BOARD OF AGRICULTURE.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 September 1921, Page 2

BOARD OF AGRICULTURE.

THE FUTURE OF STATE FARMS. A meeting of the Board of Agriculture was held in Wellington on Thursday, the 15th instant. The principal business before the Board was the position of the various State Experimental Farms and the question of what should be the forward policy to be adopted in connection with these, especially in view of the fact that the two farms established by the Repatriation Department for the special purpose of training returned soldiers have now practically come to the end of their activities in that direction, and a decision has to be arrived at regarding their future. The two farms in question are situated at Avonhead, near Christchurch, and near Roxburgh, in Otago, and both have done good work in connection with the special purpose for which they were established.

The Board went very fully into the question of the State Farms, the Department of Agriculture having furnished full details regarding the financial position of each, and as a result a report was agreed upon, which is being submitted to the Hon. Minister for his consideration. In the course of its discussion the Board came to the conclusion that as regards the accounts on the different State Farms, the amounts expended on strictly educational work should be shown separately, seeing that strictly educational work cannot be expected to be directly remunerative from a financial standpoint, although it is really of great value to the Dominion as a whole. A somewhat lengthy discussion also took place over the proposed legislation in connection with the sale of seeds, and in this connection the Board considered a report of a conference held some time since between representatives of the agricultural community and of seed merchants respectively, the Department of Agriculture also taking part in it. After full ' consideration the Board came to the conclusion that legislation was desirable, and a recommendation is being made to the Minister, accond- . , . Consideration was also given to legislation in connection with fertilisers, and it was agreed that the introduction of such legislation was desirable. CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW. A letter was received from the Minister of Agriculture in reply to the Board’s representation in regard to the wstablishment of a championship show, expressing his regret that in view of the continuance of the general financial stringency it was inevitable that consideration of the matter must stand over for some time, but that as soon as the financial position had eased sufficiently he would again bring the question before Cabinet. BOYS’ AGRICULTURAL CLUB&. A letter was received from Mr. Buckeridge, provincial secretary of the Taranaki Provincial Executive of the Farmers’ Union, giving some interesting information with regard to the, movement for the formation of Boys’ Agricultural Clubs, and it was decided to again urge upon the various bodies representing the agricultural interests the desirability of doing all that was practicable to foster this movement, from which such good results had been obtained not only in the United States • and Canada, but also in those portions of New Zealand where it had been tried. Other matters discussed were the introduction of certain game birds into New Zealand, and the introduction of a system of quarantining plants in place of the present method adopted in regard to the importation of plants into the Dominion.