AGRICULTURAL AMD PASTORAL NEWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 2811, 29 January 1908, Page 21

AGRICULTURAL AMD PASTORAL NEWS.

The* French „ Government has authorised the American Beef Trust to construct large 'meat works at Havre, havipg a capa--city of a thousand head per day. The XQOnt, it is stated, will be retailed in the Adjoining towns. " Farm machinery is much simpler now ■fchan it was 15 years ago," was the testimony of a labour witness before the Conciliation Board at Waimate. It is stated that on. a Wairarapa station •no less than 1000 deer have been killed : within a month. They are said to be becoming a pest, and settlers, to protect their holdings, are slaughtering them whole- ' sale. The" Ashburton correspondent of the "3Lyttelton Times states that 300 acres of oats on the Lagmhor estate have been ■tacked. It is estimated that the crop will yield from 35 to 40 bushels per acre. The^wheat- on the estate comprises 300 acres, 150 acres of which are "the New Erst variety and the remainder Tuscan. Both varieties of wheat are specially adapted for' a windy country, as they are not easily shaken. New Era wheat, which has been sown only for two seasons past, ijs gaining much popularity with the faraners under whose notice it has been (brought. Two seasonß ago Mr Buckley experimented'- with' a variety of - wheat Bcnown as - the Red King, which is a prolifiic 'yielder, but, unfortunately, easily shaken ' by the wind. " A quantity of the New Era for sowing purposes was sent 'to Mi*" 'MTherson, Totara Flat, who estimates thivt jt,w_ill yield over .6O.bushels per acre. - The' yield of the Laghmor wheat crops is expected to be between 45 and 60 bushels per acre. Between 1500 and 2600 acres of fhousand-headed* kale have fceen sowh- for finishing off sheep and lambs, but up to the present the annual Kraft of lambs has not been got off, although feed is plentiful. Since the reient fall of rain clover has commenced to spring.

1 It will come as a surprise to many .- people to know that in regard to agrie cultural produce per head of population c Australasia figures at the top of the list. The following figures emphasise the pesiJ tjon of matters between Australasia, ;• Canada, Great Britain and South Africa : — s Australasia, £7 3s 9d; Canada, £6 18s; a Argentina, £6; Germany, £5 2s; Belgium, . £4 12s; Holland, £4; United Kingdom, 3 £3 4s; Gape Colony, £1 6s. It will be i seen that Australasia- and Canada stand 1 together at the head of the world for r agricultural production. Bearing in mind that in Australasia only the fringe of its 3 agricultural possibilities have been touched, j it is predicted that in the near future it > will outstrio Canada and become the chief L . granary of the British Empire, f The following news and notes are from 3 the New Zealand Dairyman of January j 20: — The butter which was damaged by the fire on the Turakina was sold in Lon- . don for 112s per cwt. — The amount paid out t fey the Dairy Union for butter fat supplied 3 in the- Manawatu district during the past . month is £4306 14s sd. The figures for 3 the other districts- are not yet available.— „< The_ quality of the dairy produce now leaving the Dominion, states Mr W. M. , Singleton, Acting-Dairy; Commissioner, b chows an improvement in quality, naturally . to be expected at this time of the year. — j The quantity of cheese shipped from New Zealand to England up to the present stage . oi this season is double that of the i corresponding period of last year, accord5 ing to Mi J. G. Harlaiese, secretary of i the National Dairy Association. A steady ( _ increase is expected up to the end of the : season, whioh will be about May. It is estimated that the- increase on last year .will be 5000 tons. — To give some idea of . the rapid falling off in the milk supply at 1 factories this season, as compar-ed with last, it is worth mentioning that at the Levin factory only 36 boxes of butter were being ! made per day in the first week of the year, as against 63 at the same time last I year. It is said that ihe same company's new cheese factory at Linton accounts for^the shortage to the extent of some 11 boxes. — Writing to the secretary of the National Dairy Association, Mr J. G. Harknees, the Home representative of the association, Mr Charles Mackie points out that it is a. /cry wis« policy 1 on the part of several /factories having dual-pur-pose plants to manufacture butter in the first part of the season and cheese in the latter portion : the rule is "sound nine times out of ten. As a general thing merchants are not. says Mr Mackie. anxious to receivp cheem* till after Christmas. The Corinthic's butter met a good market, Mr llaekie reports, and it was quite clear of all good quality descriptions. Mr J. H. Smythe. of Northern Wairoa, Hawke's Bay, and one of the oldest pion^n- settlers in New Zealand, informs a Donßnion cor respondent that the .present j summer is the driest he has experienced , here since 1867. Mr Smyths states that ■water is co aoaree in his district that "some ) of the farmers have been forced to dig j wells to obtain supplies for -their sheep and cattle.