TEMUKA PASTURES AND CROPS

Timaru Herald, Volume CLV, Issue 22791, 15 January 1944, Page 3

TEMUKA PASTURES AND CROPS

Effect Of Continued Dry Weather

Farmer* Becoming Anxious

In common with other parts of South Canterbury, the Temuka district has been sweltering In the recent warm days, with the result that farmers have been very apprehensive about the state of their crops and pastures. Gardens, root crops and pasture lands are presenting a somewhat burnt appearance and in many paddocks, the grass is brown and withered.

Late on Wednesday evening conditions became much more cool and there were several good showers of rain during the night, 21 points being recorded at 9 o'clock yesterday morning. “Wheat crops, early sown rape and turnip crops will benefit considerably by the shower,” said Mr J. F. Cairns, ehairman of the Cloverlea Dairy Company, yesterday, and it should increase the yield of potatoes which did not look too promising during the recent dry spell. The production of milk has been falling off considerably, and, while the rain would do a certain amount of good, it would require from one to two inches to make any appreciable difference to the pastures, which have suffered more than the crop, from the scorching dry weather. "If cooler conditions prevail,” said Mr Cairns, there is ample time yet for the crops to make a good recovery, that is. of course, with the exception of wheat and swedes, the latter in many cases being too badly infected with blight to recover.