FARMING NOTES.

Waikato Times, Volume LVII, Issue 7000, 2 May 1906, Page 1

FARMING NOTES.

MEETS AND 'JURXIPS FOR DAIRY CO W 6. Iu the low* station ii thorough test of feeding beets an<i turnips t) dairy cows demonstrated conclusively that turnips injure the fhvour of milk aud buttor. I'uis injury is due to volatile acids, which can be driven i.tl by heating the milk to lGl) degrees, beets increased the milk uud butter product aud caused all the cows, even Jerseys, to fatten quite r.ipidiy. When the beets were discuniinued, butter-fat decreased and the cows ceased to gain weight, and it took inor-.t pounds of teed (calculated to dry matter) to a pound of butter. When turcei on pasture tLere was tin immediate increase in milk, butter and live weight. Feeding bran during p.rc of the graziug period produced sutlicieat gain to yield a small profit.

WARWICKSHIRE POTATO 'IRIALS. Aluch iuceresting information is con t lined iu the rep rt on last year's potato trials issued by tue Warwickshire County Council's horticultural expert (Mr H. Dunki.i). Mr Dunkiu poiuts out that the object of the trial? was to ascertaiu which which varieties would succted the best under ordinary field culture, and also to test their capacity for resisting disease. No special uuthods of culture were therefore adopted. Each variety was confined to a plot of one squiro rod (3Jj yards) in extout, and the land was ploughed iu the autumn and again in spring, farmyard manure being applied before the winter ploughing. Drills were drawn with tne plough, oiu. in depth, and the artificial manure was scattered broadcast aftur the drills were drawn. After planting, the ridges were "split" with the plough to fill in the drills, while during the growing season the plots were hoed twice. Earthing was done by hand-labour, because some varieties wore ready for earthing much earlier than others. Farm-yard manure was applied at the rate of 12 tons per acre, dissolved bones at the rate of 5 cwt per a n re, and soot at the rate of 5 cwt per acre. The results of the experiments during the last two years point to the following conclusions: —(1) That Charles Fidler and Factor are two grand late potatoes which may be thoroughly relied upon in regard cropping and eating qualities. (2) That the Royal Kidney aud British Queen are good maincrop varieties, but the latter is too much subject to disease, and does not crop so well as the former. The one fault of Royal Kidney is that it produces too many tubers of seed size. (3) That Up-to-Date is grhdu 'lly losing vigor. (4) That Evergood and Northern Star are unreliable. (5) That Sir J. Llewelyn, Ninetyfold, and Kiug Edward VII. are not suitable fur field culture,;unless special methods are adopted. They are, however, good varieties for garden culture. (6) That Sutton's Discovery is a perfect disease resister, but not a heavy cropper, 'lhe tubers are very even in size, of good appearance, and fine quality when cooked. Although Charles Fidler has proved the heaviest crop in both trials, Mr Dunkin considers Factor the better variety 1 ecause it shows less disease, and also because Charle; Fidler, having deep eyes, " cuts to waste."

THE CLYDESDALE OF TO-DAY. The Clydesdale of to-day is not the Clydesdale of 25 years ago—that is to say, he is a horse in which the essential characteristics of a draught horse are better illustrated, and with less alloy, than is the horse of the past. Such is the statement accredited to Archibald MacNeilage, secretary to the Clydesdale Horse Society of Great Britain and Ireland, and he has backed up his statement by a table of enormous interest to horse-breeders, and an interesting review of the past 30 years' breeding in the old land.

In the early eighties the horses mos(; fancied were big. weighty, and rather disposed to be gross, both in bone and hair, but during the next decade the swing of the pendulum was rather the other way. The Prince of Wales—Darnley cross, then in the "Pendent, produced a beautiful animal, with matchless quality of feet and and legs, nicely moulded top, and first-rate action—but in some cases inclined to bo deficient in size. A bigger horse has been this Society's aim during the past few years, and huw well it has succeeded we will proceed to show. One seldom hears nowadays in ihu Old Country of a Clydesdale being unable to travel through founder in the forefeet: but a quarter of a century ago such complaints were not uncomon, and a few old stallions, that had been fed fo - showing, came on the road without symptoms of being down on their heels. This disorder, says the Secretary, has passed, because the breed has been improved in respect of stamina, of soundnegg of feet, of cleanness of bone, of pith aid vim, and of action close and straight. Crooked or sickle hocks are rare, if not unknown, among the sh iw heroes and breeding sires, whereas, at intervals during the last quarter of a contury, they w.-rj rather common in one trib >, while in another the opposite tendency—straightness of hocka and wideness behind—were were not at all uncommon. Pasterns are not so long and dnglike at they were in the noted show horses of the past; yet nevor were Clydesdales judges more exacting in having the pasterns at the oblique angle, which secures elasticity of movemeut. r lhe elements which have gone to effect these changes in character hive been various, but they have b<on largely the result of blending groups and strains of blood which h>d rather been pas-ed over during the years when Prince of Wales and Darnley between them, dominated the leading'show rings. The horse which marked the beginning of the new era was Sir Evorard (English Stud Hook) whoso breeding is a combination of the two strains naund—his sire being a son of Darnley, and his dam a grand-daughter of Prince ot Wales. Sir Everard's most relebra'ed son was Baron's Pride, who sired by far the largest number of prize-winning animals during the best part of a decade. Hi 3 dam was Forest (jueen, a local prizi m 're, got by Sprint, hdl Darnley, a son ( f the original Darnley, and he stands to-day a remarkably and vigorous sir,', in spite of lti years' work. One of the most promising of H iron's Prid ' s progeny, and a noted winner, is Sdver Cup, bred from a MaeCregor pri,.e mare. He is a very handsome horse, almost unrivalled at the present day. Bircn o' Huchlyvie is another successful son, standing fourth 011 the list of winning sires for I'JUo. He is a big handsome brown horse, foaled in 11)01).

Two typical sous of Sir Everard, aud owned by Mr Win. Taylor, of Renfrew, who also owned thae sire, are Sir Hugo and Sir Simon, the latter being generally considered one of the true-it specirn ;os of the breed alive to-day.