WORK FOR THE MONTH

Shannon News, 25 October 1927, Page 4

WORK FOR THE MONTH

The Pastures. " Tho pastures will b e making- good spring growth during October, especially where fertilisers have been applied during winter or early spring. ;' The stock will soon have more forage } .at their disposal than they require. * and care must therefore be exercised -- to see that the grass is fed as evenly t i! S possible, otherwise palchiness will it-suit from some portions of the field being grazed more closely than other parts. Pasture patchiness results in loss of feeding value, weakening of The pasture plant associations and extensions of damage over the duration '>■ • of the grazing season. Top-Dressing. If the pastures have not yet received their spring application of phosphatic manure, this is the best time to top-dress, at the end of September and J>cginning of October, when the spring growth is taking place, using either superphosphate or basic super according to local conditions. ,On poorer land where a little nitrogen is required, blood and bone manure produces good results. The Hay Padtlock. Paddocks intended for hay should be shut up during this month, from C the first week to about the middle . of October according to local conditions. ' The haying of the permanent pastures should be avoided as far as possible, and short duration pastures of perennial ryegrass and cow-grass paspalum pastures in the North, lucerne where conditions are favour- ' able for this crop, special paddocks of Italian ryegrass and red clover, and spring or autumn-sown cereal crops used instead. Few farmers save sufficient bay for their normal adequate requirements / Hay is one of the few crops which can be kept satisfactorily over a period of years, and it is sound farm : management to build up a reservesupply against a period of emergency. Dairy-farmers require to make good provision of hay for winter use. ' Unbalanced feeding is far too common in this country in winter. When \. fed alone turnips are quite unsuitable '. . for cows, but with a sufficiency ot good hay a useful ration is provided. Pasture Management.

Slock droppings should be distribu'ted. with the tripod or chain harrows, instead of being allowed to accumulate. -The regular chain-har-rowing of the pastures should be begun, this month, and continued at regular intervals throughout the year. ' being an important factor of good pasture management. Tho best control of the pasture is judicious grazing, but any grass growth in excess of requirements can be cut and saved for ensilage. Any tendency to coarseness of herbage or later running to seed should be removed with th e mower. Summer and Autumn Forage Crops. During October, land intended for soft turnips, swedes, mangels, rape, cereals and vetches, kale, other forage crops, and for the establishment of lucerne, should be cultivated whenever opportunity and the weather allow. It is impossible to say in a general way juat when these crops should be sown, as it will vary from any time after the first week of October to the beginning of November according to local conditions. Soft Turnips.

These may bo sown about the " middle of October. For cow feed soft turnips are very useful in the New Year. All the white-fleshed varieties take about twelve weeks from the date of sowing to readiness for feeding. Good varieties are Red Paragon. Purple-top Mammoth, Devonshire Greystone, Imperial Green and Hardy Green Globe, and these " may all be sown on the same date. -For feeding to cows it is a good practice to sow one-third of the area in Red Paragon and the remainder in one of the Green Globes, as the Red Paragons can then be fed first, and by the time they are finished the Green Globes should be in good condition for feeding.

Rape and Kales. Early sowings of rape can be made about the middle of October, but the main rape crop usually is best left until early in November. Any of the kales can be sown from the first week to the end of October, in which case they will be ready for feeding from the middle of January to early February. Chou Moellier may be sown a.week or two earlier than rape or Buda ' kale. It provides an excellent fodder

for 'cows in late autumn, may be fed right through tho winter, is resistant to club-root, and is less susceptible to attacks of aphides and blights

than other cruciferous crops,

Mangels. . The sowing of mangels may begin any time after the middle of October, \ ' and in colder districts towards the . ' end of the month. Good varieties ';, - are the Prizewinner/ Red Intermed- ' iate, Giant Orange Globe. White ./ "' Sugar, and White Knight. They £?.- should be sown on good, well-work-%V/~,pd-land ln drll,s 2 *-in. to 26-in. apart W,y'\9 allow of horse cultivation, andl

they respond to liberal dressings with complete manures. Mangels are hard to beat for late winter and early spring feeding for dairy cows. They increase ihe flow of milk without Imparting any undesirable taint, and are particularly useful on smaller farms because of the great weight of roots that can be grown on a comparatively small area. It is not generally known that the mangel, unlike the swede or turnip, may be grown successfully on the same ground for several years in succession,, which is an advantage as on many farms there is often only a, small area that will grow mangels profitably.