a fair environment and ordinary attention. Any lame sheep should be closely examined, the cause of lameness located, and the horn of the hoof pared and made level with the foot. A season such as the present, when there is moisture, a good grow of vegetation, and more or less confinement predisposes undue growth of the horn, possible 'iffjury to the foot, and lodgment of footrot disease geftus. Serious cases are not readily cured. Simple cases,- on the other hand, can be pured by dressing with disinfectant, and the sheep will go upon the improvement list right away. Some breeds and crosses are more prone to footrot than others, although the horn and structure of the foot are possibly fully as healthy, provided the environment. suits the breed; but given foreign conditions they cannot stand up to the work. The merino, for instance, and his close cousins do well on our higher lands, where there is room to move about and the herbage is short, but on the luscious pastures of the .low lands in a growthy season they may, if not closely watched and given attention, cause no end of trouble, particularly those with badly-formed feet. Some of the Downs, too, if neglected, give cause for anxiety at times. It is important, at all times, to see that the uneven hoof is pared in order to avoid lodgment of germs under the ragged tumed-in edges of the horn.

An American experiment, quoted in the International Review of Vitality al the Science and Practice Barit* Sttdi. of Agriculture, has shown that the depth at which seeds are buried has little influence On

the preservation of their vitality. Their power of germination, after burial, on the other hand, varies according as it is a case of a cultivated plant or an indigenous weed. In the former case it is observed that the seeds, after being taken from the ground, no longer germinate, whereas those of weeds survive for a longer period Among the buried seeds of 107 species of the latter, 71 germinated after one year, 61'after three years, 68 after six years, 60 after 10 years, 50 after 16 years, and 51 after 20

years. This investigation is of practical importance, because it shows that the seeds of the majority of weeds do not perish when ploughed in, and that, therefore, the attempt to eliminate weeds in this w r ay is useless. This fact, on the other hand, does not indicate that it is useless to bury w'eeds before they seed. The vitality of buried seeds ensures the covering of the country with vegetation. AGRICOLA.

ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT. By Agricola.

“Settler,” Canterbury, discussing ringworm among calves, asks (1) for a good remedy; also asks (2f how to pot down butter for winter use. (1) The Irish Farmers' Gazette offers the following cures for calves affected with ringworm: Wash the parts with strong soap and water to remove as much as possible of the crusts or scabs, and when ary rub the spots with some of the following ointment: Flowers of sulphur, 2oz; oil of creosote, 2dr; prepared lard, 4o z. This ointment should be applied each morning and evening. Painting the affected parts with tincture of iodine on alternate days is also very effective, but this agent should not be appilied to any situation near the animal's eyes. The woodwork and the walls of the shed in which these calves are housed should be painted two or three times—Trt least once each week—with hot limewash, to which has been added a couple of ounces of crude carbolic acid. With a little care and attention, one should soon get rid of the trouble. (2) Butter that is to be potted should be made from well-ripened cream. If the cream is too sweet or too sour the butter will not keep properly. The butter must be thoroughly washed with

pure, clean water while in a granular condition to rid it of buttermilk and salt added at the rate of loz to the pound. After working in the salt, set the butter aside to allow the salt to dissolve properly. Then finish working to get the butter as dry as possible. Pack the butter into a glazed earthenware crock that has been scalded out and cooled. It is important to pack the butter firmly, leaving no spaces around the sides. When the crock is full place a layer of salt about 2in thick on the surface of the butter, and stretch a piece of parchment or other airtight material over the top as a finish. Store it in a cool, clean place. It is much better to fill the crock at once, but if different lots are required keep the crock covered in the intervals, or, better still, use smaller jars and fill them at the one operation.

DAIRY PRODUCE BOARD. DATE OF ABSOLUTE CONTROL ALTERED. WELLINGTON, May 26. When the operating of absolute control was fixed by the New Zealand Dairy Produce Export Board for August 1, the choice of the date was influenced by the fact that on that date the board's financial year begins and that the insurance contract terminates on July. 31, but as the export licenses have been issued under a limited control for a period of 12 months terminating on August 31, the board decided in order to avoid any possible interference with the licenses to postpone the date of inception for one month. That is to say absolute control will become operative on September 1, and not on August 1.