FARM SCHOOL

Southland Times, Issue 19898, 17 June 1926, Page 10

FARM SCHOOL

THE OPENING SESSION.

INTERESTING LECTURES.

The Farm School was successfully launched yesterday by Mr A. H. Cockayne, Director of the Fields Division of the Department of Agriculture, and there was a good attendance at all lectures. The lectures were closely followed and some interesting points were raised at the conclusion when questions were invited.

DISEASE CONTROL WORK WITH CEREALS AND ROOTS. The first lecture was given by Mr J. C. Neill, his subject being "The control of cereal and root crop diseases.” During the course of an hour’s address Mr Neill covered a lot of valuable ground and recounted the results of departmental' investigations into the causes of crop depreciation suffered by the farmer. Some of his remarks were illustrated by lantern slides. In formally introducing the speaker the chairman stated that Mr Neill had been working in the fields for many seasons now and some of the results obtained were of great importance and of. interest to* everyone. CEREAL AND ROOT DISEASES. In broaching the subject of his address Mr Neill said he would first of all like to say a few words in regard to the extreme necessity of taking steps to cope with crop diseases. There was a tremendous loss with every crop, a great part of which was generally overlooked, for unless an expert was working on the crop it was very hard to see where any loss occurred. In Southland this year, for instance, stated Mr Neill, one farmer had suffered tremendous loss from oat smut. He had sown about 220 acres in oats, but the time and seed taken to sow at least 80 acres had been of no avail. His loss must have been in 1 the vicinity of £l2OO in cash — which could have been avoided by an initial expenditure of no more than 35/- in preventative measures. In every other crop similar depreciations were experienced. Take swedes, for instance. Everybody knew what an attack of dry rot or club root meant. But beyond this even there was a constant drain which the farmer very rarely could see. A very good example of this was to be found in the potato crop which was subject to the ravages of corticium, a disease which was regarded with very little concern by the farmer. This disease caused more depreciation in a crop than did any other, and yet few took any heed of it. Other diseases also were not regarded as serious meflaces by the farmer. In the case of rusts, for instance, a little discolouration fails to spur the farmer to action. As long as the grain fills satisfactorily he thinks everything is all right and that there was no harm accruing. He must realise, however, that rust must do an immeasurable amount of harm. Every fungus disease was caused by a plant which could not raise its own nourishment from the ground and air but had to derive it from other plants. The reddish patches on a crop—the rust—were the fruits of a fungus which steals the nourishment which should ordinarily go for the development of the grain. Thus if rust developed it must necessarily do so at the expense of the crop. It was a most difficult matter to estimate exactly or scientifically the loss caused by various forms of diseases to which crops were subject and it was essential that some method of disease control should be undertaken. Referring to the Canterbury crops this reason the speaker recalled that at the beginning of the season a damp period created the impression that inferior harvests would be reaped. The crops at first looked very sickly, but later in the season a big improvement set in and they threshed out far better than had been previously anticipated. This coincided with an almost complete absence of rust, and for the first time the grain received all the nourishment the plants were capable of producing. DISEASE CONTROL. Crop diseases, proceeded Mr Neill, were present the world over and wherever crops were grown there also would be found the diseases he had referred to. One would have thought, he stated, that man’s dependence on the crops throughout the ages would have led to more determined efforts to stamp out the causes of so much deterioration, but the failure to do so only showed how sadly agriculture in its scientific aspects had been neglected. With the exception of smut, said the speaker, no crop disease could be totally controlled. True, it was not impossible to confine the ravages of some diseases and results of recent experiments seemed to hold out the promise of a large measure of success in certain directions. Experimenting was a long and tedious business and results were never forthcoming immediately. The first business of the investigator was to find out how to go about his task, and he had to make his own tools, as it were. Up to the present the Deparrment had tackled seriously only about three sets of diseases. Several other sets had been started on but it was far too early yet to expect results from these. Smut in cereals, dry rot in swedes and corticium in potatoes were the subjects to which attention had mainly been devoted and it was in regard to the result of these investigations that he wished to speak. RAVAGES OF SMUT. Dealing with the disease commonly known as smut, the speaker confined his remarks to the effect of the disease on wheat and barley. There were two classes of smut, covered and loose. Both have different life histories and consequently had to be attacked from different angles. A knowledge of the various phases of development was therefore essential in order to know and to find the point most susceptible to attack. It had been established, he proceeded, that all parasitic fungi underwent a period of lowered vitality during a corresponding period in the plant attacked. That was to say, there was a period in the life of every crop when the grain was not actually growing. This was in the early stages of development and it was at this period that it was easiest to kill the fungi. It had been established further that smut could exist only on or in the seed, so it was apparent that if clean seed could be obtained clean crops would naturally follow. Covered could not carry over from one season to another in the ground or in the air, so th-v had it as a fundamental fact that if the fungi could be destroyed in the seed they would have a clean crop the following year. The heads of the affected grain were filLd with millions of smut spores instead of the usual ingredients and when the crop was harvested these heads burst and the spores adhered to the sound grain. When this was sown and commenced to sprout the spores attacked the shoot before it burst through the ground and embedding themselves in the tissues of the plant developed with the growth of the latter. No indication of its presence in the crop was noticeable and by the time the seed should normally ripen the smut spores had replaced the nutriment inside* the grain. The loose type of smut, continued Mr Neill, was produced in powdery masses during the flowering period—December. The fungi were blown about by the wind and, alighting on other blooms, sent down a rootlet which entered the grain. The smut grew with the grain and attacked the

flower stem, converting it into a mass of smut spores as- was the case with the original stem. Loose smut was regarded too lightly in most quarters and although it did not cause the same amount of deterioration as did the covered variety it was a dangerous pest. Why it did not spread more rapidly than it did he could not say, as little was done to counteract it. The steady loss it occasioned was considerable, more especially as the depreciation came at the profit end; it was the last few bushels wherein lay the profit of a crop. METHODS OF CONTROL. Continuing, Mr Neill dealt with methods of control in regard to the smut diseases. The first type, he stated, the covered species, had been thoroughly investigated and more success had been attained in regard to its control than was the case in regard to the loose type. About two centuries ago the position in regard to covered smut had been seemingly hopeless. Wheat- growing was becoming more and more precarious as time went on. Eventually, however, systems were evolved whereby the disease could at least be kept in check, the bluestone method especially coming into vogue. This system was still in general and successful use though it did not completely eradicate the trouble. “Pickling” had to be carried out each year, while in addition the bluestone seriously affected the germination of the seed, about 30 per cent, of the seed so treated being totally destroyed. Also the plants were slow in developing; they had a weak, yellow appearance, and altogether growth was considerably retarded. More recently the formalin method of disinfection had been introduced, but this had the same deleterious effects as had the bluestone. If, however, the formalin treatment was carried out in a correct method very little good seed would be damaged, but old seed was inclined to suffer and more often than not eyeless methods of administration were responsible for a large amount of seed destruction. Dry dusting with fine carbon which was quite insoluble in water was also a successful means of coping with the parasite. When it was dusted on the crop the soil water was sufficient to bring ' L into contact with the spores. This year the Department had resolved to give this method a try-out. It had many advantages over the other two systems. It tended to assist germination and at least could not retard it, and in order to introduce the system to New Zealand the Department had decided to import appliances and material. An advantage was that the treatment could be applied any time and the seed would keep just as well as if it were not treated at all. Special appliances for dusting could be bought or made by the farmer himself. It suffered, however, from the same fundamental disadvantage as the others. It did not entirely eliminate the germ. On large infections the carbon was not so effective as the bluestone or formalin but in cases of lighter infection the carbon ! was the best. In all cases where anv of these methods were used there was always enough smut left to carry over to the next season. Speaking of the covered smut, the lecturer stated that obviously this would need different treatment to the loose variety. Pasteurisation or disinfection by means of hot water was the only means of coping with it. This practice had been evolved in Denmark in 1888, but had not come into general use because it was practically an impossibility for the farmer to carry .it out. It was an exacting process and for that reason it had not been more generally adopted. To the speaker’s mind the method was not only an effective means of checking internal smut, but also external infections. Further than this it was the one means by which complete disinfection could be obtained. Here they had the only key to the position and tremendous possibilities were pending in the direction of stamping out the diseases. Co-operation, however, with the Department from farmers and merchants would be essential. If the diseases could be definitely eradicated a considerable reduction in production costs would be the result. It was the intention to devote attention to the clearing of one patch in the Milton district, it being considered that once clean seed was available it would only be a matter of time before the whole of the Dominion would be cleaned. ROOT CROPS. The life history of dry rot was next dealt with, the speaker explaining that the disease was first of all present in the seed. When the crop came through the ground a small dark patch would be found on the leaves. This patch contained small black spots, which produced the “rot” spores. Rain washed the spores on to the root with results known to every farmer. The hot water method of seed disinfection had been tried out in this connection and from recent investigations the speaker believed that total immunisation would be procured. The hot water system would prove a much more simple matter in regard to swede seeds than it was in respect to the various cereals; only a few pounds of the former seeds would need to be treated and this should prove a practicable proposition to the farmer. Referring to corticium in potatoes, Mr Neill stated that this was indicated by black discolourations on the skin. It was prevalent throughout the Dominion and because the quality of the potato was not interfered with growers were content to overlook it. When planted, however, the effects of the disease were by no means slight. The black patches indicated the resting place of parasitic spores which attacked the sprouts of the potato underground. Thus development was seriously retarded. The disease was a serious one, for although it did not kill the crop it detracted very considerably from its vah»e. Investigations had been made in the past in regard to this matter. The Department knew of one method of extermination but it was hard on the crop itself and further investigations would have to be carried out. Powdery scab and ordinary scab were also briefly dealt with, the speaker stressing the fact that though the quality of the potato itself was not affected by either, the former disease was the cause of protest from New South Wales in regard to exportations from New Zealand. QUESTION TIME. In answer to an interrogator, Mr Neill stated that seed disinfection should be carried out with water at a temperature of 128 degrees Fahr. Water at 130 degrees was not too hot, while disinfection could also be affected at 126 degrees. Proceeding, lie announced that the only way to apply bluestone was so many ounces to so much water, not a certain amount of bluestone to the bushel. The strength of the solution was the main point. In treating crops with formalin an ordinary pint bottle could be used in 60 gallons of water in respect to wheat. Oats, however, required a stronger solution and he would not recommend using more than the 40 gallons of water prescribed on the bottle

PASTURES AND TOP-DRESS-ING. IMPORTANCE TO SOUTHLAND. AN ECONOMIC FACTOR. The subject “Pastures and Topdressing” was handled by Mr. R. McGillivray, Instructor in Agriculture for Southland. Special pains are being taken to bring under the notice of Southland farmers the importance of topdressing of pastures, said Mr. McGillivray. It has been proved that by lollowing proper methods of manuring the productive capacity of most pastures can be easily doubled and sometimes trebled. There are large areas of pasture land in Southland susceptible of great improvement and such improvement is after all wonderfully simple and highly profitable. Few operations on the farm bring such large and certain returns as the manuring of pastures. Farmers at times i«e on the look out for gilt-edged securities at say 54 per cent. In all cases farmers should invest in lime and topdressing material until their pastures are all in good condition. The interest in the topdressing bank is often 100 per cent and over, and there i£ no. form of investment that offers greater opportunity for making and saving money. A recent British writer said: —“lf the peoples of the earth are to live an existence under which the fight for food is not to be the dominating issue of life they will have to increase their knowledge of plant nutrition. and probe every avenue that offers prospects for the increase of primary products.” In New Zealand, in order to comfortably meet our obligations, both internal and external, greater production is essential and our grass lands stand out pre-eminent in opportunity for improvement so that the desired increase may eventuate. There is a tendency everywhere to lay land down in permanent pasture. A considerable area of land intended for permanent pasture never reaches that stage. It is ploughed up again within two or three years because it is unprofit.able. It may have been laid down all right but the land was not manured and the natural fertility of the top soil being somewhat low the grasses disappeared and so the field became unprofitable. The laying down of land to permanent pasture and then ploughing up again is a wasteful farm procedure and would not take place if an adequate system of manuring was adopted. Our grazing lands are called upon to furnish meat, wool, milk, etc., to satisfy the demands for foodstuffs at and abroad. The drain on fertility has been very great. Little has been done in the south until the last few years to replace the drain on the soil occasioned by the export of the commodities I have mentioned. The question of topdressing of pastures cannot be treated as a matter of indifference because farming is a very important business proposition, and success depends largely upon taking advantage of practical and economic methods, and I propose to show that topdressing is an economic proposition and a thoroughly practical one as well. Plants take a large part of their food from the soil, therefore, the removal of pasturage, in the form of hay or by stocking will lead to soil impoverishment unless steps are taken to replace the plant food so removed. Manuring is but the return to the soil of the ingredients that have been removed by crops and stock. The return of the materials removed is not such a simple matter as it may appear, because there are many considerations to be taken into account if manuring is'to be successful and economical, and it is manuring on this basis only that is worth consideration. In topdressing there are certain guiding principles, but in greater detail we have to consider climatic conditions, and the soil conditions of individual farms and also the purpose for which the farmer is topdressing. The manuring of grass lands is of comparatively recent date in south New Zealand and there are still some districts in which only on an odd farm has any topdressing been done. On most farms arable crops have been manured but pastures have been neglected. In fact, the care of pastures has been the weakest fink in our farming system. The evidence before us in Southland shows how extraordinarily responsive every poor land pastures are to good treatment, and how weak plants almost unnoticed in the depleted pastures have re-asserted themselves under liming and manurial treatment and also how the lower order of plants tend to decrease and good plants to take their places in the pasture. A good deal of work has been undertaken in the Northern Hemisphere to determine the longevity of individual pasture grasses and their suitability for leys of long duration. This is a very interesting study and if topdressing was not a factor in grassland farming to-day it would be of undoubted importance. It is now, however, generally admitted that longevity is largely a question of soil fertility, and when that is high and is kept high there is no great difference between the component parts of a grass mixture, whether it is for five years or 25 years. There is, however, a definite connection between pasture species and soil, and situation. The grass mixture for a reclaimed swamp would be different to that required for a light upland field, but in each instance the life of the grasses sown would depend largely on their after treatment and the moisture content of the soil. Except on the very richest type of land a pasture that is not looked after rapidly deteriorates. The good grasses give place to weeds and innutritions grasses and the carrying capacity goes down. It is quite an error to think that it is only poor land that will respond to topdressing. Pastures on good land also require treatment and the better the soil the greater will generally be the return from the application of suitable fertilisers. With increased carrying capacity arises the question of in-brought fertility. When a pasture is in a state to carry a heavy head of stock there is a large quantity of manure deposited on the pasture, and in cases where roots, hay, or straw are fed out on the pasture there is a still further increase in fertility. The application of phosphates to the soil stimulates the growth of clovers and these increase the fertility of the soil by storing up nitrogen, and the nitrogen stimulates the growth of the grasses and so we have improvement all round. It is now generally accepted, taking everything into consideration, that a pasture well managed produces more milk, meat or wool than comes from any other source of food for the domestic animals on the farm, and there is more nett profit in the case of the pasture. With topdressing there is increased growth and along with topdressing there must be a system of pasture management. The management consists of taking care of the pasture so as to get the most out of it. The herbage must be controlled, otherwise it will get away from the stock and become unpalatable. An important thing in pasture management is evenness of grazing. When a pasture is grazed with sheep alone, coarse patches of grass are left. Sheep graze the fine bottom grasses and reject the bent patches. Cattle are more even eaters than sheep and they do not graze so close. At Armstrong College an experiment on similar pastures treated exactly alike- produced double the five weight gains from a mixed stocking than from sheep alone, and the pasture itself was in far better condition. Professor Douglas Gilchrist, of Armstrong College, writing in 1922 stated that the experience at Cockle Park, where pasture of the poorest character had been effectively improved by the use of basic slag, was that the herbage was greatly improved when the grazing was done by both sheep and cattle. It was also found that grazing with sheep alone gave a live weight increase of 100 lbs per acre during each grazing season, but when the areas were stocked with both sheep and cattle the live weight increase was doubled. The grazing with sheep and cattle gave pasture with little stemmy herbage and a close and firm bottom of grass and clovers.

The best pasture is one that is succulent- and fresh and has a high proportion ui leaf to stalk. When grass gets away too iar the tendency is for the grasses to run away to seed and stalk at the expense oi the leafage. F armers must endeavour to keep the growth of their pastures in a succulent condition for as long a period as possible, and this can be brought about in the first place by topdressing, and then by regulating grazing and if the pasture then gets away into rank growth put the mower over it and make the surplus into hay. It has been proved that when herbage gets away on the dairy farm that the milk supply tends to go down, as grass in a rank or mature state is not suitable for milk production. A rank growth of grass tends to restrict the growth of clovers and this is a most undesirable thing to happen on any farm. In former addresses I have touched upon the question of the mineral requirements of farm animals and have stressed the need for adequate supplies of lime and phosphates. An abundant growth of grass is often not a very good indication of the carrying capacity of any farm. There is the quality factor to be considered and it is quality that tells every time. It is a common experience to hear the remark that certain soils produce better animals than others. Some soils have a higher mineral content than others and the mineral content of pasture grasses growing on such soils is high, and this exercises a far reaching influence on the health and development of all stock grazing thereon. The Rowett Research Institute at Aberdeen has carried out a very comprehensive investigation of the mineral content of pasture grasses and has found that malnutrition in animals is almost entirely due to lack of the minerals in the grasses upon which the animals have been endeavouring to exist. Dr. Orr mentions that in the course of the investigations it was found that two. j elements (calcium and phosphorus) were * very deficient in grasses growing on impovrished soils, and that the health and rowth of animals grazing on these grasses was most unsatisfactory. In parts of Southland we have animals hewing bones and sticks, and also cows .fleeted with bone troubles. The cause f this is mineral deficiency. Liming and opdressing has overcome quite a lot of the trouble and will overcome it altogether in time. In Southland the basis of improvement s phosphates. We are using large quan-it-ies of super-phosphate, and basic slag is n demand and there are also a number of rock phosphates on the market for topdressing purposes. Phosphates have a wonderful effect on he growth of clovers and clovers are necessary if we are to have a healthy pasture ••nd one that will give good returns. Phosphates serve several purposes in the soil:— (1) They cause an earlier development of the plant and hasten maturity. (2) They increase root development. (3) They counteract rankness of growth. (4) They increase the feeding value of crops. While the principal requirement is phos>hates, we have cases where potash salts have certainly increased the clover content of pasture as when used in combination vith phosphates, and in one case the pasture was also-more evenly grazed. Very little investigation has as yet been made in this country towards determining the phosphatic content of grasses and clovers, but Rothamsted found that pastures limed and topdressed with basic slag or uper-phosphate grew grass twice as rich in phosphates, lime and nitrogen as the pasture hat had not been treated. Another experiment showed the phosphate percentage of grasses and clovers to be as follows:

A very noticeable feature of topdressed pasture is that the grazing season is prolonged. Pastures tend to fall away in January, but topdressing arrests this and another point is that you get a much earlier growth in the spring so that your dormant pasture period becomes very short.

STOCK DISEASES . PREVENTION AND TREATMENT. SYMPTOMS AND REMEDIES. Every farmer is called upon during the course of his labours to treat farm animals for various diseases, and a knowledge of the more common diseases is invaluable. Mr J. Danskin, Government Veterinary Surgeon, handled this subject. “By the previous.speakers,” said Mr Danskin, “you have been told how the productivity of your land may be increased—how by the use of fertilisers, etc., you may grow two blades of grass instead of one, how the root crops may be doubled by better farming and the reduction of disease, but after all this has been accomplished you have still to convert these products into wool, mutton, cheese and butter. This can only be done through the agency of our live-stock, viz., the sheep, cow and horse, the latter still representing the greater part of the energy in this district, to carry out the work on the farm. Tractors, no doubt, are employed in many places but the horse still holds a place. It therefore behoves the farmer to see that his stock is properly cared for and kept as free from disease as possible. This means that they must be properly fed and sheltered. Feeding is certainly of the greatest importance, and I do not hesitate to say that over 50 per cent, of the trouble experienced in our dairy herds in Southland is caused by want of adequate food and shelter during the winter and spring months. The animals are allowed to go down in condition, the disease resisting powers of the body are reduced to a minimum, and the animal falls a victim to any infection it may be exposed to. Moreover, parturition with its further depleting effects has to be faced, the result often being that she is unable to get on her legs and in a day or two’s time the end comes in spite of all the care and attention that may be lavished on her when it is all too late. This, and many other troubles, are averted by supplying the necessary foodstuffs. It is a common practice to turn out cows as soon as they dried off, and let them fossick for themselves on scant herbage. Later on a break or two or turnips is saved for them, and if in luck’s way there may be a straw stack in an adjacent paddock as a run off and shelter, but as often as not there is only the barbed wire fence. When it is borne in mind that there is more water in turnips than in milk, the deficiency of the diet is obvious. Food is taken into the body for the purpose of building up and repairing tissue and also to maintain a reserve for the body-requirements, these requirements being energy and animal heat. The substances utilised for tissue building and repair are known as nitrogenous and mineral matter —those required for energy and heat are known as non-nitrogenous matter, including fats and the carbo-hydrates, sugar, starch, etc. In the cow nitrogenous matter represents 18 per cent, of the body weight, non-nitro-genous 17 per cent., mineral matter 5 per cent., and water 60 per cent. With regard to mineral matter it is interesting to note that four-fifths of the total are a compound of phosphoric acid and lime. The remaining one-fifth is composed of potash, soda, magnesia, etc. In quantity potash and soda come next to lime and phosphoric acid. Vegetables are richer in potash than soda, which explains the universal practice of taking common salt with potatoes and the addition of it to the diet of herbivora. Adult animals require less mineral matter than growing ones, and we see this provided for in the composition of milk. A calf will store up daily for a year 277 grains of phosphoric acid and 307 grains of lime. Rather more than this daily requirement

is contained in two gallons of milk. It has been calculated that a cow requires about 1J ounces of phosphoric acid, 2ozs 'lime, and nearly 4ozs potash daily, and this amount is contained in 301 b of hay, which yields 2oz phosphoric acid, 4 oz lime, and about 6{oz potash. These figures are quoted to show the importance of phosphoric acid and lime as an article of diet. They must be present in the food to maintain health and development. Food as it is received into the digestive system is quite useless for the purpose of the body. It must first be subjected to the action of the various digestive juices and reduced to a condition capable of being absorbed or taken into either the blood or lymphatic circulation. An elementary idea of the digestive system of the ox and horse, illustrated by a few lantern slides, will be given later. In the meantime some conditions and diseases associated with, or caused by, dietetic errors may briefly be considered. DEPRAVED APPETITE. In different parts of Southland an ailment is common in cattle, especially young cows and heavy milkers, characterised by an eagerness to chew sticks, rabbit-skins, old boots and bones, or anything of an indigestible nature. As time goes on the animal assumes an unthrifty appearance, the coat stares, and diarrhoea sets in. Later, the back becomes arched and great difficulty in moving about is experienced. She looks to be lame on all her legs and is popularly spoken of as being foundered. Heifers affected with this condition often do not come in season. Post mortem examination shows an emaciated condition of the carcase and an inflammation and softening of the bones. When one considers the symptoms and post mort§n appearances the cause is not hard to find. The craving for bones and such-like, points to a deficiency in the food, and the softening condition of the bones tells exactly what that deficiency is. When it is remembered that bone is composed of 1 part animal matter and 3 parts mineral matter and that of the latter, phosphate of lime constitutes the bulk, it is clear that the trouble is lime and phosphate starvation. Treatment consists in removing the affected animals to a better class of country, or supplementing their food supply by adding bran, oats, bean meal, or oil-cake. A mixture of bone-meal and bran given twice daily has a beneficial effect as also has a handful of superphosphate dissolved in the drinking water. At all times prevention is better than cure and by removal of the cause effects cease, therefore, the sooner the owner sets about to add lime and phosphates to his land the sooner he will be clear of this trouble. RED WATER. As we find it in New Zealand it is caused by faulty dietary. No micro-organism or germ has been found in the blood to cause the separation of the red colournig matter from the blood corpuseles as in Britsh Red Water, which is a tick-carried disease. It usually appears shortly after calving, following on a severe winter spent on an exposed place with a scanty allowance of turnips and straw. The trouble appears when depletion is at its height. The food during the later months of pregnancy being altogether deficient in nitrogenous or tissuebuilding matter, the mother has drawn upon her own body for the supply of her offspring. On top of this the further reduction of the body-strength by the act of giving birth renders the blood so poor that it breaks down. The red-colouring matter, known as haemaglobin, which carries oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body, separates from the red blood corpuscles and is Carried on through the kidneys and filtered out there with the urine, staining it red and thereby giving the disease its popular name. The first symptom is the discolouration of the urine which often goes unnoticed, the animal may appear quite healthy and nothing seems amiss. In the course of 24 hours or so she becomes dull, refuses to eat, the coat stares and the nucous membranes of the eyes, nose and mouth become a sickly yellow. The urine is now black or nearly so and froths like stout on dropping to the ground. The temperature is probably up to 105 degrees or more, and diarrhoea has set in. This shortly followed by constipation of an obstinate nature accompanied by straining. By this time milk secretion has stopped. The patient gets down and no power on earth will induce her to rise. The third or fourth day usually sees her out. If treatment is to be of any avail it must be commenced early. Few cases recover if nothing is done until the later symptoms are shown, that is, black frothy urine and constipation and straining. The treatment must be directed to supply nutriment in an easily assimilated form. If the patient has still an appetite, crushed oats, bran and linseed should be offered her. If she refuses food, oatmeal gruel, milk, milk and eggs beaten together should be given to her in the form of a drench. Small laxative doses of Epsom or Glauber Salts combined with treacle and ground ginger will assist in overcoming or preventing constipation. Stimulants such as whisky or warm beer have good effects. . The patient should be placed in a comfortable shed, well covered and kept warm. It is useless to attempt treatment along side a gorse fence. HerS, again, prevention is better than cure, and the addition of a good hay stack to the winter menu will go a long way in reducing the frequency of Red Water in cows. PARASITIC DISEASES. When the condition of young animals is low, caused by lack of sufficient food, they are very liable to infestation by parasites. Calves become affected with lung-worm, and hoggets with both lung and stomach worm. The symptoms of lung-worm are easily recognised. They generally appear in spring although they may develop at any time of the year. A number of animals are affected about the same time, and attention is drawn to them by their violent fits of coughing. This is accompanied by a frothy discharge of saliva and mucus from the mouth and nose. Medicinal treatment is sometimes carried out in calves when, an iodine solution is injected into the windpipe. This, however, must be carefully done and is best left in the hands of a veterinarian. In the case of hoggets, dosing with a mixture of turpentine and milk or Lysol and milk or water, is often practised, but the principal part of the treatment lies in putting them on a bit of good feed. When invasion is effected by the stomach-worm matters are more serious. A persistent diarrhoea is set up, often called the Black Scour, and wasting, increasing weakness and anaemia are marked. Thirst is present, the animals seeking water frequently; if caught and examined, it will be noticed that the mouth, gums and eyelids are pale or almost white, denoting anaemia, the body thin, and no resistance is made when handling. Dropsical swellings may be found under the jaw and on the lower part of the neck. On post-mortem examination the parasites are found floating and wriggling in the watery contents of the fourth stomach. They are very small, ranging from 3-10ths of an inch to 1 inch in length, and may easily escape notice. This disease, called Parasitic Gastritis, accounts for a large annual mortality, and is one of the most important ailments with which the farmer has to deal with. Regarding treatment, removal to good dry surroundings and augmenting thq diet by feeding hay, or oaten chaff from racks or troughs should be adopted immediately a suspicion of the disease is entertained. Medicinally, dozens of drugs have been tried and recommended, each having its advocates. Turpentine, Lysol, Carbolic Acid, Jeyes Fluid and Arsenic may be mentioned, but perhaps the most efficacious, cheapest and handiest is a 1 per cent, solution of Bluestone. This is made by dissolving 1J ounces of Bluestone in a gallon of warm water in an earthenware vessel. The dose is from one to three tablespoonfuls according to the age, size and strength of the animal. No water should be allowed on the day of treatment. Again I have to say that prevention is all important. Keep up the vitality of your stock throughout the winter by providing a sufficiency of

feed and shelter and the depredations of Parasitic Gastritis will be greatly curtailed. OVER NUTRITION. The foregoing diseases are associated with a scarcity of feed, producing a reduction of the vitality and disease-resisting powers of the body, and although these are by far the most frequent there are equally as fatal diseases brought about by an abundant diet and want of exercise, causing a plethoric condition of the body. These are more noticeable in sheep than cattle. I refer particularly to the ante-partum paralysis in ewes and renal congestion or pulpy kidney in lambs. Last season a considerable loss of ewes was experienced in this district from antepartum paralysis. This makes its appearance about a fortnight or three weeks before lambing. The ewes are invariably in good condition and in almost every case, carrying twin lambs. The early symptoms are dullness, off feed, and a tendency to wander away from the rest of the flock. Little attention js paid to man or dog, she moves slowly and in an aimless manner, later she will be found standing in a semiconscious stupid state and apparently blind, if made to move she will stagger and fall. The head is carried in a peculiar manner, she grinds her teeth and the wool is found to readily come out. Death may occur on the second or third day from the time she is first noticed or she may hang on for a week. Post-mortem examination shows in every case an abnormal amount of inside fat (caul and kidney). The liver is light coloured and easily broken down by the fingers. It is usually enlarged and shows a fatty, oily surface when cut. The kidneys and heart are frequently pale and fatty. The womb with the twin lambs is normal. Medicinal treatment Is seldom successful, but preventive measures are simple, consisting in keeping the ewes in the later months of pregnancy in a comparatively bare paddock, or on pasture where they will require to travel for their food and thus exercise themselves. Sheep are naturally high country animals and intended by Nature to climb for their food. Those that suffer most from this disease are found on rich, flat country where food is plentiful and got without exertion. There is a tendency in the later months of pregnancy to store up fat in the body, and when overfeeding and insufficient exercise are permitted the functions of the liver are interfered with, auto-intoxication occurs, and nerve poisoning and paralysis results. RENAL CONGESTION IN LAMBS. This appears in lambs about the age of six or eight weeks. Premonitory symptoms are seldom shown. Death takes place suddenly, and the biggest, fattest lambs are the victims. The cause is an acute congestion of the liver and kidneys, due to over-nutrition and want of exercise. The kidneys break down under excessive work and their substance is reduced to pulp. The food supply is far in excess of the body requirements and the liver and kidneys are not able to cope with the waste products which should be eliminated by them from the blood. Single lambs are affected more readily than twins, the explanation being that the former does not share the mother’s milk supply as is the case in the latter. At this age the lambs are beginning to eat grass and it would appear that the nutriment derived from this source added to the mother’s milk is more than the excretory organs of the lamb can deal with. Experience has shown that docking and castration has a good effect. The resulting haemorrhage reduces the blood-pressure and relieves the over-taxed organs. It is also recommended that the tails of ewe lambs in particular be left a bit long so that another piece may be taken off la' jr.

Herbage Undressed Topdressed Grasses .. .. .. .. 4.79 p.c. 9.67 p.c. Clovers .. .. , .. .. 3.96 p.c. 8.02 p.c.