GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 783, 5 April 1910, Page 8

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

. It is not generally known that, besides tjie fruit in the cool chamber for London, the New Zealand Shipping Company's Paparoa also took from Kelson about 800 cases of apples a£- ordinary cargq ' for Montevideo, this being the first, shipment of New Zealand fruit to South America for soma years past. Had facihtics heen available another, full shipment to London could easily have been got together at Melson.

Competition/for bacon pigs is said to be keen in the Woodville district, between the buyers of the "Woodville Bacon Company, and Messrs. "W/Dimock and Co. The Bacon Company is 'erecting a suction gas plant at its works. ' Says the Mangorei correspondent of the "Taranaki Herald": The, warm moist ■summer we have had has produced an abundance of grass, and consequently tho cows have done well, some dairies putting up a record. ■ Eut although feed is still plentiful, the prospects for winter are not so bright, as the blight has played liavoc ■with the turnip crops. Though it has not •absolutely destroyed them, it has checked their growth to such an extent that good crops will be few and far between. Mangols! and carrots arc looking better, and give promise of a good yield, but potatoes are a failure.

Complaints "for some time past, have reached the Lower Waikato farmers that their consignments of dairy produce, conveyed by the Bailway Department,. are reaching distributing firms in a state of deterioration.:.. Consignees affirm that printed butter reaches them with the prints or brands completely obliterated, while eggs are frequently found to bo smashed. . ' .

Excellent reports have been received from the English-agents on the quality of the cheese from the Hongokohako Cooperative .Dairy I'actory, Ekctahuna-.' The remarks on two shipments are as follow: —.(1) Colour, right; texture, clean;-fla-vour, clean, perfection. (2) Colour, right ; texture, good; llavoiir, clean, perfect. Tho manager, Mr.. Henderson, is to-.be heartily, congratulated on such admirable results. .'•■■.'■. -.■>'■■ ' " ■ -.j Commenting on; the Auckland Customs returns for Marcli;"the."Star". says:;" The most gratifying increase in the list.- of exports for last month is that on;; Wool, which reached the substantial total Vof *£212 735, or JD138.170 ■ more ' than during March, 1909. Butter shows a substantial increase, and tho abnormally large export of cheese constitutes a record for. tho port, and represents an increase of .£34,243 over the figures of March of last:year. This is partly explained by the fact that considerable, .quantities . of previously consigned by the Kaipara. .were reshipped again last month, nn.l .'consequently swelled the : total. But, apart from this, tho.quantity of-cheese exported from'tho Auckland province, has been steadily growing. Another pleasing ./increase is that .of phorminm, which-'has. more than trebled in value since March, 1909. .Kauri glim and hides also show marked increases" .

Several farms on the Tokatoka swamp ■ (Dargaville) have recently changed hands. The fertility. . of, soil : has proved . so attractive that purchasers, from the south have been tempted to buy after inspecting farm lauds in other parts of. the Dominion. The latest 'sale effected by Mr. Colmore Williams was at .£lO. per acre.,'.," .Mr., Duncan Sinclair, jun., who is farming in ' Orange / Eiver Colony, South Africa, was a visitor to Feilding yesterday. He is a son of Mr. D. Sinclair, tho well-known engineer; and has. been in. South Africa for the last , ten years. Some good returns in grain-growing have be'eii obtained in the Halcombe district. In oho paddock Mr. J. Morrison, of ■ Tokbraiigi, harvested 10 bushels per acre. No fertilisers had been used, the crop being grown in the' ordinary way. , Mr; D. Cuddie, Dairy Commissioner, and Mr. C. J. Keakes, Chief Veterinarian, have returned from a visit, of inspection to Wanganui and Taranaki.: It appears that ..tho disease that recently affected some flocks of the north (telegraphs our Dargaville correspondent) has proved far-reaching, and so serious is it that on all side's settlers have lost some of their most promising stock.. The continued illness of sheep and the : apparent extension of the trouble is caMsmg settlers considerable anxiety and uneasiness, and with a view to haying the affection grappled with and throttled before much more damago is done, Mr. ft. Harding wrote to Mr. Hickman, of the Government veterinary staff, and urged upon him to send, the test veterinarian lieliad to'the district. The request met with n .prompt reply, and Mr. Lyons is expected to-dav. It is hoped that the visit will be so fruitful that the present trouble, will be completely stamped out.