FARM AND GARDEN.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 September 1921, Page 10

FARM AND GARDEN.

DAIRY CATTLE, QUALITY BEING IMPROVED. MANY NEW BREEDERS OF STUD STOCK. Despite the rapid strides made in the dairying industry of the Dominion within recent years, it is well known that, 'blind to their own interests, many farmers still number a big percentage of low grade “mongrel” cows in their milking herds. Tn view of this fact, it is somewhat reassuring to note that already this year the Dairy Division of the Agricultural Depfartmerit lias received applications from nearly 100 new breeders of stud dairy cattle, who are desirous of having their stock officially tested. Last year a total of 290 breeders of stud dairy cattle had their names on the Department’s list. This year the number has been increased by fully onethird, and fresh applications are—so a Dominion reporter was informed—still coming in.

This may be taken as significant of the movement throughout the country in the direction of building up better dairy herds. The testing of grade or crossbred cattle is also coming increasingly into favor, so much so that this year the Dairy Division expect to see an increase of 4000 to 5000 in the number of cows belonging to ordinary dairy herds passing through the hands of the testing experts retained by the division. Last year was a record in this respect, approximately 20,000 cows being tested by the division. In addition some 15.000 cows were tested by dairy companies.

On account of the collapse of the beef market, much land which formerly grazed store cattle is now being diverted to dairying, and this makes the necessity for improving the strains of the Dominion's dairy herds all the more pressing. Tn this connection it is interesting to note that exchange rates and the increased cost of transport have precluded importations of stud stock being made to the Dominion on the same scale that obtained several years ago

BIG MONEY IN HERD-TESTING. SOME REMARKABLE AND UNCOMFORTABLE DISCLOSURES. Could all the most striking facts and figures disclosed by herd-testing be briefly told to every milk-producer in a way that any man would understand there would surely be no dairy farmer in the country who would continue the present losing-money style of dairying. The best way of bringing home to readers what failure to test means is to tell what testing has done for some of those who have adopted it (says the Dairy Farmer). DANGER OF BUYING WITHOUT RECORDS. Mr. A. Ward, of Paterangi, a thorough believer in testing, had the following striking experience with some high-grade Jerseys he purchased last year, his pedigree Jerseys not being quite sufficient for his property. He bought these cows because of their appearance, combined with the owner’s recommendation. Here is what the first season’s testing disclosed: Cow No. 4, cost £3O. She is a good cow to look at—of good color, and one of the ten picked out of a herd of over thirty. When put under test she gave only 143.341 b of fat for the season.

No. 11 was picked out by the vendor as an absolute top-notcher. She is a cow of excellent appearance, and looks all over a producer. She cost Mr. Ward £3O. Under test she gave 126.571 b of fat.

No. 2, another of ten high-priced ones, and another good one to look at, produced 1531 b of fat.

No 15 cost £26, and is a beautiful type, with every indication of being a very heavy producer. She only gave 272.751 b of fat from October 19 to the end of May.

Another of the attractive sort, which cost Mr. Ward £3l 10s, gave 131.811 b of fat. This cow was the one that always attracted visitors—she was their first pick. They won’t see her on Mr. Ward’s farm again. She looked to have a great bag, but there was never much in it.

No. 17 was a plain cow—there being nothing in her make-up to suggest a heavy producer. Her previous owner had thrown her out. Mr. Ward paid £l5 for her. and prior to calving would have been glad to have sold her at less than the price lie gave for her. She calved late on November 4. and up to the end of June she had given 362.631 b, and at the present time is still milking well with a test of 5.5. She is one of the surprise packets that herd testing so often presents.

No. 8 is the most ordinary looking member of the herd—plain and slabsided. Tn the eyes of many she would be the first to cull out. She cost £3O. She calved on August 18. After giving 252.151 b of fat (to the end of May) she calved again on June 13 last, thus having two calves in just under ten months. With the usual season she would have done very well indeed.

AU these cows were purchased by Mr. Ward this year, and their records were made on grass alone, except for three-quarters of an acre of maize, fed out in the late summer. The highpriced ones referred to were the pick of an established but non-tested herd. ' HEIFERS THAT TURNED OUT DUFFERS. Here is the case of a heifer bred out of the tested herd Mr. Ward formerly owned. She was barely two-years-old when she calved on August 11. She gave 244.611 b of fat up to the end of May and is still milking well. Another purebred heifer that, on appearance, was the pick of the bunch, only produced 1301 b of fat. A noted authority tried to buy this heifer —before she was tested—but Mr. Ward would not sell, as he said he regarded her as a plum. “You’re right on that,” said the authority, “she. is a plum.” Before she was tested money would not buy her, but she has just been sold—and she is a purebred —at £l2 10s. Here is the other side of the picture again. Mr. Ward gave £8 for a cow in the spring of 1920. She has put up 4041 b of fat. She is a very ordinary aged Jersey cow —a “Plain Mary.” She is not for sale, nor are her heifer calves to be parted with. Mr. Ward has been testing for five years. He knows just what his pedigree cows are doing, but in endeavoring to secure additional members of his grade hard !he has, it will wet

with the usual startling experiences. Herd testing lias certainly demonstrated in his case that dealing in untested cows is the most extravagant form of guess work.

HERD TESTING MARKES DAIRYING AN INTERESTING BUSINESS.

To Mr. Ward, as well as to hie family, herd-testing has added a new interest to the industry of dairying. It has brought home to them that the business has quite a. fascinating side to it. There is now a daily interest in the work of milking to the family, and the herd is regarded in quite a new light. For they know now which are the kind that will “lift the mortgage," and which are the kind that eat up the profits. THE GREAT -LESSONS. In discussing the great lessons of testing Mr. Ward said: “The biggest surprise is that my particular fancy cow in -the grade herd—and other farmers are >inthe same boat —when put under test proved to be one of the poorest members. It is a rude awakening to find that the scrubber is the Queen and the Queen is the waster. I believe that if fifty per cent, of us farmers could be persuaded to put this acid test on their herds and thus know .whether they were really making or losing money, dairying would be a, new thing, and the profits of the business would be enormously increased. Every farmer keeps a few calves, and here it is where testing proves most valuable. He will then only keep those that are reasonably certain to be profitable producers, just as he will only sell those that will in all probability develop into duffers. Tn raising these good ones he knows he is going to get a certain return for Hip cost of it. By herd-test-ing any rqan can increase his butterfat returns by fifty per cent., and this at less than half the cost of producing his present return.”