On the Land

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 9, 11 March 1925, Page 53

On the Land

3k MARKET REPORTS. There was a large yarding of fat cattle at Burnside last week, 276 coming under the hammer. There were not a great many pens of extra prime heavy bullocks, the bulk of the yarding consisting of well-finished me-dium-weight bullocks and a large number of cows and heifers, some of which were very good quality. There was keen competition, a number of country butchers being in attendance, and prices may be quoted at from 10s to 15s per head above the previous week's rates for all good beef. Prime heavy bullocks made £ls to £lB 12s 6d, medium from £ll 10s to £l4, lighter sorts from £8 10s to £lO 10s. Prime heavy heifers and cows . made to £l3 10s, prime heifers and cows £7 to £9, medium £5 10s to £6 15s, old and inferior from £3 10s to £5. Fat Sheep.— The number yarded consisted of 2528 head. There was a large number of ewes, amongst which there were some pens of very nice quality. The balance of the yarding was . made up of a number of prime mediumweight wethers, with odd pens of extra heavy. The sale opened with prices much on a par with the preceding week’s rates, and as it progressed gradually improved, until prices were, if anything, a shade better than those of the previous week. Extra prime heavyweight wethers sold at from 45s to 495, prime 42s to 445, medium 37s 6d to 40s 6d, lighter 32s to 355. Extra prime heavy ewes sold to 41s 6d, prime from 32s to 355, medium 27s -6d to 31s 6d, old and inferior 20s to 255. Lambs. About 830 came forward, the quality taken all round being of a medium description, as there was not an extra large proportion of prime lambs forward. There was keen competition for everything fit for freezing, while graziers competed for the others at late rates. Prime lambs 40s to 43s 6d, medium 33s to 38s, unfinished and small 20s to 27s 6d. Pigs. There were 150 fats and not many stores. The entry consisted mainly of baconers. There was a good attendance of buyers, and a fair demand, prices going up to 4s‘or ss. Lower yardings were the rule last week at the Addington market. Store ewes and wethers sold up to 2s per head better,* and fat sheep were Is 6d to 2s easier; fat lambs 10s 6d easier, and fat cattle a shade better than on the previous week. Fat Lambs. —There were 3470 penned, of very mixed quality. On account of the waterfront trouble and an under-strength board of butchers at the freezing works, the market was under the export schedule prices by £d per lb. Prime, under 36’s made 12£d per lb, light seconds and overweights from ll£d to 121 d. Extra prime lambs made 45s lOd, prime 38s 6d to 41s, medium 36s to 38s, light 33s to 33s 6d, store lambs 29s to 32s 6d. Fat Sheep. There was ft slacked sale, and exporters bought much freely than usual, and wethers were down >h?ss freely than usual, and wethers were down ay Is 6d and ewes by up to 2s a head. Extra prime wethers made 45s 10s, prime 38s 6d to 42s 6d, medium 35s 6d to 38s, light 33s to 355, extra prime ewes 44s Id, prime 33s to 375, medium 30s to 32s 6d, light 26s to 29s 6d, old 22s to 255. Fat Cattle. —There " -

was a smaller entry, comprising 432 head. Tbeie is a steadying up of prices, cow and heifer beef being 20s per head better than on the preceding week. Good serviceable beef averaged from 33s to 38s per 1001 b. Extra prime steers made £l6 17s 6d, prime £l4 10s to £l6 os, medium . £l2 to £l4 os, light £9 10s to £ll 10s, rough £7 12s Od to £9. Extra prime heifers made £l3 2s 6d, prime £9 os to £ll os, ordinary £5 15s to £9, extra prime cows £l3 17s 6d, prime £8 10s to £lO 15s, ordinary £5 10s to £8 os, old £3 7s 6d to £5 7s 6d. Vealers.—-There was a. large entry of small, handy-weight calves which sold well. Runners made £5 los, good vealers £3 to £4 15s, good calves £1 los to £2 15s, small los to 30s. Fat Pigs. —Porkers were a shade better, baconers being about the same. Choppers made £3 to £6, light baconers £3 los to £4 ss, heavy £4 10s to £5, extra heavy £5 ss. The average price per lb was 6d to 7d. Light porkers made 50s to 57s 6d, heavy £3 to £3 Bs. The average price per lb was 7d to Bd.

FARM BUILDINGS (Contributed.) CONCRETE FLOORS ON THE FARM. It may be useful here to point* out that concrete floors for sheds, barns, and outhouses, can now be more cheaply laid do« n than wood wherever shingle and sand are reasonably close at hand. Moreover, conciete lasts for ever —a distinct advantage over the use of wood, which must be renewed from time to time. To illustrate the method of laying down such floors, let ns suppose that we require one the dimensions of which are 18 feet x 36 feet, and 4in in thickness or depth. Materials Required.To find the requisite quantity of shingle and sand, then, multiply 18 x 36 x i (4in equals Jft) and divide by 27 to get result in cubic yards. x 36 27 x /S = 8 cu. yds. Each bag of cement contains approximately 1;} cubic feet, then assuming the strength of our mixture to be 6 to 1, a bag will suffice for 8 cubic feet. Cement required = 8 x 27 - 8 = 27 bags. In clean river shingle the right proportion of sand may often be found intermixed with it, but where coarse shingle or broken rock is employed sufficient sand must be added in order to fill up all voids, and thus make of the finished concrete a compact solid mass. Where quantities are mixed separately, about 5 parts shingle or broken stone, 2 of sand, and 1 of cement will suffice. •Putting down the Screeds. —Having got" ready our quota of materials, the next thing to do is to fix our screeds or guiding rods in position. An expeditious way of effecting this is to drive pegs into the ground at all corners on the outer margin of the area which it is desired to lay down in concrete, and then, by the aid of the carpenter’s line, more intermediate pegs are driven, to which

straight 4in x 2in scantlings are affixed and levelled by means of a spirit level. Straight screeds or guiding rods are absolutely indispensable where a level surface finish is desired ; any bumps or deflections in them will produce corresponding rises or depressions m the finished floor.

The pegs to which the .screeds are nailed should not be driven too firmly into the ground-just sufficiently rigid to keep them in correct alignment and also withstand the pressure of levelling off with the straight edge, to which they will be subjected during the work. to

'lt will now he advisable to put down another screed through the centre so as o di vide the space of the prospective floor into two areas of 9ft by 36ft. The levelling of the whole floor (18ft x 36ft) in one section would entail heavy and strenuous work besides a long straight edge is prone to' sain the centre. " The Gauge-Box.— using concrete at strength 6 to 1, frequently 3 bags of cement are considered sufficient to mix with 1 yard of shingle and sand. In actual practice the average bag does not contain lj cubic feet, but falls a little shortabout li cubic feet is more correct. If the gauge box be made 4ft square (inside measurement) by 6in high, it will just contain 8 cubic feet and strength 6 to 1 maintamed. Gauge-boxes may be made in various shapes and to suit any strength; the height (6in) was here set down with the idea of convenience when tipping the wheelbarrow. By the proper use of these boxes and a little calculation waste may be reduced to the minimum.

Mixing.— A large sledge such as is frequently used in grass-seed saving will make a good substitute for a mixing board where no special board is kept for this purpose, and no existing floor near at hand which might be similarly utilized. Care should be taken to mix thoroughly. The usual way is to measure out the shingle and sand in quantities convenient to suit the size of the mixing board; spread the cement uniformly over the heap, and then turn twice dry and twice when wetted.

When mixing or putting concrete in the wheel-barrow always begin from, the bottom of the heap and turn the shovel aver when emptying it; moreover, in the case of mixing the shovel when turned should be drawn backwards through the heap. Be careful not to throw on too much water and, as it were, drown the cement, causing it to run off the board. A water-can will serve well for a sprinkler. In very cold weather beware of mixing up shingle and sand before the frost with which it may have been covered the previous night has completely melted away. Concrete made from frosted shingle may blow out or crack soon after being placed. For floors of large areas a concrete-mixer operated by an engine may be advantageously used to speed up, mixing, and consequently the placing—an important factor of success

in this class of work. (To be continued.)