THE WAIKATO FARMER

Waikato Times, Volume 117, Issue 19597, 8 June 1935, Page 21 (Supplement)

THE WAIKATO FARMER

EDITED BY O. E. CUMING.

Restrictions v. Tariffs.

supplies exceed requirements of regular customers the Danes reduce prices to clear stocks but when in winter Danish supplies have difficulty in fulililing orders prices are raised, irrespective of whether there are large supplies of New Zealand or Australian hutter, or what the prices "of the Empire butters are. m * * * Diversified Farming. • Those who are doing well even at present prices are those who have developed a diversified system of farming. It Is these men particularly who are realising that smaller herds, but better fed and man'aged, are more profitable than larger herds, especially when sheep are brought in to take the place of the more or less unprofitable cows culled out. Proper methods of pig-keeping are extending in a very satisfactory way. Realisation In the possibilities of pigs when properly housed and fed is apparent. But appreciation of sheep as a side lino is not so general, and yet there are splendid possibilities in the keeping of sheep on the dairy farm. The majority of dairy farms are too large, and if they were sub-divided, and if only good cows were kept on the better paid and sheep on the remainder of the farm, not only would the returns be increased but the fertility of the farm would be greatly improved. There is nothing like a change of stock to build up a pasture, and having a decent mob of sheep available to bring on the cow portion of the. farm, to rapidly clean-up a field, would be a great advantage. lOf course, there is the drawbaok of cost, especially in the: matter of fencing, but where it can bo managed the diversified slocking would prove profitable ip more ways than one. •- • « Importance of Lime. It should be unnecessary to emphasise the importance of liming of pastures. Yet there are experts who are advising the farmer, especially the farmer in the pumice and swamp areas, not to use lime. Where land. Is used for the production of grass, and this grass in turn is used for the food of live stock, the maintenance of the lime content of the soil is of vital importance. It has been proved "that the value of grass as a food is principally determined toy,; its mineral content, that is by.the min'eral..matter found in thfi’ ; ash of . the grass, plant, and the most important mineral is limer One peculiar paradox in this connection Is that while .the Government railways will carry lime to be used for agricultural purposes free for the first hundred miles, to encourage its use, some Government agricultural experts are advising the farmer not to use limo on oertain areas. Lime is not only essential to the producing beast but the amount of lime in the soil determines the type of stock produced. It was the observation of a French scientist that only the smallest types of live stock could he expected on the soils overlying the other and harder rocks, owing to the presence of felspar and the absence of lime, which are both conducive to small bone.

'Though Sir Alfred Ransom has declared that New Zealand will not tolerate restrictions the Hon. Mr J. G. Coates has declared in London that New Zealand is strongly In favour of the situation being met entirely by quantitative restrictions. In saying this Mr Coates entered strong objection to the Imposition of tariffs on Empire food products, the New Zealand feeling, he said, being that tariffs would be a dangerous precedent which might lead ultimately to taxation of other Empire foods like dairy produce. Mr Coates in saying this knows by this time the growing feeling in England in favour of tariffs on all classes of foodstuffs. Officials of the Milk Marketing scheme are strongly advocating the imposition of a tariff on all milk products including butter, the tariff, as in the case of the tariffs proposed in regard to meat, being more on. foreign produce than on Empire butter, the tariff to be used to provide a bonus for the British dairy farmer.

One very unsatisfactory feature of the position Is that though every effort is being made by artificial means to ensure a payable price for the produce of British farmers nothing is being dona to control the retail prices. The big milk distributing companies are paying higher dividends than before. So with other products being bolstered up. Take the case of sugar beet. In the last ten years the British Government has .spent over £40,000,000 to subsidise sugar beet growers. A Commission was set up to report on the industry, and a majority report recommended that the subsidy should now be withdrawn, but the Government is *o continue a subsidy. And while the general taxpayer is being called upon to find money to bolster up this artificial Industry (to the detriment of a British colony like Jamaica) the Central Sugar Company, Limited, a £400,000 company engaged in turning sugar heel into sugar, is issuing three bonus 'shares for every five held and has never paid less than ten per oent. dividend since 1927, except in 1931, when 7J per cent, was paid, to balance the 15 per cent, paid in 1930. 1 * 51 • • Now Levies Proposed. The latest levy, or duty, on meat im■jportatlops proposed by Britain, id a •pound on Empire • meat 'and ljd on •foreign meat, "is a great Improvement on the original proposal of id on Empire and Id on foreign meat, especially as this good preference in regard to meat would probably be the relative rates Imposed If levies be introduced, in. connection with other products. But, as Mr Coates has realised, the replacement of quotas by levies will mean the flooding of the British market with foreign supplies and thereby seriously lowering prices, for no matter how high the levy foreign produce will continue to be dumped on the only world market available. * * * • The Beef Trade. Everything Is pointing to the fact that if the beef trade is to be maintained it will only be through the chilled carcases of prime young beasts. The main reason for this Is that the public of Britain is becoming more discriminating. 11 wants smaller joints and quality meat. Prime baby beef will capture the market. And specially prepared beef of this description cent Home chilled will undoubtedly And favour. An English expert recently declared that much of the English beef is unfit to eat, because it 13 used too soon after killing; it is not matured. And this is where good chilled meat has all the advantage, and Is distinctly superior from a quality view-point. Inferiority of much of the beef available, it is declared, is why there has been a decline of beef In. public favour, in fact Earl De La Warr, Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Agriculture, recently stated that people arc eating 10 to 15 per cent less beef than they did live years ago. * * * • Danish v. New Zealand.

Electricity and Agriculture. New practical uses for ultra-sliort waves, sometimes called 'death rays, have been announced as a result of recent research carried out by Russian research workers. It Is asserted that grain pests can be destroyed by Irradiating the grain with ultra short waves for two seconds without damaging the germinating power of the grain. Under the influence of the short waves the germinating powor of the seeds is said to be greatly Increased and the sprouts grow more energetically, while treated seeds retain the heightened germinating power for two months. The apparatus for disinfecting grain will treat one and a-half tons of grain hourly. Tha short waves have also, It is said, a powerful influence on the keeping quality of vegetables and fruit, while the flavour is also said to be improved. Fruits and vegetables treated in a 'high frequency field for one second aro claimed to last nearly twice as long as untreated fruits'and vegetables. • * * V Winter Grass. A correspondent expresses doubt as to whether the use of nitrogen to get winter grass is worth while. Certainly it does not pay to use nitrogen on poor pastures and on soil of low fertility, but on good ryegrass pasturo that lias been well fertilised it pays handsomely. It is surprising that so few farmers realise the need of nitrogen for winter grass. It is a very definite fact that ryegrass is our most important grass, and a good ryegrassclover sward is looked upon as the ideal. Now what is the season of growth of ill is our greatest grass? It Is the late autumn, winter and spring, in other words, its natural lime of scowlh is in llie colder months of the year when the life of the soil is mainly Inactive. Yet by the aid of nitrogen, the real missing link in ryegrass production, wo can have ryegrass when il should lie luxuriating for if naturally grows when rains are general, if the fanner would only reason things out for himself lie would realise that lie can have all ihe grass lie wants when the necessary rain can he depended upon but only by the aid of nitrogen. Another point to remember is that nitrogen means pro-

At. a factory managers’ conference in Melbourne the other day the reason was given why thero was such a big difference at times in the prices quoted for Danish butler and for Empire butters- Tho Danish butter trade, It was explained, was a fresh butter trade, and this fresh butler was supplied lo British retailers, mainly in Scotland and Ihe North of England, with unfailing regularity right throughout ihe year. But the biggest reason for Ihe price difference was that Danish butter docs not go lo a market to iwait sale. When it goes on tho market it is already sold. In summer when

A page devoted to assisting the Waikato farmer to make the fullest possible use of the great natural advantages of the Waikato and to thereby develop the most prosperous farming community in the world ,

H"* * • Foot and Mouth Disease.

tain, and it is protein rich grass that is necessary for both milk and meat production.

Nitrogen is going to he a big thing for the Australian dairy farmer. He now has the best summer grass tpaspalum) luxuriating in his main •dairying districts, especially in New South Wales and Queensland, but he is now taking up very rapidly the growing of perennial ryegrass which he always refers to as his winter grass, and he can make eure of having his winter grass by the 'aid of nitrogen.

Apparently that section of the farming community most anxious to see the embargo on the importation of stock from Britain lifted are the pedigree pig breeders. And certainly with pigs New Zealand netds importations more than with any other class of live stock. It hadly needs the bight strain of the Large White, though certainly some good strains of the breed are already in the country, as well as the Middle White. It may be said that pigs New Zealand needs importations cured from Australia, the progeny of imported pigs, but here the selection Is very limited. The need for British stock is undoubted. In this connection a North Auckland delegate to the Pigbpeeders’ Association meeting, Mr Morrison, made the good point that under the present restrictions and consequent high cost there was some chance that good pigs would toe imported but that if the embargo were lifted and importations thereby encouraged pigs would be Imported, probably by agents, which would do the pig stock of the country more harm than good. At the annual meeting of breeders of pedigree pigs a very fine protest against lifting the embargo (which the majority favoured) was made toy Mr Irwin Crookes, the well-known civil engineer who has a farm in the Whangarel district. Though his eloquent appeal did not convert his hearers he made some excellent points. One was the very high standard of stock on the Island of Jersey though the'lmportation of any fresh blood had not been allowed since 1879. Mr 'Crookes spoke of the terrible consequences if the disease once got a .foothold in New Zealand. Experts agree with Mr Crookes but contend •that the disease will not he introduced through animals that may be imported In view-of the strict quarantine. There are many ways in which it may be imported, andthe danger of introducing it is more serious in the case of Australia. Take the air service now operating. The machines are regularly landing -at stopping places in India, a country which is absolutely rotten with the disease. Bullocks affected with the disease are worked, that is if they can walk at all. And if the virus of the disease can live as long as some people declare what of the importation of jute products to this country from India. The sacks wo use and even the scrim that carries the wallpaper in the majority of our houses .should have been sterilised before use.