THE CROPS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2324, 9 January 1890, Page 2

THE CROPS.

Ocir reportera and uiutriot correspoadenti aie now making their a&nal yearly vifitu to the several parti of the county, sod we propose to publish daring the nt'Xt few duye their reports npiQ ths appa%ranoa end prospects of the crop*. i'he season so far haa aot been altogether unfavorable to the growth of oere;k: B, neither haa It been all that oould be dea.ted. Wind hjs been ihe farmers' worst foe, The September nor'-wes er disturbed a large are* of crop la the early atago and blew a way altogeihec some of that of tholateai sown lota; bat evea grea edam&ge was oaaued by thd Ooi^ber gt:e, which braised the y^aag blade to auoa an extent that aome of i. n-ver leoovered and the later growth ot the pant was thin and weak. The nor'-westers of bet month wrought their evil by beating down aojnu of the heavy crops, bat ia most oaseu there has been sufficient recovery fo* the grain to ripen fairly, and though Individual patobes have saff red greatly the general loss will be Inconsiderable, The Spring rainfall has men much belaw ma average bl.g u<^.j Wutg.ucd would bavd been welcome. Rain, has, however, co mo from time to tmo just at janotu;es when the position of tha crops appealed moe(; preoarioaa, the showers of the iasi few weeks, falling when the wheat was la bloom, bting partlcu'a ly well-timed. The yield may be scaroety as heavy all round as last year's, bat given favorable ripening and harvesting weather the qaality of the grain will be soon ag has never bee a surpassed In the district. In the most forwatd crops the wheat is heavily headed and ihe kernel already remarkably plump, O»ta vary greatly, somo on the lightest lands being so stunted •nd thin a crop a« to ba hardly worth reaping, while on oar best lands both straw and head are as luxuriant as coald be wished, and aome heavy yields will be reooitded. Turnips have fared badly as a rale. The prolonged dioaght oanied the fly to play hnvoo with early sown sorts and later on there waa not seffioient molitare in the 801 l to Induce germinatlonj, the result being that a very large proportion has been or will yet have to ba roiown. This lo extremely unfo^u nate, aa a very large broadth of tamlps has been sown In order to provide for the Inoroased auppy of fit sheep whloh the expansion of the frozm meat export trade will demand. Ploughing has been carried on unc?ei difficulties for months past owing to tha hardness of the ground, and farmers and contractors who ace lo arteura with thia work would even now welcome a thorough soaking rain. Even ihe heavy rah)B of last week had little effect upon the son and wind-dried eatt i —not penetrating more than an icon below the surface. A considerable quantity of " tueaook " and swamp land has been broken op during tha winter and spring, aud appearances would seem to indicate that farmers are entering upjn a Byßtom of general farming which will lead to their esoaplng the troubles whloh have in the past followed the too general praobloe of growing either ail sheep or all gralu. Sheep are commanding the first attention, from the satisfactory prices of wool and mutton, aud there Is every prospect that every cheep that will be for rale daring the autumn will find a re*dy buy or at a prlno '25 to 30 per cent higher than last season's vaio.es. It ia said that one of the South Canterbury dealers his already paiaed through his hands since shearing (something appt )Rching 200,000 eheop. The changes In the tenancy of the runs will lead to Important transactions In sheep, and tha uaw 1 runholdcrs will aUrt under the doable disadvantage of increased rentals for thelu runs aad high cist of sheep wherewith to start therein. The small Increase on many runs daring the last the c lamblnga, and the heavy losses whloh aomia have suffered dutinp the winters will have the effjot of hardening the values of metino store sheep, All rooad, however, the sheep farmers' ptospeo s are good, as there Is no reason to anticipate any material depredation In tha value of sheep of any description.

.Some early oats have ahready been reaped, and next week will see machines pretiy fully employed in this o ra*l; harvest will be general in about a fortnight Prices unfortnnately promise to rale low, and at present shipment to the Unllied X ngdotn appears likeiy to sffoid the only cutlet, Let as hope that tho improvement in the Home matket will continue, and that freight will be plentiful it nwQoible ntot\