“SICK” COUNTRY.

Waikato Times, Volume 111, Issue 18630, 7 May 1932, Page 9

“SICK” COUNTRY.

EXPERIMENTS WITH EWES. AREA AT PUTARURU. SUCCESSFUL DEMONSTRATION. In response to an invitation extended to those interested there was a large attendance of farmers on Thursday at the Crossing Estate, Putaruru, when Mr \V. Alexander, agricultural adviser to Messrs Kempthorne, Prosser and Co., Ltd., conducted a demonstration on the treatment of “sick" country. Before the party inspected the area under treatment Mr Alexander explained the experimental methods and I gave a brief description of the mobs J of ewes to be inspected. The 20-acre trial area was traversed, the pastures examined, and the nature of the country taken into consideration, the tour finishing up with a close inspection of the ewes which had been running for 16 months and which had during that time Raised a crop of lambs. At this stage the history of the experiments was related, details given being those which appeared in the Waikato Times in a special article on January 30 last. Visitors Impressed. The visitors were much impressed with the quality and condition of the stock. H was no exaggerated claim made by Mr Alexander when he stated one would have difficulty in matching such ewes in any part of the Waikato. It was pointed out that the treatment carried out aimed at cor-

reeling the trouble at its source, Le., the lamb, rather than attempting merely to cure stock suffering from sickness. Numerous questions were answered, one of the most Important from the visitors’ point of view being tho cost of the treatment. Air Alexander explained that this worked out at 3d per head per ewe carried over and above wiiat it would have cost to top-dress the country in the ordinary way. In other words the special top-dressing mlxlure applied showed a cost of about 7s Gd per ton over the price of straight superphosphate. Analysis of “pasturo samples’’ showed that the mineral balance had been Improved ns the result of each year’s treatment until now the quality of tho pasture was equal to that of normal, healthy Waikato country. Following Hie inspection of the original trial area, the visitors were conducted over another piece of country where they had an opportunity of observing results of a light dressing of carbonate of lime applied prior to the sowing down of a young grass paddock. It was quite obvious even at this slago that lime had had a decidedly beneficial effect on tho quality of pasture. Now Area Brought In. Interest was taken in Ihe new area of 35 acres which this year was being taken in hand with the idea of converting it into healthy country. This j area lias already been treated with carbonate of lime at Ihe rate nr 10 owls per acre followed by a dressing of special mixture at Hie rate of iewts j per acre. Ewes running on this new area were recently purchased '

from an outside district and the visitors had a chance of examining them at close quarters. Before leaving, representative visitors from Tokoroa and Maiamata expressed their appreciation of the opportunity afforded them of seeing experiments carried out on practical lines and in each case they spoke highly •of the results secured. Air J. F. Yosper, of Matamata, stated that in the course of his remarks that he considered the experiment to be the most practical and successful of its kind yet carried out on “sick” country.