On the Land

New Zealand Tablet, 24 February 1916, Page 59

On the Land

GENERAL. On an 80-acre farm in the southern portion of the Taranaki Province the owner will take off well over .£BOO this season (says the News). ' Milk; purveyors are having considerable difficulty in getting sufficient milk for domestic requirements (says the Oamaru Mail). There is hardly vendor who is able to rely entirely on the,output of his own herd. Last month the price was risen to 5d per quart, and -a further increase is not unlikely. Masterton farmers are finding seed-growing a profitable undertaking, and land is now being prepared in various parts of the district for autumn and spring sowings (says the Times). During the past season there has been an unsatisfied demand for Wairarapa-grown seed, and this has led many farmers to give seed cultivation their attention.

A Masterton man put in eight acres .of Algerian oats last season. The cost of seed, ploughing, sowing, etc., was £2O 7s 9d. The cost of cutting, chaffing, bagging, and delivering was £ll 14s 3d. The interest on the capital value of the land was £24. His outlay was, therefore, £56 2s. His s net receipts from the oaten chaff amounted to £25 16s 9d. Hence, he has made a clear loss on his transaction of £3O 15s 4d. It is very apparent that farmers are recognising the value of lucerne, for the Oamaru Mail hears that numbers are putting in small patches for a start. One farmer, in the Weston district is endeavoring to receive a two-fold benefit from the plant. He has sowed a small paddock that was badly infested with Canadian thistle, in the hope that the more vigorous growing lucerne would ultimately kill the former, and the indications point to the experiment achieving some success.

There were only small yardings of fat cattle and sheep at Burnside last week, whilst lambs were in fair supply. Prices for cattle and sheep showed an improvement on the previous week’s rates. Eat Cattle. 102 head yarded. This quantity proved much too small for the trade’s requirements, and consequently a brisk sale resulted. The quality was good, but there was nothing of exceptional merit. Quotations: Best bullocks, £l6 10s; extra, to £2O 7s 6d; medium to good, £l4 10s to £ls 10s; best cows and heifers, £l3 10s to £ls; extra, to £l6 10s; medium to good, £ll to £l2 10s. Fat Sheep.—llßo penned. This was a small yarding of fairly good quality, which met with an eager sale at prices showing an advance of Is to 2s on previous week’s rates. Owing to high prices freezing operators were unable to compete to any extent during the sale. Quotations Best wethers, 28s to 32s ; extra, to 365; medium to good, 24s to 26s 6d ; light do, 18s 6d to 21s 6d; ewes—best made 25s to 28s; extra to 335; medium to good, 21s to 245; light and unfinished, 15s to 17s 6d. Fat Lambs.49o penned, the quality of which was only moderate.' For finished lambs competition was good, at previous week’s rates, but unfinished sorts were somewhat neglected, and sales difficult to effect. Quotations: Prime, 20s to 235; extra, to 255; ,medium, 18s to 19s. Pigs. There was a moderate - yarding of both fat and store pigs. Porkers and baconers sold with good competition at prices equal to late quotations. Very few suckers were penned, but the slips and stores on offer realised satisfactory values. ■ ■ ■■.

At Addington last week there were fair entries in all departments, _ and prices were about the same as those ruling at late sales;—Fat Lambs.—Prime lambs, 20s to 23s 7d; medium, 18s to 19s 6d; lighter, 15s Id to 17s. Fat Sheep.—Prime wethers, 25s lid to 28s; others, 20s 3d to 25s 4d; merino wethers, 20s Id; prime ewes, 22s to 30s; medium, 18s to 21s; lighter, 13s to 17s 6d. Fat Cattle, —Extra prime steers, to £18; ordinary steers, £7 15s to £l2; extra prime heifers, to £l4 10s; ordinary heifers, £6 2s 6d to £9 ; extra prime cows, to £l3 10s; ordinary cows, £6.to

£9. Price of beef per 1001 b, 29s 6d to 45s 6d; extra, to 50s. Fat Calves.—Seven special calves realised up to £5 19s—average £4 2s 6d; prices ranged ; from 8s to 53s for ordinary sorts.; good calves, to 119 s. Dairy cows, £3 to £11; extra, to £l4 ss. Pigs. Choppers, 50s to 90s; - extra' heavy baconers, .to 105 s ';■', heavy baconers, 80s to 98s; light baconers,-.'6os to 755. % Price per lb, 6£d to 7d. Heavy porkers, 45s to 545; light porkers, 40s to 445. Price per;lb,'? 7£d to Bd. The store pig quotations are: Best stores, 36s to 455; medium, 22s to 355; small, 14s to 21s; weaners, °Bs 6d to 12s. :.._.' t .-*' : '■■ '■ HOW TO PRESERVE FERTILITY. The intrinsic value of land (says an American journal) lies in its fertility, which means larger crops and greater profits. To maintain this fertility, the keeping of live stock is essential, the farmer who does not carry on his farming operations in connection with live stock is going to wake up some day and find himself on a run-down farm. In Europe soil that has been raising crops for centuries is to-day producing more than twice as much per acre as most of the soils of America. In some of the most prosperous countries, like Germany. Denmark, and Holland, farming is intensive. Agriculture is carefully planned and the natural resources are fully utilised and maintained. The agricultural population of Denmark has reached a high grade of intelligence and citizenship. It is bound to the soil by interest, religion, and patriotism, and has found comforts and real pleasure on the farm sufficient to offset all attractions of the cities. The productivity of our farms must be increased. Every acre must be made to produce more than in the past. Acres that are yet undeveloped must be brought under cultivation, and all this up-to-date farming must be done by men trained for their particular lines of work. The farmer of the future must practise intensive farming. ' He will then farm eighty acres instead of the 160 that he now handles in a slipshod manner. These trained men for farming may not be the agricultural college students. Well-informed men who are successful farmers are generally agreed that a thorough knowledge of agriculture can only be acquired by working out the problems of the farm upon the farm, from which there is to be had a world of details of business knowledge. ... Skill can be attained only by contact with the soil and experience in the life of a farmer, which points to the small farm that is personally worked; The world's most important school is the small farm, where common sense is taught. Common sense is a thorough appreciation "of common things and how to use them to best advantage, and of how to apply principles. The .working of problems in the barn and fields and getting the answer in the milk pail or granary, is the sort of wisdom that can only come through a working knowledge of all modern process of civic, social, economic, and commercial life. Education is what a human being takes up in a useable form by experience, observation, and instruction.