FARM AND DAIRY

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LII, Issue 11, 6 February 1909, Page 6

FARM AND DAIRY

DAIRY INSPECTION. A man who has a wide and thorough 'acquaintance with the dairy industry discussed the vexed question of dairying inspection with a New Zealuud Times representative the other day. New Zealand, lie declared, iu tile lirst plaee, must yet become the greatest dairying country oa eaith, To thid|H| a thorough system of dairy imperative. Everything will the men who are to control the in this connection there is too miU'li talk ol' what oilier are doing'. We have, declares Ulis only, our own diiiieulties to own conditions to consider. The inspector must he a Specialist. main concern beinjf the controllinJH| tlie milk supply, he should know* subject thoroughly. Jl« should also have .souk! veterinary knowledge, not necessarily by any means a full acquain-1 lance with the .subject, but c-ulheient. 1 working knowledge <»!' the several contagious di*ea.*es allccting uitiry .stock management and animal hygiene, drainage, etc.. should also constitute Ins stock in trade. Above all, however, he should be an enthusiast iu dairy *tork and be able to meet the dairy tanner o;i his own "•round. Even this i* not enough. Requiring to be an edueanve iact<»r rather than a police agent, the dairfl inspector must be a man possessed oi tact and having the right temperament. Of course the man to till this hill is not to he fouad in the country, but it is the duty of tlie State, asserts the authority is question, to educate him. Our critic declined to he drawn into a criticism of the dairy regulations. He discussed the subject with the remark that iu the present form there was nothing left to criticise.

IM'ore a dairyman is called upon to prepare milk for the city trade he should be very careful that his cows have an opportunity lo make gootl milk, became while a man may be able to preserve milk from any further injury, lie can never make good milk, out of that which is i>oor in the first place, Tfc is said that not one per cent, of eodliu moth can be found in the apple trees of commercial orchards in tlie Palmerston district thi* year, owing to persistent spraying. There is only a small number of grain crops m this district, and the small birds are having an exceptionally bu*y time of it. Unless the crops are harvested before they arc ripe the feathered myriads {\vill secure more than a fair share ol the grain. The present output of butter at the Mangorei factory is &B boxes per day, about Jive boxes more than for the cor■responding period of last year._ The maximum output for one day this season was 08 boxes. The test has ranged , from 3,0 to 4.0.

i A valuable mare fell into a drain 0:1 Mr. B. H. Somervail's farm, Smart Road, on Wednesday. Great difficulty was experienced in rescuing tin 1 bogged animal. The efforts of a pair ol harness horses were inadequate, and it was not until an endless chain gear was procured that the beast was hauled to terra lirma. 1 Despite tho unsuitable season for cereal-growing, the crop* in North Tar.tnaki are. good. In the kgmont Village. Junction, and .Smart Road districts th»* crops are reported to be heavy and free from rust and-smut. far, caterpillars have not put in an appearance, farmers are. making good use of the present spell iof dvy weather for harvesting. The tendency to increase the water contents of New, Zealand butter is at tracting general attention. Referring to ,the matter the Trade Review says: "The quality this season has been o«jtmt to that of previous years, but we regret to see indications of « tendency to a 1 new departure on the part of some manufacturers. It is alleged that •several factories are attempting to secure a little additional, but dishonest, profit by charging their butter with an additional proportion of moisture. We can scarcely imagine h moio sliort-sight-tcd or suicidal policy. The good reputation of New Zealand butter in the British market is a most valuable asset for the Dominion, and it has been attained by an honest adhere »ve to a standard of lo*/ v lo 12 per cent, of moisture. Any material increase in this proportion, even if for the iirst shipment or two it escapes notice, and so an extra point is secured, will certainly result in a loss on subsequent shipments of, probably, more than the gain secured : while the shipper* will have paid freight on water instead of butter; at the same time, the reputation ol' the whole butter production of the Dominion will lie injured, hi this case, emphatically, honesty is the best: policy."

Improving the pastures and increasing the forage crops of the farm are subjects which are receiving great attention in the United States. The Bureau ofi Plant Industry of the Washington Department of Agriculture has a stall' of experts exploring foreign countries for new forage plants worthy of trial. The Year Book of the department, for 1007. which has just been issued, describe* the remarkable activity which is going on throughout nearly all the farming districts of the United States in extending the cultivation of lucerne. This wonderful fodder plant is occupying au important place in the plans of the Department. of Agriculture and the experiment stations. The value of the lucerne hay crops for 1007 is estimated at C 20.000,000. The report 'states that if the plans and efforts now under way to promote its extension meet with success, the value of the furniture crop will M several times what it is to-day. It is pointed out that the cultivation of lucerne is being pushed into dictriets which a few years ago were regarded as unsuitable for its growth. IVcttoA methods of cultivation have enabled this to be done.

A South' Australian paper reports ' that an English driver, "Mr T. J. O'Shea, at Eudunda, last year noticed amongst, I a wheat crop a plant bearing two heads 1 on each stalk. Anticipating a now | wheat, Mr O'Shea carefully collected every grain with a view to testing his i find. The grain thus got weighed sy, j , oz. Mr O'Shea, so as to make a ; thorough test of the wheat, put the ex--1 periment in the hands of Messrs Derniod.y lh*os. Tire grain was sown hetween a drilled strip of "Marshall's Xo. 1 3, and JUney, no grain heing sown in I J centre strip l>y drill. The new wheat I ! was hand sown soon afterwards about j | Hie same distance npuit as that sown by . the drill. The result eclipsed all expee- j tations. On an average the Marshall and I i lllney varieties produced eight stalks j for every grain, sown, and the new variety had sixteen for every grain :-.o\vii. wliile. more remarkable still, the plant which last year produeed two heads, this venr had. in some instances, as many as seven heads. The actual amount of wheat gathered from the ">'/:■ o/. sown is 5!) 1 ,/,lbs. This works out at 00 bushels per acre., taking the quantity sown per acre as half bushel, on which basis it was sown. "The Danes have barneyed science I* the plough and the churn, and have made their country a land flowing with milk and butter," says the Danish Ambassador. Lucerne thrives he*t in a deep and rather light soil, w!j; tn]rmH 1 i'Ml" penetrate to a good depth. The problem of iarm management is one demanding wore careful planning and I'ore-ight than actual information. ■Sidling grain i- -oiling soil fertility, but. selling meat, whether beef. pork, m* mutton, can searndy be charged with this. The old sow that has boi*n a goodbreeder and a good mother should be retained. Keep her rs long as she can eat well. The nun who does not know and does not pare how fanning should be carried on has no right to pretend to be a farmer.

A good horse, according to an Arab test. is one that can stand perfectly erect upon his legs when drinking from •\ shallow pool. A pood deal of grain N now to he seen ir, siook in the Ashburton district, and in numerous jields the reaper is to be seen at work. The large area cut for hav must surily iulbieuce the, gro?.* yield of wheat, though. of course, the average per acre will not be a fleeted, Tt hai been claimed that liability of swine to cholera and other disuse likely caused by the u-e of immature animals for breeding pnrpo>e*. Who invented tite ]>lotifrhV There i* no record of his name, but lie did more for the good- of the world than any war lord or wiehler of the pen. Salt i> the great cleanser of the blood, and perform* an important mission j» animal economy, and as it is very cheap it .should be supplied to all live stock in liberal quantities.