LOCAL FARMING.

Te Aroha News, Volume II, Issue 68, 20 September 1884, Page 2

LOCAL FARMING.

Adjoining Mr Smith's property (respecting which we tifjive some particulars last issue) is Mr SeddoVs farm, known as '•' Orongomairoai." , Tiiis funn, comprising some 3000 acres, is lease- 1 from Mr E. i\. Ci nil Heigh (who resiles in the Uluth.iui Islands). Ahout 20 JO acres still remain in its natural state, principally in swamp, whilst about 1000 acres have been improve'! ami cultivated Som«> (>UO acres are sown to permanent pasture ami looking remarkably well ; one paddock in particular of 200 acres having a splendid sod with lots of clover in it, and lias never require I renovating. Con sidering that Mr Seddon has only been in possession some 4 years, and that when he got the farm it was altogether in a wild state (save some couple of hundred acres roughly sown down to grass) with no fences or improvements, it speaks well for his energy and enterprise to have already 1000 acres in well fenced and nicely laid off paddocks, and the general appearance of the farm much improved by the planting of ornamental, and other trees and shrubs A small paddock of 80 acres sown down a year ago is also looking first rate just now. From practical experience Mr Seddon has come to the same conclusion as Mr Smith, viz., th.it to obtain the best results farmers must have a certain amount of land under crop each year, it being a great mistake to confine oneself exclusively to stock fanning. Mr Seddon purposes each year gradually increasing the area under cultivation. Last season about 50 acres of turnips were put in, 25 acres being swedes, and 2;") acres white turnip. About 1^ cwt Lawe's, 36 soluble superphosphate was applied at the time of sowing, and the seed was put in broad cast. The crop proved a good one, and simply invaluable through ihe winter and spring, when they were fe I off first by cattle ami afterwards by sheep. This land is now ploughed up, and the portion that was under swede? will this year be in spring whe it, and that which was under white tm'nip will be sown to oats for chaffing purposes. Some 60 or 70 acres broken up from the fern for first time, is now about to be laid down in grass. Although Mr Seddon keeps a a. nail dairy, lie does not go in for rearing i-alves but buys all his slo-k, finding U more profitable so to <10, and devotes his time principally to fattening, as far as possible, off the grass during summer ; those in backward condition being assisted with turnip during winter. A large number of cattKi are kept all through the winter out on the run', being drafted into tne paddocks as early in spring as the grass is sufficiently advanced to warrant so doing. Mr So l>lon purposes this ve.vr sowing a large (|ii mtity of roots. L »st sea>on his in in golds (long reds) averaged about 5 ) ions p:-r acre, and were a very even crop, in fact there were no small roots amongst them, ami, at the time of our visit, there still remained a good heap of splendid.y shaped large clean mangolds, perfectly sound, and proving' of great use just at this period of the year when feeJ is not pleutiful. Mr , Seddon is a thorough believer in the great value of the disc harrow as a pulveriser. Several yearly (or rather 10 months) draught colts, bj ** Young .Melbourne,", bred, by Mr ' Soddon, are remarkably well developed animals for their age, and would easily pass, as regards size and bone, for 2-year olds. At present Mr Seddon has but few sheep, but purposes going in for sheer farming more extensively. later on. We saw a few exceptionally choice pure bred Lincoln ewes, the ueuclus of a breeding flock, and selected from the well-known flock of Mr S. T. Seddon, X nigh ton, Hamilton, whose lot of twotooth rams sent to Napier for sale last year, realised the handsome return of 7 guineas each all round. A number of pigs are ksjpft and in Addition to the other food,, get all the skim milk there is. Juilg^ng by what has been clone already this estate by the present tenant, we would expect in a very few years to see this property very greatly increased in value. ' _ _ . Immediately adjoining the farms of Messrs Smith and Sedd('m is Mr Win. Moon's farm of some GOO.acres^mana^ed by Mr James Parr, H who ;has v beeu in charge of 'same* aliojit' tHree years, and, tms (jariied (Wt'i|i\>Bt, L^if n'otall, r ,nf- t «•• 'iijjprQvena«ntji which have ■transformed:

tin* pljifton'to such a compact well arranged Tain. The. land is of -good quality, a'nd^nearly all naturally drained. The property lias been well nd f.iorougniy cultivated ami greatly improved since Mr Parr came there, and reflects uMifli creilit on his management. Ti»e owner, Mr Moon, resides in Cambridge. A general course of >nixed .husbandry j.s puj;yi r; j, to.i'i«J*iUS:U>, cattle, wli'^at, outs, and roots, all receiving their fair share of attention.' /Last year the oals were a splendH, crop, in fact without doubt the he^t we know of as having been grown in this district. En.•ouraifed by such a satisfactory re.s»ilt, 'ilr Parr this season purposes •i stilL larger qunntity of oats for sale stnd Tor chairing. Tnf? farm, from its close proximity to the surrounding township* (affording a ready means of disposing of produce), and from the good quality 5 of the land is a valuable little property. It was Mr J. B. Smith who, first started cropping in this neighbourhood •o any large extent, an I it was the v-ry satisfactory returns he obtained (wheat going '37 bushel-* and oats 40 bus-. els per acre) that induced Mr Seddon aud other idjaeent farmers to go in for cropping more extensively each year than they had previously done. The result has proved not only profitable to themselves but also iieen the means of employing more •■apital, labour, and machinery, to the leneh't of the whole district.