FARM, GARDEN, AND ORCHARD NOTES.

Waikato Times, Volume XXX, Issue 2477, 26 May 1888, Page 2 (Supplement)

FARM, GARDEN, AND ORCHARD NOTES.

Salting Hides.—The proper way to salt hides is to lay them flat, flesh sido up, and form nearly a square bed (say 12Ff by l'jft), folding in the edges so as to make them lie out II it. Sprinkle the hide with two or three shovelsful of coarse salt, as the size may require, say for a 601b or SOU; hide, from 101b to lolb. At any rate, cover the hides well, a* it need not he wasted. Then let them lie in this form from ten to twenty days, after which tako them up, shake tho salt out, and use it again

Bone SrAviN". —A bono spavin is incurable. It may be arrested, and the growth of bone stopped. But the lameMess will always reinaiu to some extent, and will increase on severe exertion and use of the limb. This is because the diseased bone cannot be moved, and interferes with the freo use of the joint. Blistering aud rest will remove the inflammation, and prevent further progress of the disease. A blood sparin may be treated with cold water bandages and some active liniment and lameness prevented. But the blemish and puffy swelling will al\yays remain, or if removed will return.

Advantages of Cbukiiud Oats Over Whole.—A most important experiment has lately boen inado by the Loudon Omnibus Co. (wbieli owns COOO horses) on the subject of crushed v. whole food. One half of the horses wero confined to one kind of feeding, viz., that of bruised oats and cut hay and straw, and the other half to whole oats and hay. The ration allflwed per day to each horae, according to the one system, was—Bruised oats, 1 Cilb. ; cut hay, T-jlb. ; out straw, 2Jlb. The quality allowed, according to the old system, was—Unbruised oats, 191b ; uncut hay, 131b. There is thus a saving of 61b. on the feeding of eaoh horse j and this saving is not merely in the quantity, but in the value of tho articles employed, for straw in tho former case was substituted for hay in tho latter. The advantage of one kind of feuding over tho olher was far more apparent when reduced to money value. Tho saving by using tho bruised oats and cut hay is nearly 2Ad per day for each horse, which is equal to i'G'J 10s per day for tho GOGO horses? And this sayiqg was accomplished without any sacrifice whatever, for all tho drivers and those paving ohargj of the horses agreed that the difference iu the condition of the horses was decidedly in favour of those fed on bruisod oats and cut hay and atravy,

Canadian Tiijstlk.—Some iilca of tho diilieulty of eradicating tho Canadian thistle can be formed from the following of Mr Mncphcrson, manager of the Totara station, Oamaru. He say* : "A piece of land infested with the Californian thistle was let for potato cropping, and the cropper undertook when ho leased tho land to completely kill this patch out. But after all tho ploughing, harrowing, grubbing, drilling, &c., that tho land got in planting tho potatoes, tho thistles still kept growing. He then set his men on to pull up every shoot that could be seen. This they did at three different times, but it grew as luxuriantly as ever. They then hoed it down three or four times, but that did no gorul. Mr Macpherson then advised them to keep cutting it. above ground, which thoy did nine times before harvest commended. Now, when they are digging tho potntees, tho plants are all about the size of the sample sent (twelve to eighteen inches high), and cover about a quarter of an aero of land. It is now proposed to cover the patch with straw, and see what effect that will have A Monur, Farmwi,—What may bo truly called a " Modal Farm" is described by the Sydney Mail of last Saturday. It is situated near Grafton, and thouarh containing only about. 22 acres, of which 7 are used for garden purposes, the following products were exhibited at the recent show at Grafton;—For the best collection of maize the owner competed with 25 varieties. For & special prize offered by Mr G. H. Varley, he exhibited hay and chaff, 16 varieties of maize, 15 of pumpkins, 3 of squashes, 3 of grammas, 3 of preserving melons, 4 of sugar cane, 4 of potatoes, 3 of sweet potatoes, rice marrows, harley, millet, pearl millet, Egyptian Corn, imphee, liuseed, tapioca raw aud manufactured, tobacco, chicory, and arrowroot raw aud manufactured, sorghum, artichokes, silk, hops, eornmeal, cornflour, cracked corn, 3 varieties of gourds, tomato sauce, pickled onions, guava jelly, grape jam, and several fruits in syrup. In tho horticultural. flection his collection consisted of 3 varieties of maudarin oranges, 3 of oommou oranges, 2 of water-melons, 6 of guavas, 2 of citrons, 4 of apples, 2 of China date plums, 2 of pomegranates, 2 of pine-apples, 4 of tomatoes, 2 of quinces, lemons, Lisbon lemons, grapes ard medlars. These collections deservedly gained prizes. They were the produce of his own farm, and the result of his own unaided work. Where could it be found surpassed ?

Farming in Japan. Japanese farming is carried on a very small scale, and with such wonderful niceness that it is difficult to realise that farming' is the business of a life, and a very earnest and hard one at that. There are no barns or outhouses in which to store crops. There are no farm houses. The people live in villages or in towns. Some of the farms aro not even one acre in size ; and very few contain more than ten acres. The notable feature of these Japanese farms is the irrigating ditch. A farm of two or throe acres usually has half a dozen levels ; and the water which irrigates one field runs down to irrigate another. The farms hive tho appearance of American gardens. The soil is dry and thoroughly prepared. The plough is used only for throwing up the beds ; and all the diguing is done .villi spade-like hoes and forks. No weeds whatever are allowed to grow in the little field ; and every foot of ground is utilised.

The Japanese former takes every advantage of the season, and practises true economy. One crop succeeds another with unvarying regularity ; and the benefits of rotation are thoroughly understood and realised. While one crop is ripening another one is planted between tho rows ; and this practice is carried on even in the tea plantations. When the tea plants are small, turnips and other crops are planted between the rows as soon as the July plucking is completed.

The management of the Japanese farmers is so thoroughly scientific that lands which have been in cultivation for centuries contiuue to produce marvellouslylarge csops. It is said that Buddhism has discouraged tho growth of animals within the limits of the empire ; and, as a result, there are not 2,000,000 of horned cattle iu the country, though the grasses on the hills would feed millions. The acorns and nuts in the forests would feed millions of hogs; but there are no hogs in Japan. " There are no starvelings in Japan," a writer declared. "The children are as fat and jolly as little curly-tailed pigs ; tho young lads a.id girls give no evidence of not haviug enough to eat. They aro all rounded in form and lithe in action : and the men and boys aro capable of enduring active labour and fatigue as few otheri can do They are possibly not as muscular as our meat-eating men ; but not a day passes that I do not see some man whose muscular development is a .source of admiration, and others whose powers of endurauce are simply marvellous."

Syringing Extraordinary.

The Nelson Evening Mail recently published some interesting accounts of the manner in which syrineing of fruit trees is conducted in that district. Mr Charles Pattic, of Riwaka, has invented a machine for spraying trees, by which the operation can be performed with ease and rapidity; so that a large number of trees can be got through in a very short time. It is claimed that two men can wash 1000 trees with the fioost spray in one day. This machine is described as a ISOgal. tank on wheels, which is drawn between the rows of trees, and has two hoses projecting, ouo on each side. These aro fitted with nozzles so arranged that the wash can bo regulated from a stream to the fjnost possible spray resembling ft "mist." A force pump is used to eject the fluid ; and there is some simple arrangement which keeps up a perpetual, violent commotion in the tank, to prevent any settling to the bottom of the more solid ingredients of the wash. The machine has been travelling round the district dressing orchards with a solution of Paris green for the Codlin moth ; the strength used being lib to 150 gallons of water laid on in the finest spray. It is said to have given perfect satisfaction, and that the pest is being rapidly exterminated by it; three applf cations being deemed sufficient to effect the purpose. In, one orchard forty-nine out of fifty of the trees were cured ; and the remaining tree, which was left out by way of experiment, continued to be

infested, There ia 110 waste of tlio wash whatever; and the ISO gallons in the tank are said to he sufficient dressing for 500 trees. The charge at present is Id per tree. This would point out how we could get rid of such pests us tho codliti moth were the Government to see lit to make proper regulations. Such machines as this could be worked under tho instructions of a legally appointed orchard inspector, and people's trees cleaned without incurring any great expense, or any dreadful consequences most people a.re so much afraid of. It does not clearly appear in what Mr Puttie's invention consists, or how liis arrangements differ fjom thosG used in America, unless it is the continued stirring of the fluid. Mr Puttie probahly doos not oare to explain very minutely, as he intends to patent his invention.