COLLEGE GROUNDS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 5 August 1939, Page 7

COLLEGE GROUNDS

SUBSTANTIAL IMPROVEMENTS PRACTICAL INSTRUCTION. DEVELOPMENT OF SMALL FARM AREA. Siihstanl ial improvements have been effected lo The Wairarapa College grounds during the past year or so and the Hi acres belonging lo Illis title edlieat ional instill! lion are looking spick-and-span. I 'uusiderable work is mil iirally involved in maintaining lhe grounds, which are Im in;." used lo good purpose, as an area of 20 acres is worked as a small farm project in association will) lhe agricultural class.

The working of the small farm mi a occupies an important part in providing studems of agriculture with practical experience of farm procedure. This area lias been subdivided to allow of rotatiomil grazing for the sheep while 3] acres have recently been under cultivation—an acre in mangels, from which a fair crop was obtained considering the season; half an acre in potatoes and one and a quarter acres in peas, which yielded a very good crop, while Die balance of Die area was in swedes. Except for Die ploughing', ail the cultivation work is carried out by the agricultural class. Water lias been laid on to all parts of' tlie area. Further evidence of the practical nature of the work associated with the running of the farm area is given by the gates and such accessories as hay racks, which are made by the College pupils, even the hinges being made in the engineering workshop. The College now possesses its own plough.

CORNWALL STREET ENTRANCE. Ono of the most important improvements effected in recent months is that on tlie Cornwall Street entrance to the College grounds. Here a swampy area has been transformed into a gravelled roadway, a task which involved draining and considerable filling to bring the thoroughfare to the required level, the road having been built up as much as three feet in one place near Cornwall Street, where a brick fence has been erected on the street frontage. On the western side of this entrance is a section that lends itself to considerable improvement; willows blocking the creek have been removed and a big hollow towards the back has been tilled in. Gradually the hollows and’bumps are disappearing. On the other side of the roadway, filling has also been carried out in the swamp area adjoining the baths. Five- - acres of land adjacent to this entrance have been ploughed and levelled and after haying been left fallow during the summer, were sown in grass in the autumn as an additional playing field. At the Cornwall Street entrance on- Wednesday (Arbor Day) several oak trees were planted in recognition of services rendered to education in Masterton bv well-known residents and others.

UNDERGROUND STREAM TAPPED.

Adjoining the groundsman's residence. an area formerly in lucerne has been transformed into a vegetable garden. The ground has been trenched and fruit trees and rhubarb planted. This work is carried out by the boarders. who also have erected a commodious fowlhouse in the most approved style. College House is now never without eggs. The fruit trees, of course, are cared for by the boys. Around the College buildings. levelling, grassing, kerbing, chanelling, sealing and concreting has been carried cut in all directions, so that the immediate’ surroundings of the College itself present a clean and tidy appearance. The quadrangle has a concrete surround and the area around Ihe bicycle shed and other sections have been asphalted. This work was carried out. last year by relief workers under the No. 13 scheme. Trees have been planted and others trimmed. A subterranean stream running through the grounds has been tapped to supply 5900 gallons of water an hour. A well has been dug and a concrete cylinder is m place in readiness for sinking, with a view, later on, to putting in an electric pump so that the College will be able to have its own water supply for the grounds during dry seasons, instead of being subjected to the water restrictions imposed by the borough.

On the town side of the hostel, an area is being levelled with a view to putting down tennis courts for the use of boarders while on the agricultural area a nine hole golf course has been laid out for their benefit. It is obvious that the College authorities are making excellent use of lhe ground at their disposal. Besides catering adequately for recreation, the area provides excellent facilities for practical instruction in farming, which is worked in conjunction with the Penrose Training Farm, where, each week, two or three boys taking the College agricultural class attend to re 7 ceive tuition in farming practice not readily obtainable at the College.