How a Putaruru Farmer Uses Home-grown Barley for His Pigs

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 62, Issue 2, 15 February 1941, Page 79

How a Putaruru Farmer Uses Home-grown Barley for His Pigs

Home-grown foodstuffs for bacon production have been fully exploited by Mr. R. Baldwin, a member of the Putaruru Young Farmers’ Club and a past chairman, whose performance is worthy of mention. Although not an outstanding record, it has plainly good merit in that more than

By—

C. S. DALGLIESH,

Fields Instructor, Rotorua.

4 tons of pig-meat have been produced from home-grown foodstuffs plus the

cost of £4 11s 6d for two 44-gallon drums of molasses. The season was started with seven sows, which Mr. Baldwin found was insufficient for the dairy herd of 75 cows, and had he had the full equipment of sows at . the start of the season the performance would indeed have been better. Mr. Baldwin works on his father’s farm, “Charlton,” Lichfield Road, Putaruru, and is in full charge of the pigs. During the winter the larger-sized pigs and dry sows are grazed on the swede crop along with dry stock, with access to good pastures. Movable styes are provided for housing. Soaked barley is fed once a day at rate of i lb. to 1 lb. per pig. Old 12-gallon cream cans are used for soaking the barley. After the can is three parts filled with barley boiling water is added, and the feed is used after soaking for 24 hours. In addition to the available milk supply weaner pigs are fed with molasses and barley-meal soaked in cold water in a 40-gallon drum, and, similar to store pigs, have access to

pastures. The first stores for fattening are brought into the , fattening sty at the beginning of the milking season (early August) and fed three times per day on milk rations plus barley-meal. If the milk supply is not plentiful molasses are used to supplement the shortage. Here are details of the farm: — Dairy herd of 75 cows. Pig transactions 1-4-39 to 31-3-40. Pigs on hand 1-4-39: 24 stores, 20 weaners, 12 slips, 7 sows, 1 boar.

Pigs on hand 31/3/40: 21 stores, 12 weaners, 6 slips, 8 sows, 1 boar. * Used for home consumption. t As stores brought into fattening stye midAugust. Mr. Baldwin has been growing Chevalier barley successfully for several years, using home-grown seed. The barley is generally sown following the swede crop at rate of 2| bushels per acre, or 3 bushels per acre if sowing is delayed. The average yields of the crops are 47 to 50 bushels per acre, and 90 sacks (21 bushel sacks) are generally kept each year for pig feed. The crop is stacked at harvesting, and at threshing the straw is baled and then used for feeding to dry stock when on swedes in the winter. The barley is ground by a grinder, driven by a 22 h.p. truck engine at rate of four to five bags per hour. Mr. Baldwin considers that the engine power and grinding plant are unnecessarily large for his requirements and that a smaller plant would be quite satisfactory.

Sales. Pig-meat. Weight. Number. Weight. Lb. April .. 4 baconers baconers 412 412 April . . 4 .. 443 443 May . . 8 porkers porkers 586 586 May . . 6 baconers baconers 662 662 June .. " 1 35* June . . 3 baconers baconers 450t 450t September .. 7 1,049 October . . 6 857 November . . 6 887 December . . 5 716 January . . 5 830 February . . 8 1,146 March . . .. 1 chopper chopper 251 251 March .. . . 6 baconers baconers 875 875 Total .. 70 9,1991b.

13 Pigs .. . .. £26 0 0 10 Pigs .. 12 10 0 1 Sow .. 2 0 0 1 Boar .. 3 3 0

Purchases.