Farm and Garden

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 196, 4 October 1909, Page 4

Farm and Garden

Tin: shii:k n«.>i:sK. A [ ro::un--:U and Hii<-i->-:->i'ul hrerdrr oi Shire hor. : ".-i recently wrote in the "I.ivo .Stock Journal Almanac" that the Shire of recent years has improved in uniformity in feet, action, and vastly better pasterns, quality of hair and bone, the last especially. His greatest regret, however, is that sufficient attention to mating is not given by the majority of breeders. Some breeders exercise great thought and trouble in this matter, sending at time long journeys, mares they think will mate well with certain horses; but the object of-an improved type is too often sadly neglected. If small farmers would take up breeding more, it would vastly improve the Shire horse supply. They are more in touch with their animals than large breeders, and a greater percentage of foals would be reared and brought to maturity, for at the time of foaling and several weeks after, careful and sympathetic and interested attention is most important and necessary for success. The importance to the breed of country and minor horse shows as teachers cannot be exaggerated. No matter what som«? people may say, they have done good in many ways, most notably encouraging by friendly rivalry, a desire to possess better animals, and causing owners and the men to pay more attention to them, and to consider them as more than mere muchnies. To make shows for Shires more popular would be to extend the class prizes up to lour, or even six, if funds would allow for cveyone knows that a prize falling to an animal, either at big or Htlte shows, is encouragement fo all concerned. Shows and sales might be ! run more in conjunction than they are. f Shows should be the saleyards for the ! foreign buyer. i EXPOSING MILK.

Dr Nash, medical officer of health for the county of Norfolk, has, with much patient investigation, now proved what has long been conjectured, that milk exposed to flies deteriorates for more rapidly than that which is kept covered. By estimating the number ol bacteria pre tent, after a certain number of hours, in specimens of covered milk, and also in that which bad attracted flics*, he found that in about 17 minims there were forty million more putrefactive bacteria in the exposed than in the covered milk. There were also millions more of the gasforming bacteria and after sixteen hours the exposed milk had a putrefactive odour, and was"turning"while the other smelt quite fresh. The experiments were made from milk kept on a kitchen table on a warm day, so that this is a sample of what probably often occurs, and. as Dr Nash says, "the more flies the greater the pollution." KEROSENE EMULSION.

Everyone knows that kerosene emulsion is an excellent insecticide, but it is apt to be rather troublesome to make, owing to the case in with which the oil separates from the soap solution. Professor Macoun, of Canada, has experimented on substitutes for the soap, and has obtained excellent results by using flour. He recommends adding to a gallon of kerosene about three quarters of a pound of flour—the cheapest sort will answerstirring them well together. Three or four gallons of water are then added, and the whole is well beaten up for four or five mimics, when more water to make up to 10 gallons is poured in, and the emulsion is ready for use. It is claimed for this form of kerosene emulsion that it makes easier, and remains without the separating of the oil for a much longer period than when made with soap. Of course, the oil will float to the lop if it is left too long, but the emulsion will keep for hours in a state fit for use.

A big-framed cow is not necessarily a good fattcner and beef producer, although size is more often than not lokcd upon by the dairy farmer as being equivalent to beef-making qualities in the case of dairy cattle. Large cows it need hardly be said cat and require more food than small ones and for this reason the former must yield a larger quantity of milk or butter than the latter if they are to be equally profitable dairy cows. Dairy farms on which judicious rotation systems are parctised and where the skim milk and butter milk are terurned and used for stock feeding as indicateud are in a fair way to become better farms, no matter how good they may have been to start with. The majority of small cows make poor butchers' beasts on account of neither their breeding nor their shape being conducive to the laying on of flcjh and fat and the production of a useful butcher's carcase, quite apart from the fact that they lack size. As a food even for young calves potatoes have their virtues, for nothing better could be given than a few nicely cooked and mixed with their hay. They make excellent first solid food for the youngsters after they have attained an age of six weeks or two months.

Although an animal may be in fair flesh, in case the nevrous vitality is not well sustained in a cow of a pronounced milk-producing function, she will abort, or cast off the foetus from her uterus, simply because there is not nervous vitality sufficient to carry on two functions at the same time—namely, produce a large flow of milk and develop a calf in utcro. It has been proved very clearly that most of the milk produced at milking is actually made whilst the animal is being milked, and that only two or three quarts are stored up in the udder; though at certain times, when cows are purposely over-stocked or the udder allowed to accumulate the milk in order to show up well for market purposes, it would appear that there is a larger reservoir for the milk than actually is the case. Plaster of Paris is calcined gypsum, which is sulphate of lime. It contains lime and some sulphur, and, applied to the soil, helps to correct acidity, and makes potash available. For clover it is especially beneficial. What fertilisers will produce the best results? It is impossible to give in general a definite answer, because circumstances are so variable. It behoves each farmer to use his own judgment and to make trials for guidance on bis own farm.