“Cavalcade of Farming”

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 60, Issue 1, 15 January 1940, Page 36

“Cavalcade of Farming”

Review

“Cavalcade of Farming”;, published.- by the Point Blank Press Co. Ltd., Wellington; price 2/-.

THIS distinctive and attractive pub--1 lication surveys, the phenomenal agricultural. and pastoral progress which has been made in New Zealand in the first century of organised settlement, - and from the farming community especially should receive a warm welcome. No attempt has been made to write a formal history, , but in 72 pages of letterpress. and appropriate - illustrations there is ■ unfolded in well-chosen sequence a'story of unprecedented . successful endeavour to win wealth and prosperity from virgin lands. Tussock-covered plains, impenetrable bush and . swamp and raw volcanic soils have been converted into’ farms of ; high - fertility. and pro-, duction. Mistakes have been made, and at times optimism has outweighed judgment, but with all these admitted, New Zealand’s farming achievements make a proud heritage for present and succeeding generations. U. As a setting to the main theme of' “Cavalcade”, the publication opens with a short description of the coming of the Maori, and . Maori agriculture. Due credit is given to the efforts of Samuel Marsden, the “first Pakeha farmer”, and there is a brief biography of . Edward Gibbon Wakefield. - Then follows the main , story, the history of land settlement from the earliest times up to the present. The story, is well told. The pioneers who came 'to this country from all, parts of the British Isles were no mere adventurers. - Adventure they were eager for and got it, but their primary purpose . was to build a Britain of the

South. To-day we live largely on their achievements. In the ■ vicissitudes of the last century -there were many hungry periods, but’ these . were dauntlessly faced, and in times of; adversity sometimes; prolonged the building of . a nation went on. Thus when good times came again, the country was in a position to reap the full benefits. ■ Comprehensive accounts are given of the rise of the sheep and dairy industries, each of which is given a separate section. Here again we ..have .narratives, which tell how. foresight and resourcefulness overcame days of adversity..and heart-breaking reverses. However, at the time one has the feeling that the indomitable spirit of the early settlers- was equal to all ob- . stacles in the path of progress. < The discovery of refrigeration, the enterprise shown on the high seas'by the shipping, companies which made trade between New. Zealand and the Motherland possible, the establishment of English, pastures, the; history of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, . the rise of the pig, fruit and poultry industries are adequately dealt with. There is a section devoted to stud stock in which the history of the principal breeds of cattle . and sheep and their introduction to New Zealand are outlined. Undoubtedly the first; sheep brought to the Dominion were Merinos, and it is more than probable that the shorthorn was the first breed of , cattle, and it is interesting to note how these original breeds have been, superseded in the passage of the years. 7 - The growth of internal as well. as external, transport is summarised, and

“Cavalcade” closes with a chapter on land ; clearing by the most modern machinery, a striking contrast to the laborious methods of pre-mechanical days.' The sponsors of “Cavalcade of Farming” are to be congratulated on their enterprise. This short review cannot do justice to the wealth of detail this publication contains. - It should be in the hands of all . those interested in the history of their country, and is specially commended to those who are yet too young to realise the heritage and traditions which have been handed down to them. .

Forcing Early Crops of Potatoes W.H.P.R. (WAIHI):— I. wish to thank you for the bulletins which I have just received. I am very interested in potato growing, having grown them successfully as late crops for,several years. ■ However, it is my intention: to try early crops. - My present problem is thisis there any way of forcing to sprout seed dug ■ in late November to plant in late December? FIELDS DIVISION:— You will obtain information on the growing of early crops in an article entitled “Truck Farming at Pukekohe’?.'in the “Journal of Agriculture” for February,; March, April, and May, 1938. Your present problem, i.e., the forcing to sprout of seed dug in November to plant in late December, you - will see from the article can be solved by using the Northern Star potato. It may be possible by using vernalisation to employ other varieties. You could try subjecting the seed as soon as it is dug in. late November to the following treatment. . Put the seed tubers ,on a raised wire-netting frame. Hang over them electric light bulbs, and place electric light bulbs below them. In this way the potatoes can be subjected to continuous illumination from the period of harvesting until the time of planting. This process has been found to make the potato sprouts grow faster.