KEPT GREEN BY RAIN.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1026, 16 January 1911, Page 8

KEPT GREEN BY RAIN.

' ' TABANAKI DOWNPOUKS. •" One of prolific Taranaki's greatest assets is its abundant rainfall. When ,othor~districts are, crying out for rain, tho dairying provinco is often as green as.in spring. Some figures will illustrate'- tho point. On a- rough averago rain fell on more than .half the. days in tho year. 'J'he av-. crage rainfall in the north half of theprovinco was. about seventy inches for the year. . r Even ,in December over seven inches fell. ift some parts,. and tho averago fall during, tie month was six inchcs. Tho rainiest parts of Taranaki aro near Mount Egmont. On tho southern side, Kaponga and' Awatnna catch tho moisture attracted by tho big hill; on the western 'side Oalcura often has Tain when other localities liavo not (though, on tho whole, Oakura is not a very wet place); and north of Egmont tho country, from Stratford to Inglewood receives a good • deal' of liquid- for absorption. Of all tho localities which are situated in tho shadow of the great eminence, the stretch from Stratford to Inglewood gets the most rain. On nearly three-fifths of the days of last year rain fell at Inglewood, .'and the .quantity that caruo down was 95.55 inches. The exact, number of days was 107. During December 7.22 inches fell ■at Inglewood. . At Eltham rain fell on 170 days, and tho quantity totalled 51.37 inches, 4.29 inches of which dropped in December. ... ■ Stratford received 82 inches during the. twelve months, and New Plymouth 58.62 inchcs. In December .-New Plymouth's share was. 6.70,. and Stratford's G. 33. With;.such, figures to, its credit, Taranaki should bo green. . On the State •. Farm at We'reroa some very good crops of hay have been path-, creu, says v 'the "Horowhenua Chronicle." Many varieties of turnips are being grown for .trial,, as well as varieties ot maize, oats, and. wheat. They look healthy. California]! tbistlo is. spreading on tho East Coast, a Gisborne.reporter has been assured. Tho we'sd is now growing along tho banks, of tho Waipaoa, ' Pakarae, Uawa, and the upper reacher 'of tlie' Mata River, a-tributary'of the; Waiapu River, . On tho more rccent pastures of the Waiapu the thistlfc is also showing itself freelyl One settler- in the Mangatu is taking effective steps to eradicate tho weed by chipping the thistle, over his extensive property,..and -covering tho top for some distance round with a' heavy layer of salt. About 125 tons of salt is boing used for-this purpose. A small patch, growing luxuriantly, .was. located in Gisborne itstelf recently.