At The Furrow’s End

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 206, 19 November 1927, Page 25 (Supplement)

At The Furrow’s End

Fire Blight Menace Reports to hand over the week state that fireblight has gained a hold in the district again. Up to the present it has only been found on the appletrees. It can be detected by a dying back of the twig, or a yellow sticky ooze. The pest was first discovered in the Te Papapa district in 1920. A vigorous campaign, conducted under the control of Mr. J. W. Collard, the then senior orchard instructor in charge of tho district, resulted in all sign of it being stamped out. The district was gazetted a commercial area under the Act and a special campaign was conducted against hawthorn. Hedges of this plant were grubbed out, and in theorchards all trace of the blight cut away and burnt. It was thought that the disease had been effectively stamped out. To-day the disease has again made its appearance, and it is significant that in many parts hawthorn has been allowed to grow again. It would have been thought that after experiencing so much difficulty in eradicating the pest the authorities would have seen to it that one of the greatest known agents for its propagation would have been kept down. Now the process will have to be repeated. It is to be hoped that no effort will be spared to check its spread and that this time when it is conquered, as no doubt it will be, the orchardists and authorities will not rest on their laurels and allow the pest to come back as active as ever. The one time when so much labour and money was spent in a campaign of eradication should have been a lesson on that point.

Combating Mammitis Reports to hand from various parts of the Waikato and the Hauraki Plains indicate a prevalence of mammatis among many dairy herds. Admittedly in many cases it cannot be kept out, but to a large extent its spread can be prevented and cures effected. Cleanliness, sanitation, segregation of the affected animals, and careful handling at all times are the vital factors in combating the disease. In many cases the disease spreads mainly as a result of carelessness on the part of the milker. Admittedly this may bo due to overwork at a busy time, but the fact remains. A cow is not a machine, but a highly-strung delicate animal. Especially is this the case in regard to heavy producers. At every milking each quarter should be tested prior to fixing the cups, and at the slightest sign of anything wrong with one of the quarters the cow should be milked out by hand and segregated if mammitis is suspected. Cups left on too long, too high a vacuum, cold wet camping grounds. All these things help to make possible the establishment of mammitis.

Even when it makes its appearance among the herd there is no call for panic. The affected animal should be immediately segregated and given special attention. All quarters should be regularly milked out at least twice a day and the affected quarter bathed at each milking with some weak antiseptic. Lifebuoy soap, besides being an antiseptic, used with plenty of lather, has a softening effect on the affected part and has been tried to advantage by the writer.