GREEN FODDERS.

Taranaki Daily News, 18 November 1922, Page 12

GREEN FODDERS.

At a meeting of the Tregeagle and Chilcott’s branch of the Agricultural Bureau recently, there was an interesting discussion upon the relative value of green fodder crops in the Richmond river district (says the Lismore correspondent of a Sydney paper). Maize was given the premier position as the main and best feed for summer, autumn, and early winter, both for cows and pigs. For the main winter feed saccaline was held by many to be second only to maize, owing to its ability to stand for a considerable period after it reached maturity, and also for its heavy yielding capacity. Prairie / and rye grass were placed before oats as feed. In the first place, it was said they stood more feeding off, and the ground had not to be ploughed specially for them as the seed could be sown in the late corn and scuffled in, and when the maize was pulled the paddock of grass was ready for feeding off. Another advantage of these grasses was that they would -stand longer in the summer than oats, and in a mild season would last right through the year. Sweet potatoes were also considered-by several of the members to be a good stand-by for winter feed. The patch of sugar-cane that was to be -seen on many dairy farms- was pronounced to be the best stand-by on the farm, and it was held that no dairy farmer who had suitable ground should be without it. In. times of drought and severe winters, where the other feeds were a failure through a dry autumn, the eane was invaluable, as it maintained cows in condi- ; ion. It was also an excellent pig and horse feed. INTERESTING STATISTICS. There are 35,957 acres of orchards, market gardens, vineyards, nurseries, and seed gardens in New Zealand compared with 36,5411 acres in 1921. The return of land under crop in New Zealand this y .r shows an increase over that of 1921 to the extent of 64,274 acres. According to the latest returns there are 37.873 purebred cattle in the Dominion. Je.rseys head the list with 12.997, Shorthorns come next, with 8585, Hercfords third with 5221, and Friesians fourth with 5091. For the twelve months ended January, 1922, 3626 bullocks, 2372 cows, 41'6'8 calves 769,198 sheep, 68,916 lambs, and 5'6.578 pigs were slaughtered in New Zealand, a substantial increase in all classes of stock slaughtered during the previous 12 months. For the year ended March 3'l st last 352,918 acres of wheat, 170,655 of oats, 33,078 of barley, and 10,522 of maize were threshed. Compared with the previous year, the increase in. wheat threshed was 32,993 acres, 23,096 more oats, and a decrease of J 3,724 aca'es of barley and 992 of maize. There were 84,899 farms in New Zealand when the statistics were compiled this year. In 1921 there were 84,076 holdings. The most noteworthy feature of the 1922 figures is the increasing area occupied in small holdings of from 51 to 100 acres increased by 365 during the yearj while holdings of 101 to 200 acres increased iby 214.

‘ general. A lamb was born recently at Kaiwaka bearing its mother's earmark. Farmers are predicting a light hay harvest this summer, their reason being the late growth during last autumn and the lack of rain during the spring. “I want a man to work on my farm. I don’t give dancing lessons, I have no piano, and I can’t serve planked steak three times a day. I do give three square meals, a real bed, and fair wage. If any man who knows a cow from a talking machine and can hear an alarm clock, and get up at 5 o’clock, wants the job. I’ll agree not to treat him like one of the family, but a darn sight better.” —Advertisement in a Kansas paper. By ploughing five acres of ground in a nine hours’ day with a motor tractor, Miss- Francis Brown, of Cookham, Berkshire (England), has set up what is claimed as a record. She holds the distinction of reaping 22 acres of corn in one day. She frequently teaches tractor

work to men. “The World’s Live Stock Supplies” is the heading to an elaborate tabular statement in “Meat and Wool.” It shows what the world possessed in the matter of sheep, cattle, and swine before the war, and what it possessed to-day, on most recent, estimates. The total figures are as follows, the pre-war numbers being given in parentheses: Cattle, 431,160,000 (437,505,000); sheep 387.044,000 (500.535,000) ; swine, 150,942.000 (169.595,000). The figures ean only be taken as approximate; but they .".bow a. heavy reduction, while the consumptive demand has necessarily increased. It is stimated that there are no fewer than 9,000,(100 cows in the Argentine, as compared with 1,000.000 in New Zealand: but whereas New Zealand exports--112 000 tons of dairy produce per annum, the maximum export from the River Plate hitherto has not exceeded 20,000 tons in any season. The production of butter during the past twelve months, although well up in the average of recent years, was disappointing, Inasmuch as the expected increase was checked by climatic conditions. Nevertheless, the total quantity of butter produced during the past twelve months is estimated at 27.000 tons, of which 16,8*21 tons reached England. The imports in 1920-21 were 1-9,423 tons, and in 1919-20 only 5369 tons. These figures indicate that the Argentine will gradually become a more formidable competitor of Australia and New Zealand in the English -market. The “Leader” gays: Sir Sydney Kidman, who has just completed a trip through the Queensland pastoral country, has reached Charleville. He says he has never 'seen file stock route between Birdsville and Hergott Springs in a worse condition, even at the time of a big drought. Many people were -selling cattle for what they would realise. They wore shooting their old cows. He* had been offered 2900 cows in the Gulf district for 7'S a head, hut he could not have taken them at 2s fid a head, because the droving would cost 22s fid.