The Southland Times. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1872.

Southland Times, Issue 1559, 2 April 1872, Page 2

The Southland Times. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1872.

The Superintendent- Collector of Agricultural Statistics for the Province has supplied the Otago Daily Times with an official return, showing the area and quantity of the crops in the various electoral districts of the province, omitting the districts of the city of Dunedin and Invercarsill, for which the returns are nil. From this return we find that the total number of holdings in the province is 3,663, and the extent of land broken up, but not under crop, 34,366 acres. In wheat, sown for grain only, there were 33,660£ acres, the estimated" gross produce being 884 225 bushels. There were 9,369? acres aown in oats for green food or hay, and 71,339^ acres for grain, the gross produce of the latter being estimated at 2,097,929 bushels. In barley, the number of acres sown for grain only was 3,323, and the estimated gross produce is 89,103 bushels. In sown grass, there were 8,320£ acres in hay, the estimated yield of which is 6,922 tons. The breadth laid down in permanent artificial grass (including the land in hay previously referred to), is 146,6291 acres. There were 3,630| acres planted with potatoes, the estimated gross produce of which is 13,497 f tons. In other crops, not specified, the number of acres is set down at 6,565| ; making the total number of acres under crop 274,517 f. The next matter dealt with is the quantity of last year's crop remaining on hand when the forms were filled up. This is stated to be as follows : — Wheat, 22,169 bushels ; oats, 213,973^ bushels ; and barley, 12,485 bushels. The South land district is divided into the three sub-districts of Mataura, Riverton, and Wallace, and as we are more particularly interested in the returns from these districts, we will state them separately. In the Mataura district, the number of holdings is 319 ; in the JRiverton district 309, and in the Wallace district, 45, making a total of 673. The extent of land broken up but not under crop is as follows : — Mataura, 1643| acres ; Riverton, 3919 acres ; Wallace, 258^ acres ; total, 5821 acres. The number of acres in wheat and the estimated yield are, Mataura, 429£ acres, 11,094 bushels ; Riverton, 1489 i acres, 46,311£ bushels ; and Wallace, 86£ acres, 2535 bushels ; the total being 2005 acres, and 59,940^ bushels respectively. In oats there were in the Mataura district, 4200| acres, the estimated gross produce being 112,209 bushels ; Riverton, 7645 f acres and 141,144 bushels; Wallace, 262£ acres and 8027 bushels ; total, 12,108 f acres, and 261,380 bushels. In the Mataura district there were only 16-J acres sown in barley, the estimated yield of which is set down at 487 bushels ; in the Riverton district there were 641| acres, the yield being computed at 19,011 bushels; and in the Wallace district 11^ acres, a yield of 465 bushels being calculated upon ; the totals showing 669^ acres and 19,963 bushels respectively. The particulars under sown graes are as follows : — Mataura, in hay, 772 acres, estimated produce, 369 tons ; Riverton, 4Sl£ acres, 568^ tons; Wallace, 1968 i acres, 24 tons ; totals, 3221|- acres, and 961^ tons respectively. la permanent artificial grass (including land in bay), there are in the Mataura district, 24,366facres; Riverton, 7458 f acres ; and Wallace, 2259^ acres ; making together a total of 34,085 acres. tinder the heading of potatoes the return shows as follows : — Mataura, 286-t acres, the estimated gross produce being 1637 i tons ; Riverton, 250^ acres, and 950 tons ; and Wallace, 42^- acres, and 203 tons, thus making the total supply of this useful esculent appear to be 2790| tons. In other crops (not specified) there are in the Mataura district, 16Sli acres ; Riverton, 334 f acres ; and Wallace, 52f acres. The total breadth under crop in the Mataura district is 32,485^ acres, in the Riverton district, 18,443 f acres, and in the Wallace district, 3289£ acres. The quantity of last year's crop remaining on band when the forms were filled up is stated to be — Mataura, 166 bushels of wheat, 27,460 bushels of oats, and 1121 bushels of barley ; Riverton, 1458 bushels of wheat, 19,493 bushels of oats, and 3115 bushels of barley ; Wallace, 100 bushels of wheat, and 440 bushels of oats.