WOOL-HANDLING REMINDERS.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XXIII, Issue 5, 21 November 1921, Page 288

WOOL-HANDLING REMINDERS.

—J. G. Cook,

The proper time to prepare wool for market is while the shearing is in progress. The fleece must be skirted— is, any part on the outer edges which does not harmonize with its general appearance should be torn off and put into its respective class. Then the fleece is lapped and rolled, the object being to make it more' convenient for handling afterwards. After rolling comes classing. This consists in sorting the fleeces, according to quality, condition, length, and soundness, into the classes or grades in which they harmonize with each other. When this skirting and classing are properly done the line will be uniform throughout, and will give a higher percentage of clean yield when scoured. The result will be very apparent in the degree of competition between the buyers when the wool is put up at sale-time. A . If a farmer has only enough fleeces to make a light-weight bale he should skirt the fleeces and when classing make two lines. Put all the finer fibre fleeces into one bin and the coarser fibre fleeces into another bin. When pressing, put the coarse fleeces at the bottom of the bale, then place a piece of bagging on top of them. Next put in the fine fibre fleeces, and sew the cap on the bale. When branding the bale, make a black line round two sides of the bale , at the point where the division comes between the two wools. In the wool-room the bale will be opened at both ends, and also a cut can be made, where the black line is drawn. By this means the buyer can see at a glance how much there is of each line, and it gives him a better chance to make his. valuation than if both lots had been put in as one line. . Full particulars regarding the preparation of wool for sale, &c., were given in the Journal for November, January, and March last.

Wool Instructor.