FARM SCHOOL

Southland Times, Issue 19899, 18 June 1926, Page 4

FARM SCHOOL

THE LECTURES CONTINUED. YESTERDAY’S ADDRESSES.

Good attendances were again the order at yesterday’s classes of the Winter Farm School. Fertilisers, dairy produce improvement, stock diseases and pig management were the subjects dealt with, and were closely followed by those who attended.

FERTILISERS

THEIR PROWESS AND PECULIARITIES. ADDRESS BY MR TENNENT. Mr R. B. Tennent, Instructor in Agriculture for Otago, spoke on "Fertilisers” at the morning session, his remarks being illustrated by a number of interesting lantern ' slides. The lecturer was suitably introduced • by Mr R. McGillivray. In opening Mr Tennent stated that his I address was given with a view to providing information of the part fertilisers played in modern agriculture. After all, the general knowledge of fertilisers was scant and un- I less one was in possession of a knowledge of their effect the fullest benefit of course could not be derived from their use. He j therefore proposed to deal with the fundamental requirements of plants and the ' manure activities required to provide thfem. First of all it should be understood that ; a plant could absorb nourishment through , its roots in liquid form only. Therefore it was no use using a food that was in- ' soluble. To-day there were various com- j plete manures containing the three essen- j tials, nitrogen, phosphate and potash, on ; the market, and the bulk of them were very ; good for the purpose for which they were I manufactured, but the question was: In 1 what form were the various elements pre- i sent? Analysis only established the fact ' that they were present and it was really necessary to know more than this. For instance, it would not be much use having them if they were in insoluble form. All manuring must be carried out with the one aim in view. How quickly can the fertiliser be made available to the plant ? Generally speaking, continued the lecturer, New Zealand soils contained the necessary 10 elements in abundance but there were one or two which required supplement- I ing, for even with only one missing develop- I ment would languish. Fertilising therefore was confined principally to nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous, as these three elements were generally deficient in Dominion soil. Phosphates were the most urgently needed, nitrogen was next in order of urgency, and potassium was last. When the large quantity of plant food extracted from the land by a crop was considered it would be recognised that it was necessary to supplement the loss by some method. As a general rule the top 12 inches of Southland soil contained the following amounts of plant food to the acre:—43so lbs nitrogen, 8712 lbs phosph at ic acid and 17,434 lbs potash. This was sufficient to grow 200 wheat crops year after year in succession, yet why was it that after only two or three successive crops the yields always fell? The fact was that this abundance of plant food, though certainly present, was present in an insoluble condition. Consequently the crops could not make use of it and for this reason soil analysis was doomed to failure as far as cropping was concerned. Analysts could certainly tell in what quantities the various essentials were present bv‘ they could not tell in what form. Mr Tennent then went on to#deal with the various kinds of fertiliser in use in New Zealand, first of all explaining that phosphates were the chief requirement as far as this country was concerned. Speaking of rock phosphate he said that though this would not dissolve in water it would do so in a weak acid solution, but it was essential that it should be finely ground. The finer it was the quicker it would dissolve and the quicker the plant would receive benefit. It was, however, a slowacting manure and on this account its benefit would be felt over a greater number of years. Its chief use was for the manufacture of superphosphate, which was a quick fertiliser obtained by the admixture of rock phosphate and acid. They thus had a water-soluble phosphate, and a watersoluble phosphate was always quick in action. The ideal turnip fertiliser, added Mr Tennent, was a manure with superphosphate as its base. Basic super., he continued, played a prominent part, this being a phosphate with 15 per cent, burnt lime added. The effect of this was to produce an entirely new commodity—a sweet phosphate—the solubility of which, however, was inclined to be reduced. However, it still dissolved quicker than rock phosphate. With regard to basic slag, his own personal experience was such that he would not use it for cropping. It would no doubt prove of benefit in top-dressing but he was of the opinion that super, and lime would pay better, and on his recommendation they would stick to super, and basic super. Bone, meal was no doubt an excellent manure, continued the speaker, but it was slow of action, while with regard to guano he could only say that some were good and others bad. The main crop in Southland was the turnip and this was essentially a phosphateloving root and this was the first consideration in choosing fertiliser for them. Fertilisers in New Zealand were not very cheap, proceeded Mr Tennent, and the farmer was inclined to cut down the amount of manure he used. But the point, was, would a proportionate return be gained from an increased supply of fertiliser? Personally he thought it would. The farmer should spend money on manures in the hope that it would bring back much more money. Dealing with the manures supplying nitrates, the lecturer referred to sulphate of ammonia, nitrate of soda and dried blood —the nitrate content of these being greatest in the first and least in the last. The first two, however, were too dear for the majority of farmers. Though he did not wish to advocate the purchase of expensive fertiliser, he showed the effects of their use by several lantern illustrations. Personally he would sooner advocate using a much less costly form of nitratic manure—that

which was procurable on the farm —but he warned his listeners not to mix lime with stable manure. A certain amount of stable manure should be conserved on every farm, but it should be kept under cover as otherwise much of its value would be lost by the effect of the elements. From experience it was known that covered manure gave by far the best results. Proceeding, Mr Tennent referred to the practice of feeding sheep off the turnips and stared that though 100 per cent, feeding would be secured by digging them and slicing them up it was not such an economical measure, while it was desirable to feed the stock directly off the crop for the reason that everything that was not used for wool and mutton was returned to the ground. There was no cheaper way of getting nitrates on to the ground than by the sheep themselves. Another most effective manner of renewing the nitrate content was by turning in young wheat (which did not give much promise of satisfactory development) and clover, eVen if the farmer did not relish the ideji. In fact, there were many ways of giving nitrate to the soil and turning in old straw even was an effective method. Buying nitrates was not really a necessity for by a corerct use of the ordinary waste products of the farm a sufficient supply of nitrates was always available. Mr Tennent next dealt with the potash varieties of fertilisers, remarking that New Zealand soils, and particularly the heavy areas, did not require heavy dressings with potash. The first essential was phosphates, then it should be seen that the supply of nitrates was right and lastly potash could be gone in for, but this was the least important. His experience all over the country was that the farmer could usually afford to overlook potash altogether, though of course there were two root crops—potatoes and mangolds—which responded most successfully to it. The complete manure was the one containing phosphates, nitrates and potash. Liming, proceeded the speaker, was of paramount importance, but he personally did not look on this as a manurial treatment. Rather was it a corrective measure for soil conditions, which had a sweetening effect, thus allowing the ground organisms to manufacture the plant food. An additional advantage of lime was that it had a loosening effect on the ground, thereby rendering ploughing operations the more easy. He would not recommend one kind of lime over another but it was s >pinion that carbonate was the most paj a’ .e. Certainly carbonate of lime was not soluble, whereas burnt lime was, but it had to be remembered that they were not applying the lime as a food. DAIRY PRODUCE NEED FOR IMPROVEMENT. CARE OF THE MILKING MACHINE. “The improvement of Dairy Produce” was the subject of Mr. J. Latta’s lecture, which was an interesting one. In opening, Mr. Latta said that the dairyman worked early and late to produce an article upon which depended his livelihood. That produce, say 30 boxes of butter, was forwarded through the various channels to London where it was bought by the English retailer. The first lot of butter the retailer receives is of good quality, and eagerly bought by his customers. The 30 boxes were quickly sold and the retailer went back and asked for a further supply of the same brand. However, the second order was not of the same quality and his customers would not buy it. When the retailer returned for a further supply of butter he would avoid the brand that did not maintain an even grade, with the result that the reputation of New Zealand butter suffered. They could see by the example given, the importance of maintaining a uniform grade. Since the war the production in New Zealand and other dairying countries had increased their output of butter. Argentine was sparing no efforts to produce more butter of good quality, while Siberia was coming back on the market. With this increased competition it was necessary for them to produce a first-class article if they were to maintain their supremacy in the market. Last August a world’s buter competition was held in Auckland and won by a New Zealand factory, with the Danish product very low in the list of awards. All butter makers knew that the result was a foregone conclusion, and that a New Zealand factory would probably win. In 1916 the New Zealand butter managers were making what was called “starter” butter which was equivalent to farm butter, being made of ripened cream. To-day the New Zealand butter was made from unripened cream, and took six weeks or more to reach the London market. On the other hand the Danes were able to make a weekly shipment of sweet cream butter which contained no preservative. They had to produce butter of such a high standard that it was able to compete with butter only a week old. That was a big undertaking. If farmers were going to keep up the increased interest payments, caused by the boom, they must produce a first-class article as they were compelled to depend upon the value of their dairy produce to make those payments. Only a first-class article would enable them to do that. IN THE FACTORY. Cream was produced under varying conditions on the farm, collected by the lorry and taken to the factory. The pasteurwas unknown a few years ago, and with its advent an erroneous impression was created, that all their troubles were over. Farmers considered that when the pasteuriser was erected it would be easy to make good butter. The pasteuriser could not cure everything and all it could do was to hold the quality of the majority. Pasteurisation could be carried out at a temperature of up to 200 degrees or 208 degrees, but if it were necessary to heat cream to such a temperature to kill bad bacterial growth or bad flavour, then the pasteurisation also spoilt the good flavours. They should endeavour to supply cream that would pasteurise at from 160 degrees to 170 degrees Fahrenheit. This was the ideal temperature for pasteurisation. ON THE FARM. The farm was the only place where an effective remedy for these faults could be obtained. The remedy was in the farmers’ own hands, and they could eliminate many defects. In fact the farmer could produce cream which could be pasteurised at a low temperature. This would not destroy any of the lactic acid germs which were necessary in the manufacture of a first-class article. The milking machines had altered conditions on the farm and he would like to deal with their care. The machines were a blessing if looked after and handled in a sanitary manner. Under such conditions the machine would produce a first-class

article. When the machines were not looked after then they were a curse. The cleaning of the machines was a serious question. Before starting to milk they should put cold water through the machines to eliminate any foul air that might have developed in the tubes since the previous milking. The tubes during the day were always full of air and it was necessary to remove this before commencing to milk. When milking was finished then cold water should again be passed through the machines. This would remove any milk remaining in the tubes or rubbers. If they put hot water through I he tubes first then the casein would harden and iidhere to the sides of the tubes and rubbers. The next lot of water should be lukewiirm and should contain a little soda. Then they should finish the cleaning with plenty of boiling water. He knew that hot water was frequently put through the miiehines first and followed by cold water. Hindi a practice was wrong. A perfectly dry Hui’fnce wiw desirable in the tubes and this could only be obtained by passing the boiling wnter through the machine last. A dusty dry surface was much better than a clean wet one. The final washing with hot waler ensured a dry pipe for the rest of the day, a condition that could not be obtained by a final wash with cold water. A wet and sodden surface was an admirable ground for bacterial growth—in other words flavours and smells. They should leave all flaps open to let as much air as possible through the tubes; remove all rubbers and down drops, while the lid of the vacuum tank should never be closed. Some machines were made with dual tubes and in such machines it was desirable that the air system should be cleaned. Many farmers argued that as only air passed through those tubes they did not require attention. Such was an erroneous impression because no matter how careful they were, foul matter would accumulate in the air tubes making it necessary to clean them. It was just as necessary to flush out the air tubes as it was to treat the milk tubes. THE SHEDS. When the milk was obtained from the cow there was practically no infection by injurious bacteria, but it was an admirable bed for the propagation of bacteria. It would also absorb smells and flavours from anywhere. With such an article to handle it was necessary that the shed and its environs should be clean, healthy and sanitary. If an engine were used for the machines then the engine should be housed in a small attached shed to prevent any benzine or kerosene flavours reaching the milk. For cheese factories it was necessary that the milk should be cooled, the sooner after milking the better. Aeration was an admirable treatment, as it allowed many of the gaseous food flavours to escape, and did more to improve the article than more costly methods. Some factory managers stated they could tell immediately milk came on the stage whether it had been properly aerated in the shed. It. was impossible to eliminate some of the feed flav- . ours, but aeration would remove all but the most obstinate. With the aid of the lantern, Mr. Latta showed them cow byres, ideal and otherwise, and explained the necessity for sanitary surroundings. In conclusion he referred to the movement to improve cream by creating a super grade, and said it would do a great deal to improve the quality, as the man with second grade cream would strive for the extra penny paid for superfine. “There is just one other matter” he Said, “and that is the necessity of keeping your animals in good health. Y’ou cannot expect animals in poor health to make a good return, so look after them.” Mr. O. E. Neiderer moved a vote of thanks, which was carried by acclamation. WOOL PRODUCTION ELIMINATING FIBRE GROWTH. DEVELOPMENT OF WOOL. During the afternoon session Mr J. G. Cook delivered a detailed address on wool and wool development. The lecture was illustrated by many slides, which gave the speaker an opportunity of proving the various points raised by wool breeders. Mr Cook commenced his lecture by outlining the organisation of his work for the Department of Agriculture—a department he has been associated with for about six years. During th® shearing season he went into the sheds and at that time he looked to the farmer to assist him by providing transport to and from the railway or other transport service and at no time had the farmer failed to help him in this respect. ' WOOL PRODUCTION. It was his intention to show the meeting by means of lantern slides that a sheep could grow wool and something that was anything but wool on the one fleece. Bradford buyers and manufacturers had complained about the Romney wool, but he would show that what they complained about in that respect applied equally as well to all long wools. At the Exhibition he had a good showing illustrating the spinning qualities of the wool from the Romney after it had passed through the various stages of improvement set up by the department in its experiments to eliminate the causes of the trouble. The proportion was 44 to 46 for woollens and 40 for inter-worsteds. The coarser fibres were obtained from the Border and English Leicester and this was used for the manufacture of floor rugs and mats. At the stand everything with the exception of two articles had been manufactured in the Dominion. The first article made outside the Dominion was the allwool bale as recommended by Bradford and as manufactured there, and the other was the improved jute bale made in India. In the centre of the stand there was a sixsided glass case with fleece grown in the Dominion and he could safely advise all farmers interested in wool to make a point of visiting the stand when they were at the Exhibition. START AT THE BOTTOM. When they went to school they had always to start at the bottom and work upwards and the same remark was also true of all the walks of life. The study of the structure of the sheepskin- and the development of the wool fibre .applied to all animals including the human body as the same processes were in evidence in the fulfilling of Nature’s functions. The first layer of the four which comprised a sheepskin was a series of minute cells on the outside, the second layer was a further series of small oval cells, the third was a series of blood vessels the cells of which threw the life to the outside of the animal, while here also were sweat glands for throwing off moisture from the body. The fourth was known as the corium and there was found the fatty or adipose cells that promoted the development of the fibre by forming the lymph which was passed along the veins and formed the growth of the fibre. This layer also contained the yolk of the oil glands which supplied the life of the wool. So long as these glands performed their functions the development of the wool would progress all right., but if they failed in their functions then the result was immediately noticeable in the fleece. The growth of the wool fibre commenced on the sheep almost at birth and continued through life and on no other animal was the coat a better indication of the progress of the animal during the year. The scales on the fibre of long wool were inclined to be pointed and on the finer wool they were rather rounded like a thumb nail, and when these scales were too far out the animal had been subject to the outside conditions with the result that there was a medulated or interrupted growth. Defective scaling on the fibre took away all its commercial value as it had no felting qualities whatsoever. FEED INFLUENCES. Any check in the feed was also noticeable in the fibre, as when the check came the fibre showed that the sheep was not getting sufficient nourishment for the development of the lymph and consequently the fibre was shorter. When the feed went back to normal the fibre again went back to its usual length. The medulated fibre would

not stand the tension placed upon it by the combing machine at the manufacturer’s and was therefore useless. The same results would be seen in the fibre of a sheep that had been attacked by fever and after partly recovering had suffered another attack. BREED WOOLS. The wool from the various species of sheep was of different lengths and the Lincoln and Merino gave coarser fibre and a larger scale than did the Southdown, which had a smaller scale. The Lincoln was larger and had a bigger surface for the light to play on and there was not enough reflection. The manufacturer objected to getting about six lengths off one fleece and what the grower had to realise was that one length was by far the best paying proposition as far as he was concerned. The wool was put through various processes at the mills and if it was under six inches it was put through the carding machine, while over that length it was put through the combing machine to obtain true parallelisation of the various lengths. The fibre was sometimes put through . the combing machine anything up to 15 times before the desired results were obtained. The commercial value of the fleece was arrived at by the number of hanks procurable from one pound of fibre. The usual number of yards of wool taken from one hank of tops was 560. The spinning quality of the various fibres was, on the average—Lincoln, 36 x 560 or 20,160 yards; English Leicester, 40 x 560 or 22,400 yards; Romney, 46 x 560 or 25,760 yards; Shropshires and strong halfbreds, 50 x 560 or 28,000 yards; strong combing Merino* 60 x 560 or 33,600 yards to 70 x 560 or 39,200 yards of wool from one pound of spinning tops. These figures were issued by Bradford and were accepted as being correct throughout the entire world. There was more pure wool in one yard of manufactured woollen goods than in a similar portion of worsted and it was due to this fact and the heavy demand for woollen costumes and clothes after the war that B.A.WJR.A. had been able to get rid of the heavy stocks of wool it had on hand at the conclusion of the war, and the speaker ventured the opinion that had the same demand been made for worsteds then the supplies would not have been used up yet. PROGRESS SLOW. Man had made a certain amount of progress in the improvement of the fibre as it was found on the wild sheep in the Ural Mountains in Russia, but he had not made sufficient advance even yet. He had succeeded in bringing the undercoat to the surface but he had failed to eliminate the hairy fibre on the outside coat of the long wool species. The Romney had a far greater percentage of pure wool in its fleece than most other breeds, but it also had strong signs of the overcoat fibre showing and it was this that had induced the complaint from Bradford. This undesirable trait could probably be eliminated by having staples of the ram’s wool examined by the department and he advised all farmers to send samples to him at Wellington for a microscopic examination and report. The wool desired by the manufacturers would require to be full of character and very elastic and this explained why worsteds always had a greater shrinkage than pure woollen goods. The worsteds had lost some of the character through being combed and twisted. Another trouble experienced was the granulated scale caused by scales being knocked off, and the department hoped to be able to say definitely in the near future whether these scales would be replaced by others. It was a delusion of farmers to think they could tell at all time when wool was pure simply on the ground that it was thicker. The English Leicester had come through all the tests fairly well and ran out about 50-50. In this respect they were always hard and had therefore gauged the quantity of pure wool at 50 per cent. The fame of “prime Canterbury lamb” had been attained by a crossing of the Merino with the English Leicester. The English Leicester was used for the purpose of supplying to all other breeds the qualities they lacked and the experiments in this field of research had been eminently successful. Climatic conditions, fertility of the soil, and the quantity and palatability of the feed all played an important part in the growth and development of the fibre, and, if the fleeces from some of the sheep that Bradford was complaining about were shown to them after a year under improved conditions, Bradford would repudiate the statement and would not believe that it came from the same flock. The Corriedale was a good class sheep but this also was showing signs of medulated fibre. The ram, continued the speaker, was more than half the flock, as even using poor ewes and by culling the defectives it would be possible in time to produce a very fine type of ewe. They had experimented at Wallaceville till an almost perfect fleece had been secured, and what had been done there in a small way could easily be done in a much larger way by the farmer. There was a long way to go before the farmer got rid of the long hair in the long wool fibre, but they would require to keep on improving until they at last eliminated the cause for complaint. “A number of Southland farmers have taken advantage ci’ the offer to have the ram’s wool examined,” concluded Mr Cook, “and I shall always be pleased to make such an examination at any time and inform the farmer whether the ram is worth retaining. All you have got to do is to forward the samples to me and I will do the rest.” Mr A. S. Holms, Waimahaka, moved a hearty vote of thanks to the lecturer, saying that they had a most instructive lecture.