NOTES BY THE WAY

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22506, 14 September 1938, Page 15

NOTES BY THE WAY

FARM CONDITIONS An Ashburton county farmer mentioned to “Straggler” the other day that the season generally had been a very disappointing one in his county. Returns were down considerably. Feed was short on account of the late and heavy frosts, which held back growth considerably, whilst the turnip crops, like those of many districts in North Canterbury were poor. The grass grub had been particularly bad this season. , On top of this were the interruptions to wheat sowing caused by the weather. A lot of ground had been practically prepared for wheat when the rain of 12 days ago again put a stop to sowing. The season was now too late for farmers with light to medium land to risk sowing, but there would still be a fair area sown in the Methven district, where more dependence could be placed on spring showers. The wet weather in the autumn and winter had made many farmers curtail their top-dressing programme, and this is likely to have an effect on the grass supply for lamb fattening. Paddocks which ordinarily would be closed up for hay have been commandeered to carry the ewes and lambs along. In cases such as this several farmers in recent years have successfully spring top-dressed a few paddocks and saved some hay for the following winter. There has been a very heavy increase in the use of lime in the county this season, and in these cases top-dressing should meet with a good response.. The market for store ewes was unpromising, and fat sheep for the local market were more than 25 per cent, cheaper than at this time last year. The one satisfactory prospect at the moment was the firm price of lamb in England. A Christchurch visitor to Marlborough last week informed “Straggler” yesterday that the province was looking extremely well at the present time. The young wheat was coming away particularly well, though perhaps not so forward as usual at this timeof year on account of the late spring. The acreage did not appear to be much different from that of normal years except that there might be a little more than usual in the Seddon district. SEWING OF WHEAT SACKS Flourmillers are complaining of the careless and inefficient manner in which sacks of wheat are sewn up on some farms. The trouble seems to have developed since the inauguration of header threshing. This is quite conceivable. At the stationary mill the bag sewer has generally to do his wori: properly under supervision, and checking if he slacks. On the header there is little or no supervision irom a boss or consequent checking. The practice is. an extremely dangerous one when the wheat is in storee, stacked anything from 30 to 40 sacks high. Th few stitches in some of the bags burst under the pressure, the wheat is spilled out, and this ,in turn causes the stack to collapse. If men are working in the passages alongside, and this occurs they are liable to be seriously injured or even killed. .-As:er;!9l Htte^ TOf ' fat 2 t the graver result is -the more frequent. There have been cases of sacks of wheat being received at the mills with only four Stitches across the top instead of more than double .the number. Several narrow escapes have already occurred in stores lately as a result of the carelessness mentioned when stacks of wheat were being taken down or not properly sewn at tne. mouth, or when inferior twine has been used. Farmers and header owners should make a point of seeing that this

important part of wheat handling should be properly attended to.

THE SUFFOLK CROSS English stock papers to hand give considerable prominence to the fact that at the Suffolk Sheep Society’s ram sale at Ipswich early last month the record price of 490 guineas was paid for a Suffolk ram. The buyer was Commander J. A. Duncan, of Arbroath (Scotland), president of the Suffolk Sheep Society. The popularity of the Suffolk breed in the last few years has increased in the Old Country to a degree almost without parallel. Registered flocks in the current Flock Book number 300, including 40 new ones formed m 1937. Their distribution is widespread, 193 being in England and Wales, 104 in Ireland and 68 in Scotland, the registrations altogether being spread over 73 countries. . . . The Official Year Book of the society for 1938 gives a list of the outstanding successes achieved by Suffolk and Suffolk crosses at Smithfield and other leading fat sheep shows. A perusal of the list indicates that in the important classes the Suffolk, or the Suffolk crosses with Leicester, Cheviots. Southdowns, Border Leicesters. and haltbreds gained the bulk of the supreme championships and the main awards, both in the live and carcase sections. During the year Suffolks were exported to the United States of America, Canada. Belgium, Brazil, British Columbia, Ireland, Australia, Chile, Kenya, and France. An interesting table in the Year Book shows the percentage ot lambs reared in English, Scottish, and Irish flocks in the 11 years between 1927 and 1937. The percentage ranges from 127.44 to 138.21. The society's Year Book contains several interesting articles on the subject of the breed. In one, Mr W. S. Mansfield, principal of Cambridge University Farms, the writer, states that tne rams he mates with his halfb re d ewes are in these days exclusively Suffolks. He had tried several other breeds, but had come finally to the conclusion that for his market the Suffolk crosses were the most marketable. At one period he used Southdown rams,’ and the lambs resulting from this cress were not only of extremely high quality, but were very easily fattened. Mr Mansfield found, however, that although the butchers all spoke highly of these lambs, the price per lb he could obtain for them was only a halfpenny more than he could gef for his Suffolk crosses. As the Suffolk crosses weighed considerably more the net result was that the price of the lambs from the Southdown crosses was some 6s a head less than from the Suffolk crosses Another writer says that the Suffolk ram is greatly favoured for breeding purposes with the smaller flamed ewes, because -i its narrow head. Naturally. therefore, when the Suffolk is the sire the lambing is large, and the number reared greater than when wide and woolly headed rams are used. The Home butcher shows great partiality for the Suffolk and its crosses as they dress up to t>o per cent live weight. The Southdown ram on the Suffolk ewe. as against the reverse mating, is favoured In England, as it has been found that the Suffolk ewe is the better mother than the Southdown, having a better supply of milk, and the lamb fall is generally larger. The Year Book contains an illustration of the supreme Cham-, pion carcase .at Smithfield in 1937, this being obtained by. a Soulhdown-Sut--folk ram Southdown-Suffolk-Cheviot ewe, in which the complete absence of waste fat is very noticeable. It is instruct! to note that a Canterbury Southdown breeder recently imported several Suffolk rams for crossing with Southdown registered ewes to raise' rams for mating with other crosses for the production of fat lambs.