LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

Southland Times, Issue 22074, 22 July 1933, Page 12

LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

FALLOW FIELDS The farming community in New Zealand is inclined to believe that farming in this country has advanced a long way ahead of the same occupation in the land of their fathers, and so it has in some respects, but anyone who compares figures will have to admit that Britain knows something about intensive farming that it would be well for New Zealand to copy. The practice of allowing fields to lie fallow is a very ancient one in Britain, but is almost unknown in New Zealand. That a practice that has stood the test of time in the Motherland should be disregarded in the youngest dominion is easy to understand when it is realized that many of our pioneer settlers knew nothing about farming when they arrived in New Zealand and those who did had no need to practise it in a young counttry with a virile soil. The time has come, however, when farming has become more intensive and must continue to do so, and one of the things that should be considered is the good old British practice of giving a field a rest. The New Zealand farmer thinks he has overcome the need for resting pastures by a careful rotation of crops and the top dressing of pastures, but no matter how varied a man’s work may be or how carefully he may select his food the time comes when he needs a holiday and the same applies to the land. Most modern farmers have an elementary knowledge of soil processes and realize that soil bacteria play an important part in the work of the farm, but it may be as well to remind those ■who read that practically all plant food owes its value to the action of the soil bacteria and if that bacteria becomes exhausted the plants must suffer. Therein lies the value of the practice of resting a field. The farmers who first established the custom of allowing a field to lie fallow knew nothing about soil bacteria, but they discovered that better results could be secured by giving the ground a rest, and these who know what the rest will mean to the unseen population of the soil should be even more ready to provide that holiday. When a field is allowed to lie fallow there is no drain on the plant food that is being made available by the silent workers below the surface and they are able to flourish while they bring the ground back into the state desired by the farmer. They do not require pay for their labours and they do not ask for any reward, but they will return the reward of a rest by twofold and it should be one of the first considerations of every farmer to treat those who work for him as they should be treated, especially as they are going to reward him for his consideration. FARMLAND HUMOUR THE LIGHTER SIDE. When Steele Rudd wrote humorous stories about Dad Wayback on his selection he conferred a blessing upon mankind generally and upon the man on the land in particular, and by the same token there appears to be no reason why the farmers of Southland should not enjoy a laugh now and then. There are humorous happenings on every farm and if they were recorded they would help to enliven these dull days and make life more worth while. What about writing down any amusing incidents that occur or have occurred? Send them to “Rustic” C/o The Southland Times, Invercargill, and they may cheer some brother farmer up. Here are one or two that actually occurred on Southland farms. Never Play with a Boar Pig. He was a bush farmer and he had a considerable quantity of rough ground, so he hit upon the idea of letting pigs clear it up for him. A small area was fenced in and two old sows were turned loose and straightway set to work. The experiment was a success, but the farmer was not satisfied; he wanted to improve the breed of his pigs so he bought a pedigree boar. Unfortunately the boar proved worse than useless. He ate his head off, but left no progeny, so the farmer turned him out into the bush. One day he was walking across the farm, and he came upon Mr Boar; up to his tail in a clump of bracken. The farmer was in a good humour and he greeted the boar with a cheerful jerk of the tail. Two seconds later he found himself up a tree with an angry boar dancing around below and he had to stay there until the pig got tired and ambled off. He could never see any humour in the matter, so perhaps it is a mistake to put it in what is supposed to be a humorous column. Dynamite as a Stock Food. About midway through the war years a young farmer decided that he could not stay at home while all his friends went overseas no matter how much it might cost him, so he held a clearing sale. His father had been a quarryman and at the sale a tea chest full of dynamite that must have been nearly a score of years old was put up for auction. Another farmer, who was breaking in bush land, paid 1/6 for it and tried it on his stumps. The old dynamite was very hard but softened when warmed in the sun so the fanner and his brother spread it out on a log while they prepared a few stumps for “mining.” The dynamite was responding to the warmth and was getting into good order when some stock wandered up and a two-year-old bullock helped himself to a stick of explosive and calmly proceeded to chew it up. The two men stood back in horror and waited for the explosion. They fully expected to see the bullock’s head blown to fragments, but that did not worry them so much as the thought of what would happen if the rest of the dynamite were exploded by the rash animal. However, nothing happened and as soon as the bullock had taken the last swallow he was driven away from his dangerous dinner. Both the men who watched him have often wondered what happened when the bullock started to chew his cud.

ON THE LAND WORK OF THE WEEK. CLEANING UP PASTURES. The cleaning up of pastures is just as essential at the present time as during the height of the producing season, and where cattle or sheep are fed on grass pastures the harrowing of the grass land is even more important. There was a time in the history of farming in New Zealand when the harrowing of pastures was almost unknown, but most farmers now realize the value of a general grass clean up. However, there are still a few who do not use the harrows at all and there are many who could use them more with benefit to their pastures and their The harrowing of grass land is particularly necessary on a dairy farm and its true value will be readily appreciated by any farmer who compares a farm that has not been harrowed with one that has. When stock are fed on turnips i na warm field they will keep on a fairly small area and will make that area very dirty. Droppings will be seen everywhere and it is possible that about 10 per cent, of the grass in the field will be covered. If the field is left to recover as best it can that 10 per cent, will be lost to the stock until the droppings have rotted right away, and even then the stock will not eat the rank grass that grows in unless they are forced to do so. On the other hand if the harrows are put over the pastures as soon as the stock are moved off the existing grass will not be harmed by a patchy application of a too strong manure, but the whole field will benefit Ly the application of the scattered manure which will be washed oft the grass by the first rains. There are numerous types of good grass harrows on the market at a reasonable price, but eve:', if the farmer cannot afford to purchase a set, ordinary tine harows turned upside down will serve the purpose. They do not scatter the manure quite as well as the grass harrows and may have to be put over the ground oftener to make a thorough scatter, but they are infinitely better than nothing. Every farmer should consider it a duty to get pastures cleaned up now while the grass is short, and the fanner who has to use tine harrows should make the acquiring of grass harrows one of his first objectives when the first cream or factory cheques come in. The good they will do to the pastures will pay for them over and over again. The Returning Herds.

The time is fast approaching when the dairy herds will be returning to profit and dairy farmers should prepare now for the incoming season. Apart from making sure that every milker is receiving sufficient food to nut her in good heart for the drain that will be made upon her during the season, the dairy farmer should make everything ready around the yard. If the surplus manure gathered around the yard during last season has not been removed no time should be lost in getting it away to the garden or the fields. If it is intended for the manuring of grass land—and now that money is scarce every shovelful is of value—it can be shovelled out of a dray or off a sledge and spread later with the grass harrows. Even if it is wanted for the main potato crop it should not be left piled up by the yard. When the cows come in they claim a lot of attention and there will be very little time left for cleaning up. All broken posts, rails or benches should be repaired, and if any concrete has been damaged it should be renewed now. If it is left until after the herd comes in it will be impossible to do it and another season’s wear and team may quadruple the cost of repair. If the vacuum pump and other machinery in the milking shed has been left over from last season it should be cleaned up and made ready for use. Far too many milking plants are allowed to lead a “from day to day” existence, with a consequent loss to the farmer. If there are continual holdups during the season a good many pounds of butter fat will be lost, and they can be saved by a little care at the present time. General Farm Work. Conditions are still excellent _ for winter ploughing and all land that is to be turned over at this time should be treated. Southland farmers can congratulate themselves on the winter weather they are experiencing as reports from the north show that Southland is in a much better position as far as weather is concerned than most other centres. Consequently the liming of land that has been drained earlier in the winter, and especially slightly sour land that has been treated with the drain plough, can be gone on with. Where draining operations have not been completed they should be pushed ahead as quickly as possible so that the pasture being drained will be in a position to get a good start in the spring. Hedge trimimng operations are still going forward throughout the province and this class of work should be hurried on. The repairing of fences should not be left any later than can be helped as the stock will not have the restraining influence of winter feeding later and will find any weak spots that may lead to a bit of good grass elsewhere.

AU crutching of breeding ewes should now be over and it is time to consider providing a well sheltered field for the lambing. Far too many lambs are lost in Southland every season through the little unfortunate being dropped in an exposed place, and many of these could be saved if a certai namount of prenatal care were taken. If it is impossible to provide natural shelter a good deal can be done with manuka brush, and the present time is a good one for the planting of shelter that will fill all the needs of the small flock in the years to come.

STRAWS TO CHEW

(By

Rustic).

Even a worm will turn away from poor ground; Nothing will work without fuel, not even the soil. Lime is a great sweetener and fortunately it is cheaper than sugar. It is almost as easy to grub briar bushes out of the gullies where they grow as to disentangle the sheep that get into them. Never gallop a horse across a paddock you do not know. It might have been safe to do so if rabbits had never been allowed into New Zealand. It is a good thing that fur coats are fashionable and it is well to remember that those bunnies that are eating up the grass on the farm would be better employed making a coat. An Englishman once told a Frenchman that he would never bite a snail unless the snail bit him first. It is a mistake to apply that argument to spreading gorse; grub it out. It is a mistake to think that a pig is a poor farm hand because he doesn’t work like a horse. If a good supply of food is carried to the sty the porkers will go a long way towards paying the rent. Water is all right in its right place, but too much of it has the same effect on good land as it has on good whisky; it spoils it, but while it cannot be drained out of the whisky it can be drained off the land. A sensible man will never pull a building down and rebuild it if refurbishing it will have the same effect. The wise farmer will apply the same principle to the pastures that are getting a bit weather-worn. AGRICULTURAL CLUBS SOUTHLAND FAMILY. REMARKABLE SUCCESS ACHIEVED In the crop growing section of agricultural work for the past season, outstanding results have been gained by the Hassed family of club members belonging to the Otautau School district club. Some remarkably good crops were grown, members securing the highest yields in their respective section of club work. Richard Hassed grew a crop of King Edward potatoes yielding 42 tons 3 cwts per acre; a similar crop grown by Robert Hassed yielded 32 tons per acre; Eileen Hassed grew a crop of green stem chou-moellier yielding 63 tons per acre, and Walter Hassed grew a crop of yellow globe mangolds yielding 105 tons per acre. In addition to successful crop growing Eileen and Robert gained premier places in the pig feeding competition, and Richard and Walter secured creditable awards in the calf rearing competition. The family also annexed many premier awards, with their live stock, produce, and record charts, at A. and P. summer and winter shows. BREEDING SOWS JAPANESE TESTS. EFFECTS OF ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE. A recent visitor to Japan has declared that the Japanese are the most efficient people in the world. He was speaking from a manufacturing point of view. But they are proving particularly thorough in their development of live stock. Some years back figures were published of the production of a Friesian cow in Japan, but the record was so extraordinary (the actual figures cannot be recalled) that it was not taken seriously, especially as no particulars were published, of just how the record was calculated. Now the Japanese are teaching the world, and particularly New Zealand, a lesson in the thorough going way they are studying the pig. This may be gauged from the investigations _ carried out by one of the prominent breeders in conjunction with the Central Meteorological Observatory in Japan from which it appeared that the period of gestation of a sow varies according to the change in atmospheric pressure. A prolonged enquiry suggested that birth takes place earlier at the time of normal or high pressure and longer when low pressure prevails. No fewer than 1075 farrowings were recorded, the average period of gestation being 114.647 days. As between the Middle White and Berkshire breeds the results showed 114.039 for Middle White and 115.548 for Berkshires. SOLD TO AUSTRALIA FAMOUS CLYDESDALE COLT. Wright, Stephenson and Co., advise that they have sold and shipped for export to New South Wales one of the best Clydesdale colts yet bred in New Zealand—Mr H. E. Cook’s Confidence, bred in Canterbury. The colt has had an unbeaten career in New Zealand both as a yearling and two-year-old, and last year at the latter age completed his exceptional show-ring record by winning the Canterbury. A and P. Association’s championship and gold medal and beating the 1931 Royal Show champion, Confidence carries some of the best blood in the world and comes from a great old breeding strain in New Zealand. PIG INDUSTRY ENGLISH BOARS. NEW ZEALAND IMPORTATIONS. The development of the pig industry in New Zealand has encouraged several breeders to make recent importations from Australia where some very high class English pigs are at present in use. The Department of Agriculture in New South Wales despatched its senior instructor in pig raising to England to make selections for the Government studs and as a result some of the best pigs procurable in England were imported. These pigs have been extremely successful at the various experimental farms and in-the Hawkesbury College stud. ~ . The most notable of the imported Tamworth boars introduced are Hacking Hero, Caldmore Arthur and Whittingham Red Start. These pigs are all represented in the importations recently made to New Zealand by Messrs Wright Stephenson and Co. Ltd. The first importation made was of two Tamworth breeding sows from Hawkesbury College on behalf of Mr G. Shattock, Hamilton, who is founding a stud with imported pigs. Both sows which were full sisters were by Hacking Hero (imp). Large litters were’ procured from each sow. These litters were sired by another English importation in Caldmore Arthur whose stock did exceptionally well at the recent Sydney Royal Show. A further importation was recently made from the Wollongbar Experiment Farm, Lismore, New South Wales. This time two of the leading prize-

winning Tamworths at the recent Sydney Royal Show were secured. One of these, a rising year-old boar, Wollongbar Aby, was also selected for Mr Shattock. This boar is a grand son of Caldmore Arthur and he won second prize in a very strong class at the Sydney Royal Show. According to experts who examined this pig when he came out of quarantine at Wellington he is one of the best types of Tamworth boars that has yet been brought to New Zealand. At the same time a magnificent year-old sow was also secured from the Wollongbar Experiment Farm for the Massey Agricultural College, Palmerston North. This sow is also a grandaughter of Caldmore Arthur and she was also second prize in a strong class at the Sydney Royal Show. While in quarantine on Somes Island she produced a splendid litter to the service of the imported English boar, Whittingham Red Start. Whittingham Red Start was bred by the Whittingham Mental Hospital, Preston, England, and has proved a wonderful breeding boar, his stock having figured very prominently in the prize list at the Sydney Royal Show. Caldmore Arthur was bred by Mr R. P. Haynes, of Delves Green Farm, Wednesbury, England. The descendants of this sire are outstanding for type and quality and he has brounght about a very noticeable improvement in the Tamworth pigs at the Hawkesbury Agricultural College. Not only are his progeny outstanding for type development’but they show a special improvement in the hind quarters. The importation of such valuable high class pigs to New Zealand at the present time should be of great value to breeders as all these importations represent entirely new strains of blood in the Dominion. HERE AND THERE ITEMS OF INTEREST. NEWS FROM AT HOME AND ABROAD. At this time of the year farmers should consider planting hedge and shelter trees. Many farms in Southland have almost useless gullies here and there and these make ideal spots for tree planting. That one cannot always judge by outside appearances was illustrated at the Stratford show recently. The mangold, which, judged by appearances, won first prize in its class at the Hawera show the previous week failed dismally at Stratford. There the roots were all cut open, and the knife revealed that the mangold in question was very far from being sound, as it contained a large hollow black patch. “It is too pathetic for words to think that the research work at. Lincoln College, at the Cawthron Institute, at Massey College, and elsewhere is being starved at a time when the farmers most want the help that can be given them by such research,” said Mr J. D. Hall at the last meeting of the North Canterbury executive of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union. “It is up to us to endeavour through our branches to supply some substantial funds for the support of this work at Lincoln College.” Mr Hall added that the idea had been entertained of. trying to arrange a conference, presided over by the Prime Minister (the Rt. Hon. G. W. Forbes), of all the institutions carrying out research work. A farmer can call a spade a spade, but for the purposes of sales tax he cannot call it an agricultural implement. Some illuminating information on the question, contained in a letter from a wholesale firm, was put before the South Taranaki executive of the Farmers’ Union recently. The only tools exempt from sales taxj the letter states, were: Drain drags, garden hoes, hay knives, garden rakes, hedge shears, pruning shears, garden hand trowels, lawn edge trimmers. Exemptions under the Sales Tax Act were based on the Customs tariff, and the reason the tools were exempt was that they came under the Customs tariff as agricultural implements. For the purpose of the Customs tariff, a spade, a shovel, a garden fork or even a hay fork was not classified as an agricultural implement, and consequently was subject to sales tax. After two years of a gradual decline in the number of cows under herd test in New Zealand, a definite move forward is expected this year, according to Mr. C. M. Hume, federation supervisor of herd-testing. In an interview Mr. Hume said that farmers were now eager to test their herds, and, instead of having to be pressed to sign up as in the past, they were seeking the secretaries and testing officers and asking for membership forms. As a result of this keenness, Mr. Hume added, there should be an increase of from 20,000 to 30,000 cows under test throughout the Dominion, “and,” he added, “in a few years it will be difficult to find a dairy herd that is not under test.” As yet, however, New Zealand’s percentage of dairy cows under test was still very small, and represented only 15.26 per cent, of the total in 1931-32. New Zealand’s cow population was steadily rising, and in 1931-32 had reached 1,702,070, giving New Zealand the distinction of being the only country in the world with a dairy cow population that was greater than the human population.