A Farmer's Note-Book

Southland Times, Issue 23502, 7 May 1938, Page 19

A Farmer's Note-Book

-Bu

A.P.

Green Feed Those farmers who sowed oats and other such feed whenever they saw their root crops were a failure are now reaping the benefit of having a good supply of green feed to carry their cows on without using the few turnips that grew. In some instances oats sown in February have now reached a height of three feet or more and a few acres like this will supply a big amount of feed and carry the stock well on into the winter. Not only will the grower get the feed now but he will also get another feeding of it in October which will give the grass paddocks a chance to come away. Once this practice has been tried and the benefits seen it will certainly be repeated. Milking Goats

Many will be surprised at the returns obtained from a good herd of goats. Mr A. Morrison, of Queensland, started his stud by importing three does and a buck direct from Switzerland in 1922. These four Saanen goats laid the foundation. The dam of the buck was then the world’s record milk producer with 460. gallons for the 12 months and giving up to six and aquarter quarts in one day. He has introduced fresh blood on different occasions and has just landed another pair. The buck’s dam averaged six and a-quarter quarts daily for 10 months with her first kid and she is from a doe that averaged 460 gallons yearly for six years jn succession. Quite a number of his does give six and ahalf quarts a day and one is giving seven quarts.

South Africa’s Biggest Dam The new Vaal dam which is almost completed has a concrete weir 2000 feet long and 125 feet high. The lake will cover 50 square miles and hold 244,000,000,000,000 gallons of water. It will irrigate farms for 325 miles along the river as well as towns with its 120 miles of canals and will cost £4,500,000. World Record Claimed

A new all-breeds world’s record for butterfat production has been claimed for Friesians from the famous carnation Farms in Canada. This is for three direct female generations. The record was made by Carnation Walker Hazelwood (milk 29,0831 b; butterfat, 11991 b), Carnation Inka Hazelwood Walker (milk, 27,1811 b, butterfat, 10321 b) and Carnation Ormsby Hazelwood (milk, 25,4961 b, butterfat 9201 b). Respective ages of the three cows were four and a-half, five and two and a-half years. Spahlinger Vaccine

The British Friesian Cattle Society decided at its annual meeting to ask the British Ministry of Agriculture to expedite publication of the results, obtained by Spahlinger in immunizing calves to tuberculosis. It was pointed out that great expense was . being incurred in eradicating the disease and establishing tuberculin-tested . herds, while there seemed considerable reluctance, due to professional jealousy, to adopt the Spahlinger vaccine in England on at national basis. It was also said that if the vaccine were made available, breeders would be willing to try it in their herds. Driest For 98 Years

This year saw the driest and warmest March in Britain for 98 years, temperatures of up to 96 degrees having been recorded—the highest since early last October. One result of the unusually dry weather has been a number of severe heath fires at Cannock Chase, Exmore, New Forest and some Surrey commons. It usually follows that we get the same weather as Britain. If this is true, next summer will be drier than the one just past and it would be wise for farmers to preparp for an extraordinarily dry season. Demand For Dried Milk If exports of butter and cheese to Britain were restricted, dairy farmers might, with advantage, enter the Oriental market, where there is an enormous demand for dried milk. World Butter Championship - Approximately 100 entries have been received for the world butter championship, which will be judged in Sydney next month during the Australian congress of dairy factory managers and secretaries. Competition is expected to be keen, as entries have been received from England, New Zealand, Fiji and all Australian States. Included in the exhibition of dairy produce will be the Australian butter and cheese championship classes. Shorthorn Record A dairy Shorthorn cow in a herd at Quebec (Canada) produced 80,0001 b of milk in eight lactations. Pigs In Japan Demand for pork and pig by-pro-ducts in Japan is increasing rapidly each year. Main requirements are for pork. The other products of the pig do not exceed about 10 per cent of total production. According to the latest statistics the number of pigs in Japan proper is about 1,000,000. Total number of pigs in the Japanese Empire is not less than 6,000,000. About 10 per cent, of farmers in Japan proper are engaged in pig breeding. Pigs are fed largely on rice bran. There is no genuine Japanese breed. Korean pigs migrated from northern China and Formosan pigs from southern China about a 1000 years ago. Some pigs were taken from Europe and China to Japan about 100 years ago. In 1910 the Japanese Government imported Middle Whites and Berkshires from England. The Middle White was made the mamstay; the Berkshire took a secondary place. Since the importations, Japanese pigs have developed almost entirely on these two breeds.

Sowing By Aeroplane Stated to be the biggest grass seeding ever made by aeroplane in the United States, 12,000 acres of grass is growing in Coos County, Oregon, on country which a year ago was the scene of a forest fire. Over 80,0001 b of grass seed was planted by an aeroplane carrying 12001 b of seed on each load, which was sown at the rate of 15 acres a minute.

Hand Rearing Foals Occasionally it may be necessary to rear a foal by hand—through death or illness of the mare. Foals can be raised on cow’s milk if care be taken in regard to the freshness of the milk and the absolute cleanliness of the feeding utensils. But they do much better if the milk is modified to something near the composition of mare’s milk. If, say, a pint of modified milk be wanted, all that need be done is take threequarters of a pint (15 ounces) of fresh cow’s milk, add hot lime water to. make a pint, and dissolve in the mixture half an ounce of milk sugar. The mixture should be brought up to about 95 to 100 deg. F before feeding it. This is not an exact replica of mare’s milk, but is near enough for all practical purposes. Following nature as closely as possible, feed little and often. In the case of foals bom when jow’s milk is apt to be deficient in vitamins, it is advisable to add a teaspoonful of tested cod-liver oil to the food each day. After the first month a good gruel can take the place of part of the milk.

Wool’s Lasting Qualities Portion of the clipper ship Lightning which was burned to the water s edge when loaded with wool in 1869, has been dredger from Corio Bay, Geelong, Victoria. The sample of wool secured is much discoloured by mud but still retains its natural crimp. Calf Born Marked At Dumbalk, Victoria, a calf is stated to have been bom with its mother’s brand marks clearly legible on its rump. The cow was branded with apatent branding fluid a fortnight before the birth of the calf. Rayon and Synthetic Wool The production of rayon in Germany has increased from C,751,0001b in 1933 to approximately 220,000,0001 b in 1937. This has resulted in a decline of wool consumption from 372,500,0001 b to about 252,000,0001 b over the same period. A factory for the manufacture of rayon staple fibre has been established at Bradford, England. It will supply a specialized fibre for the production of extra high tenacity yams for the woollen and worsted trades for clothing and other purposes. An £8,000,000 textile venture by Turkey, in the shape of a rayon factory and Merino spinning mills, is reported. It is stated that the output of 1200 tons of yam annually from the proposed woollen mills will be almost sufficient to cover the requirements of the country. The factories are to be equipped with British and German machinery. It is reported that a factory is being established in Poland to produce synthetic wool from casein. The production of 66001 b of the material daily is estimated during the initial stages, an ultimate daily output of 17,6001 b being the object of,the company, which was formed last year as the result of a convention between Snia Viscosa, Limited, of Milan, and a group of Polish manufacturers. The production of lanital in Czechoslovakia by a French manufacturer, who recently purchased the licence for that country, is announced. Big interests are represented in the undertaking, which also holds the lanital patent right for France, while it is claimed that improvements have been made in the process of manufacture of the fibre. A big worsted-yam plant in Czechoslovakia is under the same controL

Sheep In Germany A preliminary return of sheep numbers in Germany at December 1937 indicates a rise of about 8 per cent, on the 1936 figures—4,6Bo,ooo as against 4,331,000. Wool production increased from 40,100,0001 b in 1936 to 43,300,0001 b in 1937. The average production during the years 1930-1934 was 32,000,0001 b. Brown Heart In Swedes

The disease known as brown heart, or raan as it is sometimes termed, in swedes and turnips has become increasingly important in many parts of the world in recent years, and has resulted frequently in serious losses to growers. The presence of brown heart does not appear (from present knowledge) to affect the yield an acre, but considerably reduces the feeding value of the roots for Stock, and renders the roots unsaleable for human consumption. Diseased roots are tough and fibrous and have a bitter taste, while the sugar content, which largely determines the feeding value, is appreciably decreased, and the fibre content increased. When boiled, they remain hard, stringy and tasteless. The keeping properties of roots suffering from brown heart are also often impaired and liability to frost damage is increased. Unfortunately brcjpvn heart presents no external indications of its presence. The foliage always remains normal in appearance and the bulb appears externally to be perfectly healthy. The presence of the disease can be detected only by cutting open or coring the root for inspection. The disease is not evident generally before the bulb has attained a diameter of about two inches, when the symptoms are sometimes sufficiently developed to be recognizable, and become more extensive as the season advances. Although the diseased tissue may be located anywhere within the bulb, it is usually found principally in the lower twothirds and is seldom present in the upper part. It may be small in extent and isolated, or it may occupy up to as much as three-quarters of the bulb. Dry seasons and liming are factors often conducive to the occurrence of the disease, though it is also encountered frequently on quite acid soils. A convenient and inexpensive means of preventing raan or brown heart is to apply 201 b borax an acre broadcast a short while before sowing the seed, or later to the growing crop. The borax is first mixed intimately with a filler to give sufficient material for even distribution; suitable fillers are superphosphate, basic slag, dry soil or sand. Alternatively, the borax may be incorporated in the ordinary artificial fertilizer dressing, though this practice is sometimes not recommended when the fertilizer is applied in the drill at the time of sowing. When blending borax in a fertilizer mixture containing sulphate of ammonia, the borax should be mixed intimately first with the potash and superphosphate, before adding the sulphate of ammonia. All parts of the field should receive an adequate and uniform supply of borax, And an excess should be avoided.