GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1205, 14 August 1911, Page 10

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

A shipment of CO draught horses from Lyttelton left New Zealand for Sydney by the M&eraki... The shippers weT? Mo?srs. AV. H. Tubiuan, Taylor, and Doyle. ■;■_■.■ Tho question of establishing an experimental farm in tho vicinity of Christchiirch was discussed at the ninth-annual meeting of the Canterbury Sheepowners' Union. It was stated that the Government had established several of these farms in the, North Island, but similar advantages lirid not , been extended to South Island farmers. A resolution was passed urging the Government to ; take stops for establishing an experiment farm in Canterbury. it is hard to s:iy which is the. worst enemy to the farmer—the grass grub or the small birds (says tho "Wairarapa Age"). A Masterton farmer told a representative of the "Ago" that the small birds were pulling up the grain on his farm to such an extent that he was afraid ho would have.to resow portion of his ground. There was a fairly heavy mortality among the flocks during the recent storm, according to • Ashburton farmers, aged ewes suffering most. The cause is attributed to weakness caused by tho shortage of fo-ed, which, it is reported, has never been so .scarce. Farmers state that unless there is an early spring the death-rate among flocks at lambing tinio must nscessarily bo heavy. A southern farmer, Mr. E. 0. Smart, of Lincoln, had a flock of ewes worried by five dogs recently. Some of the sheep were killed, and others were so badly torn that they had to bo destroyed. Tho whole flock was seriously injured, as tl»s ewes are due to lamb this week. The" Department of Agriculture has.been successful in its efforts to secure a supply of Peruvian lucerne seed (says the Melbourne "Age"). Experiments carried out oil a Government plot in the Goulburn Valley showed that tho plant possesses a remarkable advantage over other varieties of lucerne, for the reason that it yields heavy crops in winter as well as in summer. The Department is importing 5 tons of the seed, which will be delivered in September. A pumpkin weighing IG-llb. was raised this season' at Hetlley, Victoria. The prospects of the dairying industry in Victoria were never brighter than they are this season (says the "Sydney Morning Herald""). Feed i= good, and cattle are in good condition. There has been no cessation of the export season, and butter is now being sent to New Zealand, where there is a great scarcity. STOCK INSPECTION. A SUGGESTION. [To the Editor.] Sir, —Through -your columns I would beg to suggest to my fellow dairy-farmers that .something be demo to. protect us against possible erroneous -condemnation of stock—cows in particular. Under Iho present condition of affairs an inspector can enter a herd and condemn a part, or the whole for that matter, and the farmer has no 'indemnity whatsoever against fallibility of tho inspector'* judgment. Of recent date it has been the custom of Hie inspector for. this district, on condemning a beast, to have •it sent to Longburn, to be slaughtered. a"nd under such practice the. owner is deprived oven tho satisfaction of seeing the feast opened up. That the inspectors do make mistakes we know, a u<l we also know that it is not in thfir interest to confess to errors. Therefore, I contend that some drJinite and cogent action should be taken, for to such a degree as ihc farmer is perfunctory and apathetic, in matters pertaining t-.i his own interest, to such an extent will he (hid the Department so in regard to his welfare. True, the fanner gets half (:') the value of tho c:nr, if condemned, but the nispector is tho sole valuator. For a man to have a cow in full profit, and that is perfectly healthy, condemned, and in return , for such to receive an order for .£2 or .£3 is beyond toleration—from the owner's point of view at least. I would suggest that the farmers through the Farmers' Union (provided the consent of that body be given) employ a capable inspector to accompany the Government inspectors, on agreed dates, while inspecting. . If this was done I ,im pure the dairy farmers would be indemnified at a vary low cost, a«I such an indemnity is oT viral import.iiico to us, especially so, if current report be- true, that n systematic inspection of all herds will probably be made "after tho flection"—l mil, etc., ' DAIRY FAKMKR. Manakau, August 11.