NOTES AND GLEANINGS.

Waikato Times, Volume XVI, Issue 1343, 8 February 1881, Page 3

NOTES AND GLEANINGS.

Does the Continuous Grazing of Land with Sheep cause it to deteriorate in value. Under this heading Mr Robert Wilkins, of Christchurch, writes aa follows in the current number of the Ifcw Zealand Coantry Journal. The subject is one of the greatest importance to Waikato farmers, hence we do not scruple to give, the letter space :—": — " The heading of this, article has been suggested by a series of, letters which were published in the Australasian about the middle of last year (1880), the title being "Wheat versus Wool, " and the object on one side being to prove that the growth of wool could not bo carried on far a series of years without exhaustion of the soil, any more than wheat growing could. On the other side, it was denied that there was any such exhaustion ; in fact, some of the writers were of opinion that land improved under a continuous system of sheep grazing. I think it may be said that the writers were divided into two classes ; one class being composed of men who reasoned scientifically, and who in effect argued that the constituent element of wool existed in the soil in fixed quantity, to which mere grazing with sheep did not add, but on the contrary was continually diminishing : and that consequently there must be a deterioration of value in the lund constantly going on . The other class argued that, from their own observation, m some instances extending o?er a number of years, no deterioiatton took place from the cause zeferred to, and that consequently the arguments on the other side were fallacious. It cannot be said that the arguments on either side were conclusive or satisfactory, and for that reason 1 am anxious that a similar discu&sion should be taken up iv this Journal I-, the subject is a most important one, not miy m New Zealand, but in all the rest >f the Australian Colonies, where there are immense areas of land whicli arc quite incipable of improvements by the ordinary methods of cultivation, and which are of no economic value whatever except ab sheep runs. It is theiefoie of great importance to tho possessors and occupiers of those sheep rutis to know whether theie is a. certainty ot their properties decreasing m value ; and if such is the case, how soon such decrease shall tako effect so as to mateiially affect the value of such properties. With regard to wheat growing, the effect of attempting to grow that or any other gitiin, year after year, for a series of years, is so v ell known, that it is quite needless to refer to the matter here ; but with regard to wool growing, it is very different, so much so, that the writer, after a long experience, has not been able to observe any appreciable difference in the capability of any given piece of land for producing wool year after year without any rest or alternation in the style of management. Now, unless it can be imagined that there is in ordinary pasture land an inexhaustible supply ot the elements necessary to produce wool and mutton, it must be admitted that the supply must diminish unless some process of restoration is daily taking place. This seems to be the gist of the whole question, and the one which is necessary to discuss in these pages, for no one can deny that every sheep grazed upon a given area of land must take away, when sold or otherwise disposed of, a certain quantity of something or other, \v Inch is not visibly restored to the land. To make the meaning more plain, take a hypothetical case : suppose a farmer to own 1000 acres of good hill sheep pasture, capable of carrying well one sheep to the acre all the year lound, and that on the Ist December he places upon this land 1000 newly shorn bheep which, it killed and dressed, would weigh 401bs. each ; on 30th November ot next year he remo\ cs these sheep, now weighing oOlbs each when dresscl, and besides this weight ot lOlbs added to the carcase, each sheep has yielded a fleece of 31 bs. weight. Theie has thus been 15,000 lbs. of something or another removed from the land, and as far as my observation goes, this process may bo repeated year after year for twenty yeais, or for any indefinite length of time. Chemists will tell us c cactly what these to, 000 lbs. consist of, but whatever tho constituent clement may be, I think no one wil l argue that tho quantity for an experiment extending o\ er twenty years existed in the land at the commencement. The question thexefore is, where does it come from ? It is no answer to this question that the manure of the sheep themselves supplies any portion of whnt is required, for whatever in restored to the land in that way must in the first instance have come from the soil, and as a largo proportion of what is taken away by sheep consists of mineral matter, it could scai eely be derived from the atmosphere. The disintegration of the rook by tho 'effect of the atmosphere and by tho continual trituration of the sheeps' feet may supply a portion of the waste, but 1 cannot imagine that anything like the full quantity is supplied iv tlii.s way, aud therefoie I trust that the quoslion may be taken up by men who are capable of tolling the readers of the Journal what is actually taken away, and how the waste is supplied.

Cuiu; yon Arnio. — Tin Gulden gives the following euro for aphis on rose«, and specially recommends it above all other nostrum-, viz., carbolic .soap well delated with water and syringed on the infected plants, as well worthy of a trial, not only with roses, but with all other plants so infected. K-vmooii Ra:h>, — An Exmoor Ram will give a clip of fiom 12 to 131b 1 ?., the wool worth about Is. 2d. per Ib. Ewes furnish about 91bs each. Thty are handsome active sheep, with the face of the Lincoln and the squareness of the Southdown. The Exmoor mutton is of delicious flavour. There is weight, without that " tallow" smack which is so disagreeably prominent in the flesh of the Lincoln and. Leicester. Aj»othfr Faraiers' Pest. — It is stated in the Ciist district that a small green beetle, which has hitherto been only seen in the bush, has made itself known to the farmers and residents of that district by seriously attacking the young turnips plants and various tree, such as plum and oak, as well as rose bushes and other shrubs. It appears that every year their ravages are more determined aud their range extended. Native Industries. — With a view to the encouragement of local manufactures the Government have called for tenders for 100 tons of Portland cement, to be manufactured in the Colony of New Zealand, and of such materials as are found therein. It is to be delivered at either Auckland, Wellington, Ohvistohurch, Lyttelton, ISunedin, Port Chalmers, or Invercargill. The CxiiiTrvA.'rioN O¥ Tea.. — A. project is on foot, and will soon bo made public, here, which as far as I know (wiites the London correspondent of the Qtttgo Dally Times), is quite novel. It is to form a Company in Scotland for the cultivation in North New Zealand of the tea plant and the silkworm. , One Mr William Cochrane, of Perthshire, has it in hand. He has been, I believe, a tea-grower in China, and is satisfied, from' his study of the subject, that North. New Zealand is well adapted for both these industries, and that they can be Bueeessfuiljp carried on together. I have reason to know that Mr Cochrane has been in. communication with Dr Hector upon the subjeot, and that the scheme will be before the publio ere long, ,-',.' Oil and Oleaginous Plants. — A, few fact's $rof t&r o| jfte oopsigefatiw Of all

who take an interest' in th 6 development of the resources oi New Zealand :— Ohvf> oil is very extensively employed in most culinary processes : 8£ million of gallons are used in all France ; Paris alone consuming J ©f a million of gallons. The total production of olive oil is 53j million of English pound weight, and the marc or cake left in the process is 136 million pounds- Colza is of even greater importance than the olive, the production of oil amounting to 93 million pounds, and the cake to 157-J millions of pounds weight. Rape produces, oil 23 and cake 37 million pound ; while hemp, flax, and poppy oils and cakes are also of very considerable importance. Wheat. — The highest yield ef wheat in New South Wales during 1879 for one district was 21 bushels per acre at Bombala; and the lowest 7 bushela at Merton, Messrs. Dalrymple's wheat farm in Dakota, 27,000 acres in extent, is estimnted to average 20 bushels per acre this year, or 540,000 bushels, This would require 13,500 wagon loads oi 40 bushels each to take it to the railway; aud 2160 freight cars, carrying 250 bushels each, to transport it to the eastern market. Three wagon loads in line, 50 feet each, would extend 120 miles ; and the train of c.u> over 12 miles long, if each car occupies only 30 feet of track.