FARM AND DAIRY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 48, 15 February 1908, Page 4

FARM AND DAIRY.

FACTS AND FIGURES FOR FARMERS. A very prolilic peach crop is help;; gathered in the Gipp-land district of Victoria, an average of sl> toils a day uehy sent by rail from I'airnsdale. A. 11. Haywood, in a recent number of ihe New South Wales Agricultural Gazette, contributed a brief note on Ruuiney sheep at the Wollongbar Ex|ierimental Farm. Very satisfactory r« suits had been obtained. The slnep nviturcd early and produced ou an average 71b. Ileeces. The carrying capacity of 1-aspalum grass "at a very low estimate, may lie put at lu sheep to the

In accordance with tlie decision arrived at by the Sheep-breeders' Association iSiiui), Island), a start has been made with tlw liorder l/'icostcr Hocks in Otago. and the inspection is being conducted by an inspector appointed by tha association. The Border Leicester Hocks are to lie first inspected, but r. general inspection of all flock* in the South Island will commence this month or early next month. An Ardgowan farmer has obtained from a head of Carton oats 249 grains. It was mentioned that 2U gra'.ns were supposed to constitute a record, but these additional grains rather discount that. It is an exceptional occurrence (says Monday's " Wanganui Herald ") to ha\e a frost at this time of the year, but this morning there was a slight visitation locally of our winter friend. Thirteen young Australians passed through Christchurch'thc other day, ">i route for the North Island. They are of a good stamp, and intend to settle in New Zealand. It is understood th.it these are the pioneers of further contingents.

A well-known member of Parliament was addressing a meeting of farmers once, and in the course of his remarks expressed the opinion that growers did not sufficiently vary their crops, and made a mistake in always sowing wheat. One of the audience, opposed to the member in politics, thought he saw his chance. " What crops do you recommend?" he asked. " Everything ; n turn," replied the M.P. " Weli." said his interlocutor. " if swedes don't come up, what then?" "Sow mustard," said the M.P. " And u mustard don't come up, what then?" pressed (he other. And ?o he went on through a whole list of crops until, the member's patience being exhausted, he put an end to the fanner's questioning By saying, amid roars of laughter, "Oh, sow yourself, and I hope you won't come up!"

Writing with regard to the shortage of the grass-seed crop on the Peninsula as compared with last season's, the Akaroa correspondent of the " Lytlelton Times" says:—The dilference is due In the exceptionally dry summer, the want of moisture preventing the heads from filling, and consequently some of the seed on the lower levels has been " leathery," and not worth reaping. Little River and Akaroa Harbour show tn« largest shortages, but in Kaituna, iluvancheUes, Fisherman's, Long and d'auna Bays, the seed has been bright and thick, and there is an increase in the number of sacks. There is also some very fine seed from the vicinity of Crown Island. Hickory. The recent ri*; and firmness of the uoudon market, co nbined with the shortage, has made growers loth to part with their crops, and Olivers are finding difficulty to secure enough to fill their requirements at present. Some few sales have been effected at 5d and 5%d, but the majority of growers are asking 5%d to fid. Taken all through, the seed is clean, very little fog or gooscgrass being noticcable,*wbjlst the weight is very fair. The finishing of the cocksfoot harvest again brings th»> cry for rain, the stubble in the paddoc'is being so dry this year as to be of little use for grazing, and the grass is very mffcV burnt. Bain is urgently needed to strengthen the growth for the winter.

Mr. F. Franipton, a Canterbury farmer, last week threshed a paddock of barley whichjias yielded Jt-tnisholg fr*iis farm at SeavTew in the Ashburtun district. In contrast to this, and as an example of the patchy crops this season county, it may'lie farmer in the has threshed his wheat, and flis g°t on 'y an average, and the heads are even all over, almost to mathematical precision. There have been many heavy returns threshed to date, and the fields give promise of others even more prolific. If the pota'o ylejd throughout is in keeping with that in prospect in North Otago, there is every probability of cheap potatoes again, at the end of this year.

Speaking ot the dry weather at \, re . sent being experienced in his district a prominent farmer said that in Auckland a really dry season was sometj mes a blessing in disguise, beca##--fl K 7 llrv | n g up of the soil a rcst , Jn ;JJ3_ls4e?rthei'e was no lengthened 'dry period the vegetation got no rc<t whatever, the climate being so mild th.it growth continued all the winter to a certain extent, whereas in the southern part of New Zealand the frosts of wint?r gave the soil the needed period of inactivity,

Cow. like to be fed and milked at I regular times. If milking they frequently Ijeeoine uneasy, and the. i irregularity may cause considerable de- i preciation in the amount of milk obtained. Cows which are left too long without milking get very distended udders, and may suli'er considerable pain. Very heavy milkers have sometimes 10 be milked three times instead of twite a day, to relieve the pressure on the udder. Overstocking, or allowing the Udder to become unduly distended with milk by failing to milk a cow previous to exposing her lor sale at a market or •ale, is a common but cruel practice. It frequently leads to inflammation of the 1 udder, and olten to the loss of one or more quarters,

Keportirfrorii Gundagai, New South Wales, state that through the combined agencies of a poor season and the rabbits the pastoralists arc threatened with u bad time. (jriias was never scarcer, and olicep are dying in some parts from eating dry food. Others are falling oil so fast in condition that hand-feed-ing must be resVted to before the summer is over. On Tarrabandra Station pits, traps, and poison carts account for nn average of 1500 rabbits pcr_aigul_

tried as bait, with excellent results. On one small patch 1300 were poisoned in one night.

The Maoris report a fair yield of potatoes this year, the crops having almost escaped the blight. This is decidedly satisfactory, an the potato is one of the Natives' chief articles of food, and the deprivation and suffering caused by failure of this crop last year was almost , universal throughout the Doniiuiou.

"At the present moment I want 31 milkers, at wages ranging from 15s to oUs per week, with board, and I can't get them for love or money." This was a complaint' made by a registry-otlk-e keeper in Dunediu last week. He went on to say that he required over thirty farm hands and ploughmen, to whom lie could otter :10s |ier week, hut he saw no prospect of filling more than a few of the vacancies. The supply of harvesters, he said, just about equalled the demand, but all available labour was going north 011 Is per hour, leaving farmers in the south, who will not pay move than ltd, vainly crying out for them. Labouring men, it seems, wherever possible, re. fuse to go out of the town, and for those more worlc is offering than can lie disposed of. " 1 advertised for labourers for the town for three consecutive days, offering !)s," remarked the speaker, '' and I did not get a single reply."

fence the garden in with wire net- I ting and give the chickens the run of the farm.—The way to have a "flock ei good paying hens is to breed only from your best layers.—Beauty culture for fowls is the latest method of winning prizes at poultry shows.—A coop with a movable bottom is the easiest to clean, and will be the most apt to be keot clean.—firit is an essential tiling to have before the growing chickens, and if there U not plenty of sharp gravel in the soil Home other grit should he provided. —There is nothing so important/as health and vigour in the breeding stock-, and this should always be the first crinI -i.lvi-iitif.il in the -election of the male ' bird lo head Hie brccliug p«»