FARM, GARDEN, AND ORCHARD NOTES.

Waikato Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 2674, 31 August 1889, Page 6 (Supplement)

FARM, GARDEN, AND ORCHARD NOTES.

A Bio Shew.—A ram was sold in the Lincoln market the other day whicl; turned the scales fit the extraordinary weight of 28 stone, or about C'jlb. pel quarter dead. The ram was the property of Mr R. G. F. Howard, of Tempi.; Bar. A Prolific Flock.—ln the Inverness Courier of 23rd April lust appeared the follnw ; na: :—' At tho lloiim Farm ol Ball nlruiii, iindrr the iiiriiiau'.'iiiiMit nf Mr, WesiAvnod, i>o ewes drnppcd 10! l.imbs and, strange to nay, there is but on.) tm lamb in the number/' Vai.pk oi' Wood Asmks. —Wood ash-.-. , should never ho wasted. They are oik of the liest fertilisers thi.t can be sccurue upon the farm. They contain a con siderable percentage of potash, an essen tial clement of plant fnod, Nitrogen, phosphoric aaid and pot-ish are three vi-rj necessary elcnienis, ami by saving an< applying wood ashes we arc using one etisßutial clement. They can be user cither by being put upon the land ami working into the soil, or as a top dressing after the ground has been properly prepared for the crop, and working into tin soil when giving the necessary cultivation, and, being line, they are readily incorporated with the boil, and made avail able for the growth of the plants. Foi potatoes they are one of the best material; they can use, and can nearly always be used with profit, BtJTTKR AND CiIKE.SE AT THK PARIS Exhibition.—The first, butter and cheese competition at tho Paris Kxhibition was held from loth and 20th May. The numbers nf the exhibitors were 225 in the butter classes and 150 in those foi cheeses, and there were besides many exhibitors. About one half of the butter exhibitors hailed from the department of Ctilvados, in Normandy. The celebrated Isigny butter interest was represented by 115, and Gournay by 47 exhibitors, while there were S only of tho butters of French Flanders, 13 of Brittany, mid 33 from the western region, and 33 from the eastern region of France. In the cheese classes the soft cheeses were much more numerously represented than the hard,the lattei reckoning only 16 exhibitors. Normaubj and the district of Brio are much more numerously represented. The Camein berts number 34, the Livnrota 12, an; the various sorts of Brie 'ii. Gruyere Cantal and Roquefort were, of course the chief hard cheeses, and the bulk wer< from Fnincho Comte. A second dairy competition is to bo held in September. A New House Collar.—A horse col lar is illustrated and advertised in oui English Agricultural exchanges which ii revolutionary in regard to harness, anc which, according to report, possessc: merits that would render it suitablo ti the hot olimato of Australia. The iuven tiou in called tho patent ehstio steel horsi collar. It is claimed for it that it i light, strong and durable, easy to tin horse, complete in itself without ani haines, and inexpensive. Also that thi" collar " closing on the neck is unique ii the large surface of the true shoulders i covers, and to which the pull is equall; distributed by its being made of thi! steel plates, the elasticity of which alsi relieves the deadness of the pull in start ing, and all sudden jerks afterwards. I cures sore shoulders, and prevents then in future ; is invaluable for tender skin? and is instantly relieved from a fallei horse. It always presents to the horse' shoulder a smooth, even and cool service never wrinkling or altering its shape ii wear ; never wants restulfing or evei drying. It is made iu various sizes ; eacl collar can be adjusted by the user a pleasure to fit horses of about the sam size, all parts being interchangeable ; re pairs when they are needed are simpl and inexpensive." The Export ok Pears.— Fruit grower are meeting with a difficulty in the ex portation of paara ; that of apples ma; bo considered a thorough success ; bu not so with pears, of which few hav reached London in a sound state, deca; and rottenness having taken place ii nearly every case despatched, and mor experience is required to show the be* varieties to send, the best means of pack ing , and the best mode of conveyance. 1 ■South Australian grower-P. Laffer— sent by the Austral 40 cases of pear Vicar of Winkfield, a varinty whicl might be considered good, indeed, one o: the best for carrying ; but though some of the fruit were in perfect condition anc vrould have fetched, it in naid, Is. each in the shops, a good many showed t-igns o: decay, and the highest sum offered for s a box was only Us. In our opinion pears for export should be of the firmest varieties, gathered as soon as fully matured but before ripening has commenced packed and despatched immediately. They should be placed in a cool chamber, with the temperature steady at 40 deg. Fahr., at which tho juice is of the grcat3*t density and any rise or fall pots it in motion, to tho disturbance of the substance of the fruit inducing a tendancy to either ripen or rot. Straw.son's Air-i'owkr Distributor. Since Mr. Strawson's air power distributor was brought out last year too late for exhibition at the Royal Show, we have frequently (says the North British Agriculturist) referred to tho immense value of this invention to farmers. By means of a powerful blast of air generated by gearing from the driving wheels, all kinds of grain and rnannre can be distributed in any degree «f thickness over a given breadth of ground with mathematical precision. As a distributor of grain and manuro the machine possesses many out■tanding advantages, but its great value to farmers lies iu the fact that it can distribute even the smallest possible amount of liquid or poisonous matter with unvarying regularity over any crop for protection against, or the destruction of, insect pests. A gallon of paraffin can by means of it be spread over a whole acre of

turnips so ertmly that every plant will receive its due share, and tho effect of such a dressing is to eiieutually check the ravages of th.it dreaded pest—the turnip rly. By moans of this machine tho farmer can effectually protect himself against those insect peste which attack his turnip plants, and fruit growers can in the Mil me way dispose of the pests which attack their bushes and fruit tree. The merits of the machine were fully tested before a large gathering of practical agriculturists at the Royal Farm at Windsor tho other day: and did its work to perfection. We now learn that a company of influential agriculturist*, headed by Mr. Jacob Wilson, has been formed to acquire and work Mr. Strawson's invention ; and now that the invention has

been taken up so enthusiastically by Mr Wilson, the destruction of turnip anc fruit crops by insect pests will, doubtless in a very short time be a thing of the past. Beans.—The culture of field beans is a much neglected industry, and as they can be grown over a very large area of this country, there is no reason why the crop -should not become one of general value to farmers. Beans make very valuable horse fodder. The soil best adapted to their growth is a stiff clay, but it should bu good land, well manured ; fresh yard manure, howo7er, is not advisable, as it will cause too great a growth of vino at the expense of the seeds. Oh light soils beans are also inclined to run greatly to vines which droop down ou the ground, and if a wet season ensue wliilo the pods are filling they will mildnw. Upon a clay soil the vines will grow short and stocky, holdiujT their pods well up, and tho crop will ripen earlier and more evenly. The two kinds principally grown for a field crop are the common White Navy or pea bean, and the large Marrowfat. The Navy bean is somewhat easier of culture, but the Marrowfat will yield more bushels per aero and bring a better price. Tho groiiL-d should be prepared as for wheat, and early in spring drill in the seed at the rate of about one bushel to the acre, in drills far enough apart to admit of horse culture. Cultivation consists in merely keeping tho surface of the ground well stirred, aud should be very thorough, until the vines commenco to blossom, as it must then coaso. Beans may be etoiod imywliere ami fox almost

any length of time, providing they aro kept dry. Bean vines make an excellent fodder for sheep, but are not relished by ciittle. Being very rioh in nitrogenous elements they make a valuable addition to the compost henp. Expkhimknts with G KAS.SKS.—A number nf Scotch agriculturists assembled at Clifton Park, Kelso, the other day, to w't'uss the result of some experiments in the cultivation of grasses carried out tHore by tilt! pmprietir, Mr E'hV. TV company were shown a wi, ill |i«l,l' which was, entirely grown wif.li Pon m-ntiim Ijrßw winch wrs prowed in Paris. The Ik:.(1 in question H -as in a very exposed Mtu.iUuu, an.l was of decidedly second "tc .-oil. Although tirs was the second year in which that field had been under this jirnss. it was carrying a crop quite as heavy as any first year's crop of Italian rye grass. It ?l1)lrs very thick on the ground, sn that weeds have no chance with it; and it is an exceedingly early grass, as it is usually 8 or 9 inches ong in the spring before the other grasses have commenced to grow. The Poa scrotum is greedily eatiu hy stock, and is of a high nutritive value. Mr Elliot expressed his conviction that this was undoubtedly the grass of the future, and the whole company were unanimous in testifying to its value. The most remark. able part of the experiments was on the higher firounds, where a mixture of natural grasses, including 8 to 121b. of cocksfoot had produced an enormous supply of food, and was quite fresh and green while other pastures differently treated were quite scorched up with the drought. One field, which was particularly good, was sown down in 1885 with the following mixture .—Rye erase. 61b - Italian do., 41b.; cocksfoot, Sib. ; hard fesce, 61b. ; red, white and alsike clover, 21b. each. A neighbouring field mi the farm of Greenless, on the Clifton Jistate, and tenented by Mr Eiddell, and also inspected, and was particularly admired. This field was carrying a stock ot three sheep (with twin lambs each) to the acre, and was luxuriant in the extreme. It was sown down three years ago with the following mixture :—ltalian rye grass, 41b. ; perennial do., 41b.; cocksfoot, 41b. ; meadow fescue, 31b. ; timothy, slb. ; and red, white and alsike clover, lib, each. This field was found to be thick with clover, notwithstanding the fact that the alsike and red clover had, of course, died out, and only lib. of white clover had been sown. After having been shown over the pastures, the company unanimously expressed the opinion that the problem how to produce the best pasture was the question of the day for agriculturists, and that it was urgently desirable that the Highland Society should take the lead in encouraging such research.