FARMING AND COMMERCIAL

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1606, 25 November 1912, Page 8

FARMING AND COMMERCIAL

SHEEP-BREEDING. ADVICE TO THE STUDENT.-' Some useful advice to students of farming was given by ill'. Sam Wood during a course of addresses to tho pupils of the Napier' High School. In-and-m : breeding, said Mr. Wood; is tho best means adopted to preserve tho characteristics-and qualities of certain breeds. Perhaps tho best CACunplo ;f in-bred half-bred. ■is the cele"brated Corriedale. It originated with, and was developed by, Hi'. James Littel, of Hawarden, North Canterbury. ■ Ho persevered with the idea as early as 1868, When ,in charge of Jlr. Webster's flock at Corriedale; near Oamaru. It is a ready means of keeping a ilock uniform in character, but should not be followed too closely or disaster will result. Never, said Mr. Wood, breed from culls, it is a bad policy even if they are purebreds; such a practice increases the of undesirable animals. If you are going to raise sheep for wool, do not expect the. special mutton breeds to give tho best results, or vice versa. In the development of character in a flock, the breeder should always remember that the rain has more infiucnco upon the offspring than the mother, so far as relates to the colour and marking of the body,, also to - bone, flesh, size of carcase, _ wool, etc.', whilst the mother lias most influence on the disposition, constitution, vitality, etc. If you wish to become famous as a sheepbrecdev, select and keep only the best ewes, and mate these to the best rams you' can procure. Breeding owes should be .wide ill the loins, broad in tho back, fine'about the neck and legs, but deep in tho chest.'- In using large breeds with lesser, always select rains with small toads and tho lesser specimens of the race, or you will have many losses at lambing time;' Avoid extremes: Wool may be Clascal roughly in many ways, e.g., long,- medium, short, lustrous, demi-Ijis-trous, or deini, or again a 9 strong, medium, or fine; and, generally speaking, these .characteristics are more or less strongly riiarked in : proportion as the breed is pure. Whether tfie wool be long or short, there are certain properties which must bo possessed by the fibre of the wool, e.g.: (1) Uniformity in length of fibre; (2) the fibre must be sound and of even thickness; (3) .even distribution of staple over' the whole body; (4) the fibres must lip supple, elastic, and of uniform strength, and freo from hard or. brittle parts;'(s) the scales or serrations on each class of fibres must be as numerous as possible, uniform in shape and size, and adhere closely to tho surface of the fibre; (G) It should be.the farmer's aim also to secure a soft, lofty feel, and as lustrous appearance, as the character of the breed will allow; (7) the importance of colour should not be overlooked, as a good "white," other things being equal, means a good price. '• Selection of Breed.

-.When asked for: advice on, this point, a-noted breeder-said:."The, best breed is that. best suited to your, purpose." A good general rule is to select a similar .class to those: already being run in' that particular district,, or, failing this,, selecta breed from a district similar in charac-ter-but rather worse to climato and surroundings. Improved surroundings and conditions tend to improve all live 'stock. The crossing of purebred sheep, such as Merino, Southdown, and Shropshire, with Lincoln, Leicester, or Romney, increases the size and weight of the carcase and fleece, and although the wool fibre is not so Jiiie, the increased. w-sight makes up for this. First and second-crosses seem' to be tho point at which the best results are obtained, as' tho mutton still retains the delicate' flavour of the pure-bred, whilst the character of the wool is change ed from the short to the long variety. Littlo advantage, is gained by going further. In starting to breed, say,; a crossbred flock, the breeder should'upon "a! certain type and select his ewe, if possible, from tho best flock procurable from similar land; use only pure-bred sires, and those of the best; aim at th'e utmost evenness and character in tho wool, and pay particular attention to the back wool —this-part bSars the brunt of the weather, and if not sound and h-ealthy. it becomes very mushy by shearing time. The changes of temperature, hot sunshine, rain, and dry winds are a great strain on-back wool. Always bear in mind that the frame and constitution of tho animal is the foundation of. the wool. Good fitting and good feeding are a waste of'time on ill-bred stock.

NEWS AND NOTES.