FARMER’S SUCCESS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 79, Issue 237, 7 October 1936, Page 9

FARMER’S SUCCESS

GRAIN MADE TO PAY A SIX-DAY ROTATION LONDON, Sept. 5. | Gossip in British farming circles rei cently has centred round a Berkshire ' farmer who made a fortune approaching 1250,000 by novel fertilisation methods. At one time he was the largest arable farmer in England. How this fortune was built up was exaplained at an agricultural conference at King’s Lynn, Norfolk, this week by Mr. C. S. Orwin, Director or the Institute for Research in Agricul- * tural Economics, Oxford University. “In 1866, Mr. George Baylis began , farming in Berkshire, on a farm of j 240 acres, in the traditional way for corn, roots, bullocks and sheep,” Mr. Orwin said. “After six years he haa lost £6OO. In his search after some other method of farming, which would put his balance on the othei side, he came upon the experiments of Lawes and Gilbert, at Roinamsted, Herts, which proved that corn could be grown without animal manure, by me application or ammonia and pno.--phates. Baylis took Ins courage in noth hands, and decided to Lane tne Kotnanisieu experiments at tlieir race value ny auonsmng ail live slock from ins larming system. ■ xie evux.cu, a six-course rotation, witn three corn crops, two bare fallows, anu a clover crop, m 10 m ne oororvveu *io,Uoo, anu ooiigm a 4ouacre rarm on which to pursue his system. Almost immediately ne nan uo race the great agricultural depression and tne siump m corn puces, wnm, ms neighbours were gvdig oanKrup. or giving up farming, ._>u.yns \vc,.v on growing corn, niamng money, an., aduing laim to larrn. Beiore ueaui ne Was xarming x2,buJ acres, nail ownicn he owned, anu tne only livestock upon n were some obu working noises, xie uied at tne farm where ne started. He naa larmen it wnnout live stocK tor 01 years, and wiuiout any visible deterioration.' Mr. Orwin suggested that large areas 01 isngiand grasslands were inii or stored-up fertility, which could no. be casned except oy ploughing aim cropping. There were thousands Ox. acres oi grasslands wnicn would be more proiitable to landlord and tenant aline under a system oi alternate | Husbandry.