SUBDIVISION OF FIELDS.

Putaruru Press, Volume VII, Issue 299, 1 August 1929, Page 6

SUBDIVISION OF FIELDS.

STOCKING AT INTERVALS. Value of Water Supply. The subdivision of dairy farms and the value of a good water supply were matters discussed by Mr P. W. Smallfield, of the Department of Agriculture, during the course of the winter farm schools in the Waikato. Speaking on the former point. Mr Smallfield said: —“The first important point to be decided when adopting a system of rotational grazing is the plan of subdivision and the size of the fields. Wherever possible the farm should be subdivided on the plan of 9 central race upon which all fields open. A narrow race is satisfactory only when it. is well metalled. If the race is unmetalled and narrow the cows going to and from the milking-shed churn it up badly in wet weather. Where the race is left down in grass, a width of one to one and a-half chains is much more satisfactory than a race half a chain wide. A wide race can be grazed and managed as an ordinary field. In most cases, however, there is no necessity to reorganise the whole internal fencing of the farm, and the subdivi sion of existing fields is often all that is necessary.

“The size of the fields is determined by the rate of stocking, and it appears that the fields used for rotational graz ing should be stocked at the rate of 12 to 15 cows per acre at short intervals. . A good, even grass-growth of Sin. to 4in. in height will give two graz-ing-days of twenty-four hours each for 12 to 15 cows per acre. For herds of 22 to 25 cows, fields of two acres, and for herds of 55 to 3S cows,, three-acre fields arc satisfactory. “ During the past season experimental work has shown that when stocking at the above rate, the subdivision of six-acre fields into three-acre fields meant the gain of a day’s grazing. Be fore subdivision six-acre fields were giv ing three days’ grazing for 37 cows and when subdivided each three-acre field gave two days ’ grazing for the herd. This gives a considerable gain in grazing days per acre, but the point requires further investigation before it can be definitely stated that the gain in grazing days brought about by sub division will generally be as great as that indicated above. “A good supply of water in each field is very necesshry for the satisfactory working of the rotational grazing system. Under this system the cows are grazed in the fields for 24-liour periods or multiples of 24 hours, instead of the usual 12-hour periods, and ample water fo* the herd must be provided in each field. ”