GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1873, 6 October 1913, Page 10

GENERAL FARMING NEWS.

It is stat.ed that on tlie farms around iNVaimato (Canterbury), even on tho hill country, the three-weeks-iold lambs aro dying unaccountably. At least seven per cent, are being lost, after har--0 ing apparently thrived since being dropped. l'lie causo is unknown, but the post-mortem discloses that tho liver is llabby, or resembling putty. The dairy farmers at Buckland, near 'Auckland, went in strong for top-dress-ing pasture lands during autumn and winter. Tho results aro now being teen in luxuriant feed and heavy deliveries of milk at the local ""factory, besides several wagon loads of croam weekly for the Mercer factory.' Set- ' tiers living a few miles from the local factory havo gono in for homo separation, and the Railway Department have put on a special truck for conveying cream to the Mercer depot. Experiments in imported wheat, oats,' and barley aro being carried out by the Fields Division of the. Agricultural. Department, with a view to ascertaining the most . suitable varieties for the .South Island in tho .matter of. soil,

climatic conditions, and environment. On tho farm of Mr.'R. D. Petrie, Middle Lincoln Road, nine varieties of wheat havo been sown (says the "Lyttelton Times"); on tho farm of Mr. I Alexander Gunn, Racecourse Hill, 12 imported varieties of oats have been sown together with the Rualfura resistcnt oat; and on the farm of Holley, Bros., Lecston, 10 new.varieties of barley have been sown.. All the crops are alongside a roadway, and will.be ticket-, «1, so as to be of value to .'farmers. It ' will bo neco3sary-'for-tho'first year, and "evp,n for two year 3, to eow. thqso -varieities 'boforo distribution to farmers to acclimatise the seed, and ensure its'per--fect purity. ' . ■ ;