FARM TOPICS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLV, Issue 21183, 2 November 1938, Page 3

FARM TOPICS

THE WORLD ? OATS The Soviet Union and the United States together account for over onehalf of the world area under oats. Canada and the United Kingdom are the chief Empire producers, but the output of both countries has fallen in recent years. DAIRY IMPORTS Imports of dairy produce, pig and poultry products into the United Kingdom in 1937 cost nearly £117,000,000. Imported milk products cost about £4,900,000 more than in 1936, following an increase of £6,200,000 between 1935 and 1936. AUSTRALIA’S WOOL CHEQUE The serious declin. in wool prices during the first quarter of the selling season, from July 1 to September 30, is revealed in official figures, says the Melbourne Argus. The wool cheque shows a decline of nearly £2,000,000 as compared with the same period of last year, while average prices fell from 14.51 d to 9.49 d per lb—far below costs of production. HEN KILLS RAT A New Plymouth poultry breeder was surprised recently to find a d-ad rat alongside a sitting hen. The hen ' -.d apparently killed the rat when it attempted to steal eggs. A Winton farmer has had a similar experience except that in his case it was a duck that killed the rat. THE FAT LAMB SEASON The fat lamb season in Hawke’s Bay started at the beginning of this month in preparation for the export of the first shipment direct from Napier to London on November 14, and which will arrive in London in time to catch the pre-Christmas market in the Old Country. WHEN PETROL WAS DESPISED Half a century ago mineral oil was known, but mainly as a convenient and cheap fuel for domestic lamps and stoves. When petrol was produced in the process of refining it was regar ’ed as a useless by-product, and enormous quantities were burned as the cheapest way of getting rid cf it. Last year the people of Great Britain used 1,445,006,000 gallons, and the Treasury collected £50,00(,000 in tax!! A strange contrast with the time when petrol was treated as rubbish! THE HORSE’S FOOT Some blacksmith's are Inclined to use the rasping file too J»eely when shoeing horses, with the result that an excess of the smooth hard fibres are displaced, thereby rendering the hoof brittle, so that ultimately it becomes deformed. The position of the nail holes is a very important detail in connection with the shoeing of horses, as many an animal has been ruined through a nail having bee:- driven into the tender part of the foot. Excessive or careless nailing tends to break or split the fibres which contribute towards strengthening and building up the hoof. The close trim-

ming of the hair inside the ears is another thing to be avoided, as this is Nature’s provision for protecting the nerves, and any attempt at trimming is liable to bring on inflammation in that area. CRUCIFEROUS CROPS The opinion that farmers should have every confidence in their cruciferous crops this season and that the white butterfly would not get ahead of its parasite, which was now plentiful in the East Coast, Poverty Bay, Wairarapa, Manawatu and West Coast districts, was expressed by Mr C. J. Hamblyn, fields superintendent of the Department of Agriculture, at Palmerston North. He said that because of the damage done to crops last season by the white butterfly farmers had become concerned about the planting of cruciferous crops. This spring, however, had been most suitable for the growth of the white butterfly, but there had been only a small carry over of live chrysalids through the winter. At the close of last season the parasite had the upper hand. BRITAIN’S BEEF TRADE The Veterinary Officer of the ’ ustralian Department of Commerce in London, Mr R. P. Allen, believes that beef exporters may have to face heavier competition from home-produced beef on the English market in the 1939-40 winter. He estimates that home producers will market 400,000 cwt. more beef than they do at present. He bases his figures on a statistical return which shows that since last year there has been an increase of 90,000 in the number of cattle under one year in Britain. He says that the probabilities are that not more than a quarter of these are heifer calver for dairy purposes. GEESE WITH SHOES Vitua in Poland is probably the only place in the world where geese are shod. Large flocks of geese are reared each year in the neighbourhood, and prior to leaving for Warsaw, where the goose fair is held, they are made to walk through tar, and then through sand, thus providing them with footwear and preventing them from becoming footsore en route to their destination. FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE An outbreak of foot and mouth disease in Northern Natal is threatening an economic crisis among farmers in the affected area. All stock sales and agricultural shows have been cancelled in certain districts and all movements of stock within or out of the affected area are strictly prohibited. It is reported that more than 350,000 cattle are within the prohibited areas. The assistant director of veterinary services has stated that it might become necessary to slaughter all cattle in Northern Natal, totalling 500,000.