TASMANIAN VISITOR

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 107, 7 May 1936, Page 8

TASMANIAN VISITOR

MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE tour of investigation I Per Press Association. I WELLINGTON, May 6. : Air. Gosgrov e ; Tasmanian Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, arrived 10 iu'estigate matters of interest to his departments, accompanied by his wife. He "ill spend a little over a iortniglit jn the J.umiiiiotj, He said lit! was particularly interested j U the marketing piopOaiils, as b-e was gc-ing to intiouuce a Marketing Bill next session. Farming ■ cundilion h Ju Tasmania were very similar to New Zealand conditions. The climate was about the same, so.a sc-ieme tnat would suit New Zealand should suit Tasmania. Many Tasman- | inn dairy farmers had changed over to sheep. The main trouble in the past so lac as dairying was concerned had been the quality of the pastures, and he believed Tasmania's best way out of any agricultural difficulty was ihrougu pasture improv euieut. Tue Government Had been encouraging this for il.- prist j ten years. He estimated about J .m/JOO .acres per year had been brought in in i lasmania on an economic, basis. Farmeis had been advocating guaranteed price® in Australia for the past two years, but no State could act alone. Any guarantee would have to be made by the Federal Government. ; land. New South Wales, and A ictoria bad all pinned their iaith on an equalisation scheme. Air. Cosgrove said he wanted to learn as much as he could about affoiestaiioi) methods in New Zealand. Tasmania s accessible forests would be cut out in j2O years at the present rate of con- | sumption, and every endeavour was bel ing made to renew them as quickly as possible. The Afforestation Dvpart- ' ment had experimented with pitiug in- • signis and Douglas fir, but s. .■ results I had not been good and afforestation at j present was mainly confined ro native ’ t reps.