One Cow to the Acre.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 10 December 1913, Page 4

One Cow to the Acre.

EXAMPLE OF INTENSIVE FARMING.

In the course of an editorial dealing with intensive farming the Taranaki "Herald" draws a comparison between the methods of Danish and Taraaalu farmers, and points out the wide margin between tho values of produce gained per acre in favour of Denmark, owing to the manner in which farming practice is conducted there. As an il lustration of what may be accomplished in New Zealand under intensive cultivation methods, tho '-Herald" cites tho experience of a small farmer who lives a few miles from New Plymouth:

"A few yejirs ago ho had about eighty acres of land, naturally, no more fertilo than tho land surrounding him. Recognising tho value of intensive farming, he disposed of half his land, retaining less than forty acres, upon which he now maintains a herd of twenty purebred Jersey cows, besides pigs, a horse or two, and a few young stock. From these cows he looks for a cash return this year of about £27 per head, or £540, including, ofcou.se, his calves and pigs. It is not every dairy farmer who is capable of getting ouch roturns, but if the only average return per cow for the provincial district was only half that our dairy products would bo worth i- '2,000,0U(). if in addition all the land now devoted to dairying were carrying an much stock as this particular farm the value of the produce woxiid be mure than doubled again. A better staje^ot1 things is gradually coming I abpu;tt,and it is not necessary to go to ( iWiirark for examples of high returns from a few cows on a small area, for /tliere are now a number of model littlo •fiijfins li.i the district Avhich afford ample p.-oof of the theory that a dairy farmer can do better on a small area scientiticaliy treated, with no more cows than he can manage without hired labour, than on double or treble the area of neglected land, which grows less grass evfry succeeding- year. 1'