THE CLIMATE.

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1372, 24 February 1912, Page 23

THE CLIMATE.

One of the most important factors to bo considered in connection with this Northern country is that oi climate, for it is practically unique; it is winterless," it i 3 never cold, it is never extremely hot, though Southern people think because it is so far North it must be proportionately warmer. Tlmt is a fa lacy.Both Napier and Christchtirch will ie"ister higher temperatures than the North Auckland district. Being a long narrow projection of' land, with the ocean on either side, tho boat is tampered and generally not excessive. Floods and droughts are practically unknown. lho ramfull is fairly distributed throughout . the year-at any rate, for ton raonths-and though the bushmen look for n "drive" now and again, to get-their timber out, the storm water soon runs off, and nothing in the shape of a flood can happen North, owing to the limited area of any watershed and tho numerous exits for the water. Of course, in dairying, the matter of rainfall is one of the greatest importance. Taranaki! with its Mount Egmont piercing the skies, is always assured of plenty of rain, because it catches all passing'clouds, "squeezes them like a sponge, and distributes tho water down its mountain'streams to all the surrounding farms. In locating dairying country you want to keep near tho hills; there is no use going out on to the plains and expect to get water in the dry season, unless you hnvo permanent streams, which is not usually the case., Tho Omana Block is splendidly situaled in this respect. It lies in a valley between two high ranges, tho Tangihua and llangaru, both somewhat over 2000 feet high, and these are the "rain catches" of the North. Like Bgmont, thev catch all the rain that is going, and giro off a permanent supply to Omana in beautiful mountain streams, running over bods of cool'shingle. On tho Tangihua range is also a forest reserve, which is a further guarantee of the permanency of tho stream?.. Apart from tho rainfall, the fact ofJJie climate being,* as slated beforo, "wmterless," tho conditions obtaining in the far North aro so. different to those existing elsewliero that it is not always easy for a stranger _to at' onco grasp or realise the possibilities of tho North. In the. first place, a winter--less climate means this: that the grass is practically growing all the year round, and that, tho stock, never goes back in winter, and has no leeway to make'up again. This adds something to tho carrying capacity of your land. Tho noxt_ point is this: the climate being very raild and genial, a sheep or a beast does not require so much food as it would in a colder climate. This must bo admitted, and that again adds to the carrying capa-' city of your farm. This point has been very considerably discussed between 'ourselves and Southern men during the Inst year or two, and those who have had the experience up hero after a year or two's observation, have como to tho conclusion that the climate really means in carrying capacity from a half to threc-auarters of a sheep to the acre. It really means more than this, becauso there aro practically no losses from cold weather or from any climatic causes. Notwithstanding this point in connection with the climate, and what the land will carry, ft Southerner, even bearing this in mind, may find it somewhat difficult to judge the value of the carrying capacity of the Northern land. Ho may bo told, for instance that it will carry two sheep to the acre, and in his judg-

ment it will do nothing of tho kind. It does not show the sole of I,'rass that he would expect to see to carry that stock. This point often confuses strangers. It has to bo borne in mind that where the grass is growing all the year round it will never at any time show tlie same "flush" of grass as* in those districts where the grass after a. long winter rest, conies away with a great spring growth. It never in the North shows the same luxuriance, but because it does not show up so muchdoes not come lip to n great growth of dark green herbage—do. not ba mistaken about the Northern grass. A Southerner onco made the remark to me, "Of course I know that tho land doss carry tho'stock as stated, but if 1 had been left to my own judgment I should have formed Quite u diiferent opinion, because I cannot see the feed 1 should lexpect to find." I referred this matter to Mr. George Riddcll, the former'owner of Omana, and one of the most experienced men in the country, and one who has had a. long experience of Tarataki lands, where the, conditions are quite different. In reply, be said, "I was puzzled the same way when I first cair.o up here, and careful observation has led mo to the conclusion that apart from climate, there is more nutriment in.our feed hero than further South, its constituent pnrts -are probably' more concentrated, and tho grass contains less moisture."