BONE-SICK LAND

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 19828, 30 April 1927, Page 21 (Supplement)

BONE-SICK LAND

NEED FOR PHOSPHATES

DRAIN OF DAIRYING Giving evidence in a case heard recently at Dannevirke, a veterinary surgeon referred to the “deficiency sickness,’-’ called “bone sickness,” in pastures, stating on the same occasion that often a light top-dressing was all that was required to remedy th<* malady. The symptoms in such cases are various, but the most usually noticed at the commencement of the trouble is the chewing of bones, ietc., indicative of a depraved appetite land lack of nutrition by cattle depastured on such lands, especially milking cows. Here the absence of phosphate lot lime is not only indicated, but | clearly proven, and it is a lack that is going to affect detrimentally the |whole of the pastures in the Dominion land the produce therefrom if it is not I speedily supplied. I Nothing depastured on our lauds requires such a liberal allowance of I phosphate of lime as cattle do for milkI producing purposes. The drain upon the system of the cow in reproducing I her species and producing butter-fat through several months of the year is i tremendous and unnatural considering |the nature of the food supply. It docs not nearly meet her requiremnts and ; therefore she has to draw upon her system and her vitality as a supplementary souths, which must end in disaster sooner or later. Every gallon of milk a epw produces contains the equivalent of l|oz. of phosphoric acid, so that a cow yielding 500 gallons of milk in a year yields up in it alone the equivalent of 6350 z. of phosphoric acid, which is ;‘he amount contained in 2001 b. weight of superphosphate. If these figures do not force the fanner to pause 'and consider | how the supply of phosphate of limo ‘in his soil is going to be maintained, ithen he will wake up on the road to | ruin. There may be nothing fundamentally wrong with his land. It is the persistent and unnatural draining ■of the soil of the essential constituent that is breaking down its constitution, and this persistent drain by milkingcattle and growing cattle is going on all the time and almost everywhere. Ft goes on to a lesser degree, certainly, on sheep country, yet it is pitiable to see thousands of acres that once grew excellent English grasses ami clovers quickly deteriorating and reverting to native grasses, dandelions, bracken, fern, etc. Yearly the native grasses and (‘specially the clovers and trefoils, require, if they are to flourish, soils well stocked with available plant food. Favourable conditions existed some years ago when still a generous humus remained and the ashes were returned to the soil. Conditons have changed and the old and ample chemical resources are now becoming exhausted, literally grazed out of the soil. MEAT MARKETS BRITISH IMPORTS An interesting review on British markets for Australian moat has been given by Mr A. E. Pitt, a member of a well-known meat importing firm in London, and an authority on the trade. Mr Pitt said:— “There have been suggestions to ship to Liverpool, Hull and other . I places. I There is very litlo trade in the Hull j district for frozen beef at all—there is a cheap class trade in the Midlands and in Lancashire for mutton, lamb and beef. We hear a lot about the Port of Manchester, and that wc should make direct shipments there. I would not ship anything there but ' rubbish, the lightest weights you have and the cheapest article and not much of it, as the market cannot absorb it. ' London and Liverpool are the two J best markets —without the faintest , doubt. All this talk that Bristol and Glasgow are good ports, and you want to ship there is so much rot—they have ’ the big ports certainly, but they have not got the trade. Nine-tenths of the stuff, which is sent to Manchester goes back to London or Liverpool to be sold. There was a man who came over from the 1 North Island of New Zealand, and ho was greatly impressed with the possibilities of these different ports. He saw their cold stores, port facilities and everything was very nice. Ho wont back homo and got people to ship a big lot of stuff from Now Zealand to Manchester direct—the bulk of that stuff stayed in store for months and months, and camo down to London 1 week by wook by ears to bo sold, i That will happen every time. Manchester doos not want New Zealand ’ frozen mutton and lamb unless it is second or third quality. It is too good ’ for them. What they want are third ’ quality lambs, our second and third quality ewes and our rough cow beef. 1 I Liverpool only wants light-weights. -I but they are as bad as Manchester: they do not want, good stuff. They will take second-quality lambs, whilst Manchester wants third quality, and will take second-quality sheep. I Liverpool also want F.A.Q. ox beef, - whilst Manchester wants third quality cows. Of course, in the West of England • i there is very little trade for Australian meat—they get all the Welsh meat at their doors. Wales is a big seller of mutton and lamb, and, of course, Scotland is hopei less, as Scotland is a much bigger exporter than an importer. Ireland is a i big shipper to England and Scotland. Then the principal markets are Smithfield and Liverpool. Birmingham takes a bit. but is it not a port and they get their needs through Tendon or Id verpool. Australia has ship- | ped very little mutton for a long time now, and the class of mutton you have 1 ‘‘had over the last two or three years, is too heavy for the English market.”