FARM & DAIRY.

Taranaki Daily News, 31 December 1915, Page 10

FARM & DAIRY.

dairying and manures. The experiments recently carried out at an experimental station in England to test how far it was profitable to manure grass lands in dairying are of interest. The experiments were carried on for six years, and should prove serviceable to dairymen. Two plots of pasture land, of four acres each, were lenced off, and both dressed with lOewt. of ground lime per acre. One plot received nothing else, but the other plot received in addition 4'ewt super and I'/, cwt. sulphate of potash per acre. Two lots of cows were put on the plots yearly in May, and kept there continuously, a.s long as there was sufficient grass; no other feed being given. At the end of each fortnight tiie Iwo lots of cows were changed over to eliminate the influence of individuality; the weights of the second week only being taken, and doubled to give the fortnightly yield. Valuing the milk at Od per gallon, the yields per acre of the manured over the uninannred plot wore ,C2 2s in IflOfl, ,C2 3s ill 1910. £2 Os (id in mil and £2 18s (id in 1!) 12. Deducting the cast of manures in the first year— £1 its per acre—it leaves a net profit of £7 His per acre from the treatment. During the last two years the unmanured plot was given a dressing of the same fertiliser, and it improved in a similar way; the yield from the cows on both plots during 1913 and 1914 being practically the same, which goes to prove that the good results obtained during the first four rears were entirely due to the fertilisers. SCIENCE OF MILKING. Two Norwegian dairy experts have been making tests in regard to the milking of cows three times a (lav instead oi two. Definite results are said to have followed. They proved, under certain conditions, that three milkings a day were uetter than two; but it all depends upon the type of cow. If she happened to belong to the class whose daily record was from 10 to 15 quarts or more, then, under the influence of an extra milking she was able to give on an average one quart more a day than she would when milked twice a day. The cow whose daily output was about five quarts or under made no response to a third milking. Her record remained unchanged whether she was milked twice or three times. Clearly, it is stated, from the standpoint of the dairyman, the cow which has a low milk production is not worth milking for milk. She has already reached her limit when she has been milked twice a day. But in the case of those cows which are good producers the evidence shows that, so far as the number of milkings is concerned, they have not reached their limit for production in two milkings. Another interesting point in the Norwegian investigation is that an analysis of the milk obtained by three milkings a day is not influenced by the mere frequent milkings, NITRATE OF SODA POSITION. An English agricultural paper deals with this problem as follows:—What is going to be the price of this favorite top-dressing fertiliser during the coming season is a question which interests generally the agricultural community, and, as uaiial, we turn for some idea on the subject to the anneal report, issued at the end of the year, of the leading nitrate of soda brokers and importers. UnI'oi'tiumtelv the information contained in these reports is, owing to the war, of such a vague nature that it is impossible to formulate any definite opinion as to the probable course of the market. One salient point, however, stands out—the stocks of the commodity ready for shipment in Chili on December SI are estimated at more than 1,000,000 tons, against about 500,000 a year ago. This enormous stock, coupled with the face that Germany and Austria will be cut oft' from their usual supplies, that poor little Belgium will not be in a position to use any, and that the consumption in France will be on a restricted scale, all would seem to point to a slump in the article, affording farmers in the United Kingdom and elsewhere an opportunity to get their supplies at very favorable prices. But against this desirable cheapness there are some important factors, the principal being the difficult? of obtaining freight for the s'ii■■■&; ■,:< w f| the nitrate to Kuropif except at exorbitant rates of freight The year closed with the price to farmers for spring delivery of about £lO 10s per ton, but this is more nominal t-San actual, and it reWc should expect that farmers will be able to buy for less money. INVENTOR OF MARGARINE. ' The invention of margarine belongs to a Frenchman in Paris during the siege. Margarine is made by cutting up the fat bf cattle and heating it until the clear fat separates and rises to the top. It is then drawn off. cooled and placed under pressure. The liquid oil, which is called oleo, runs off, leaving behind a solid product known as beef stearine. The,oleo oil is then claimed with milk, sometimes mixed with a small quantity of butter, to impart a better flavor, salted and made up in a marketable form. T|ie total output of margarine in the United Kingdom during 1912 amounted to 139,806,3411b. The production of Great Britain is now sufficiently great to seriously affect the sale of butter, especially those of second grade. To lessen this competition, it has been suggested that the British Government should be asked to forbid the addition of coloring matter to margarine, so that it shall not resemble butter in appearance. This is the present law in America. A young foal ought to be accustomed to the halter from the first. The process of teaching it to wear a halter and to submit quietly to being handled about the head and body is more easily carried out during the first week or two of its foalhood than later on. A great deal of subsequent trouble will be saved if the young foal is thoroughly gentled and accustomed to being handled (advises an experienced horscmau). It is also advisable! io accustom it to havings its legs handled at as early an age as possible. it is not desirable to work mares having a foal until at least one month has elapsed after the date of foaling. In no case must a inare that is suckling a foal be worked very severely, as severe work will cause a decrease in the milk yield. So far as regards the. well-being of the foal only, it is certainly best' if the mare is turned out t<j grass for tlic whole summer, and is not worked, but the requirements on the farm in a greatj^ p *%ases impossible to \ have ijnjß ft rest u JSH

CLEANING MILKING MACHINES. It is not only important to keep 'tie milking machines clean for sanitary reasons, but also to provide conditions U-n----der which it will do its best work. If any of the parts are permitted to fiN up so that milk will not flow througll them freely the efficiency of the machine} is impaired, and may entirely prevent its working. Instances of this kind have been called to our attention. It is a simple process to clean a milk-i ing machine if the proper method is followed. In the first place it must be recognised that milk dries very quickly and when dry is difficult to remove. It is a good practice never to set away any utensil which is used in the handling of milk without first rinsing it in cold water, as cold water quickly removes the milk if it is not permitted to dry upon the utensil. Never use hot water for rinsing purposes, as this will cause a considerable portion of the milk to stick to the utensil. In cleaning the machine the teat cups should be placed in cold water as soon as the last cow is milked and continue pumping water through them, and the other parts of the machine, until the water runs clear. After this is done the machine may lip put'aside and easily cleaned u little later. It may be said, however, that the sooner the process of j washing is done the easier it will be T as no time is ever gained by postponing the washing of milk utensils'. After rinsing the milking machine in cold water it may then be put in hot water with some good washing powder and thoroughly washed, using the special brushes provided to clean the tubing and the various parts. When cleaned in this water, thoroughly rinse them with boiling hot water, and hang them in a tank ' filled with sterilising solution. This solution may be made by adding salt to water, making a strong brine, or by mixing one quart of fresh chloride of lime solution to :i() gallons of water. Washing powders coniaining animal fats are liable to rot out rubber, and should be avoided. The teat cups and rubber tubing and the parts that connect them may be left in this sterilising solution till they are needed again for milking. A little systematic planning and arrangement makes the cleaning of the milking machine simple and effective. To make chloride of lime solution, take a two-gallon jar and put in it a pound of fresh chloride of lime and then add a gallon of water. Mix the water and the lime and allow the chloride of lime to settle. The clear liquid above the settled lime is used. A pint of fresh chloride must be added every three ! or four days to the sterilising solution ' to keep up the strength. About every three weeks an entirely fresh solution i'« made, no matter which one of thes/-' products is used. If a brine solution ts made fresh salt must be added every few dav.s and an entirely fresh solution made every week. i NEWS AND NOTES. I The pea is not well adapted for told climates, and its cultivation dimiij/ishes to less than 1000 acres over the /whole o; Scotland. I As the foundation of vegetaible or plant life is that of the soil, it hi of immense importance that the grower builds on this foundation. I <-!ood breeding will do nr/ich, but it cannot do everything, and ti/ie man who wishes to see his herd improve year by year must, give very careful! attention to the development of the calves. When the calves have reached the age at which they can consunlie a reasonable amount of grain, they sh/ould be given a generous ration, made /up of feed that will have a tendency /to produce bone and muscle, rather th?.n fat. The fat lambs ttyiat are offering this season (says the Cl'iristchurch Press) are fairly good, considering the scarcity of feed, but the difficulty will now be to keep them going,/ Unless rain comes, it will be practically impossible to sow fodder crops with any degree of success. It should lie remembered that every soil has its special characteristics, and every farm it * own problems, and therefore it behoves every farmer to study carefully ihn special needs of his own farm, in view of its position and local circumstances. The dispersal sale of the Oldhamstoek liorder Leicester flock, the property of Mr. Thoi. Clark, was another important event in Scotland recently. The average for the 304 head wks £0 4s 6d, the which Wit's paid by Mr. Du.ulop, on behalf of the New Zealand Government. At pnsent the Dominion has thirty meat-pre serving works of ,a very failaverage .'opacity. At this time next year (slates the Auckland Star) that number will be swelled to f>rty-one—a 40 per cent, increase in the number of works practically within twelve months, and about twice as many worses as exist in the whole of the Commonwealth of Australia. In the three days of Shorfhorn sales at Palermo (Argentina) Show. -*l6 bulls were sold for a total of 101,(>flt>gus., an average of £41)3 5s lOd. On tho first day forty bulls averaged £678 fo on the second day ninety-two averaged A 1528 1 18s 9d, and on the third day eighty-faun averaged £378 17s Id. ' f To protect fences against lightning, force a pointed iron rod or as the' post is set nail to the post almost its 'entire length a No. 9 galvanised wire. Make sure that this ground wire extends as far as the bottom ot' the post, and that every line wire is in contact with it. These wires should be placed on every fifth post or so that the feucu will be grounded every 80ft. The price of weaning calves is going up by leaps and bounds in- England. At nearly all of the local auction marts it is impossible to purchase; a heifer calf, even if bred from a heifer, at less than £3 10s. or over, at from eight to ten days old. Everyone'is rushing to wean, as heifer calves are now nearly unobtainable. More bull calves are being secured for rearing and ultimate steering, which, judging by present prices of beef, should be ijnite as profitable as breeding dairy cattle. The French demand for meat is 400,000 tons beyond tho-supplies, but the British Government lim contracted to deliver 230,000 ton - '>p to February, 1910. The army requires 43,000 tons'of meat, and the arrangements, including cattle , from Madagascar, meet this with the exception of 10,000 tons. Canada has offered/ cattle weighing from 10001b to 12001b at from IV;A to 8d delivered at B™ fill ports, the sellers supplying ships certain parties agreeing to i accept lent in treasury bills at lix months. I