PLAINS DEVELOPMENT.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXX, Issue 5479, 25 September 1929, Page 1

PLAINS DEVELOPMENT.

AN OFFICIAL REVIEW. SOME DISABILITIES NOTED. The great benefit of the Hauraki Plains drainage works to the Dominion as a whole is always featured by the Chief Drainage Engineer’ in his annual report to Parliament on the operations of the Lands Drainage Department. The value of the produce exported is estimated at £575,100 for the year ended March 31, 1929, made up as follows, with the figures for the previous year in parentheses : Butter, 2405 tons (2300), £407,000 ; cheese, 1331 tons (1296), £83,000 ; flax fibre and tow, 1000 tons (1200), £24,000 ; stock sold, £61,100 (£59,170) ; freights to and from Piako River and Waitakaruru, 24,225 tons (11,426). Commenting, the report states : — “The settlers on the reclaimed swamp have experienced a profitable year, but, though the production of dairy produce was satisfactory, and increasing in proportion to the active development of farms, it has not generally come up to expectations based on the season’s high record for production of the Dominion. The copious rainfall in September and October retarded the spring growth on the alluvial grass land, and. consequently there was not the usual abundance of feed in the fields prior to the dry months of January and February. Conditions have been more favourable for the peat lands, and generally the returns from the good peat lands have been very satisfactory.

“In my last report mention was made of the poaching by stock of the heavier country in the northern portion of the Plains. This occurs every year unless an unusually dry winter and spring are experienced, and as a result the grasses are practically ruined and displaced by pennyroyal and buttercup. This disability reduces the returns from the area affected, and a remedy for this state of affairs would be of great value to the prosperity of the Plains. Various methods have been suggested, but no simple solution to the difficulty has been evolved. Drainage alone is not the solution, and the removal of stock from the farms has been suggested, but there are difficulties in doing this with dairy cows. Last year mention was made of the proposal to house and hand-feed the stock fpr some months, but no reliable data are available of this experiment, which has only been carried out on a small scale. Paspalum is becoming quite common in portions of the area, and if this grass becomes well established the poaching should be reduced, as this grass provides a solid mat, which is better able to support the weight of the cattle. Paspalum would be a benefit in crushing out and preventing the growth of tall fescue, which is making its appearance in portion of the Plains where it was not previously noticed. The Agricultural Department is interested in this problem, and intended to carry out experiments with the use of the mole plough ; but these have unfortunately been postponed, although the intention is to carry them out during the next year. The solution of this problem would be not only of great value to the Plains, but also to all reclaimed marine and kahikatea lands.”