ON THE LAND

New Zealand Tablet, 6 October 1921, Page 43

ON THE LAND

MARKET REPORTS. At Burnside last week 273 head of fat cattle were yarded. The market opened at about £1 per head lower than the previous week’s rates, and these prices were maintained throughout the sale. Extra prime heavy bullocks £lB to £2O, prime £l6 to £lB, medium £l4 to £ls, lighter from £7. Fat Sheep.—l6o3 were yarded. Compared with the preceding sale heavyweight wethers were back from Is to Is 6d. Medium weights w r ere on a par with the previous sale. Owing to the butchers having a lot of sheep on hand bidding was very dragging. Ewes were selling freely, and sold up to late rates. Extra prime wethers made from 26s to 295, prime 19s to 255, medium 16s to 19s, light and unfinished 13s to 15s. Spring Lambs. yarded. There were not sufficient in to fill requirements, and consequently prices advanced from 5s to 8s per head for good quality lambs, the top price being 475. Pigs,—A good yarding was offered, all classes being represented. Suckers and small porkers sold at high rates; but pigs of good weight were easier by 5s to 7s 6d per head. Best baconers realised from 83d to B|d per lb, and best porkers from 9d to 9£d per lb. At the Addington market last week there was a smaller all-round yarding, and an improvement in values, particularly for mutton. The tone of the market generally was healthier than for some time. Fat Sheep.—A reduced yarding. All round the market was 2s 6d better than on the previous week. Prime wether mutton averaging 4d to 4£d per lb. Extra prime wethers 27s 6d to 355, prime 22s 6d to 265, medium 19s 3d to 21s 6d, light and unfinished 15s 6d to 18s 9d, prime ewes 19s 3d to 24s 6d, medium 16s 6d to 18s 6d, prime hoggets 19s 6d to 26s 6d, light and medium 14s to 18s. Fat Cattle.—The yarding included 50 head from Wanganui. These were knocked about on the journey, and competition for them was •. onsiderably affected. Good beef appreciated from 20s to 25s per head, prime bullocks £ls 15s to £lB 15s, medium £lO 15s to £ls, light and unfinished £7 to £lO, extra prime heifers to £l4 12s 6d, prime £lO to £l3, ordinary heifers £7 10s to £9 10s, light and. unfinished £5 10s to £7 ss, prime cows £8 15s to £lO 15s, inferior and medium £5 5s to £B. Vealers. —Runners to £5 10s, medium £2 10s to £3 10s, small to medium calves 6s to £2. Fat Pigs.—A good entry and a firm demand, values being well up to recent prices. Choppers £4 to £8 10s, light baconers £4 15s to £5 10s, heavy £5 15s to £6 15s, extra heavy to £7 5s — average price per lb 9d, light porkers £3 10s to £4, heavy £4 5s to £4 10saverage price per lb 10|d to 10£dTENDER SKINS. There are some horses whose skins are so tender that they chafe very quickly during work, and sometimes even the head-gear will make some part, where it rubs, sore (says a writer in a contemporary). In most horses there is a certain amount of fat in the skin, which acts as a cushion, and also the thickness of the skin varies in different types of horses, but even in the thoroughbreds there is sufficient to prevent chafing. This must not be confounded with the tender or sore shoulders and backs of youngsters, whose skin is soft, and needs to be hardened by harness. This point of tender shoulders has to be remembered when a youngster is being broken to harness, and every care must be taken that the shoulders are not wrung, as this soon makes a “jibber.” In a young horse one cannot judge if it is a disease or not, but the extreme thinness of the skin of the neck, etc., may give rise to suspicion. In an older horse the thin skin, and the many evidences of sores on shoulder, back, crupper, etc,, shown by sores, bare places, or white hairs, might lead one to question the capability of working that horse, but here one must be careful to avoid condemning a thin horse, as absence of condition and fat V .results in sores, 'sitfasts, etc., but the best sign is to find evidences of chafing of the headstall, rugs, etc., rather than under, the harness. Treatment consists of rest until the sore or chafe is healed. The general health of the

horse has to be considered. Poor condition from any cause, as ill-health, under-feeding, over-working, etc., soft condition seen in young horses, fat horses doing no work, and finally, the tender-skinned horse. These must be remedied, if possible. To harden the skin, there are several favorite lotions, viz.: —(1) Methylated spirit and water. (2) Dilute sulpuric acid, 2 dr.; alum, 1 oz.; water,* 1 quart. Either of these may be frequently sponged over the shoulder or back, and allowed to dry on. As regards sores on the back, the horse can only be used as a chain horse, but shoulder troubles are more difficult to avoid, and a breast collar is used. The ordinary collar rocks and moves from side to side, whereas the breast collar has sawing movement, which is worse, so these must be well made and carefully fitted, with a perfectly smooth surface next to the skin. Again, this type of collar is liable to chafe on the neck where it is supported by a strap, so the ordinary collar is the best. Various collars are used for tender skins, such as rush collar, steel collar, leather-lined, etc. In saddles or pads it is pressure, not' friction, that does the mischief, so the girths should be eased several times during the day if it is a long one, but, on the other hand, the girth must be tight enough to avoid friction. A KNOWLEDGE OF THE SOIL. ' Every gardener and allotment holder should make it his business to have an intimate working knowledge of the soil (says a contributor to Farm, Field, and Fireside). The soil differs greatly in each district, and often" in different parts of the district, and each has its peculiarities. Readers should watch their soil carefully month in and month out, see what it is capable of producing, how it varies under different conditions of weather. Some soils dry very quickly after rain, so much so that if work is delayed for a while it is almost impossible to do it. Some again caps or becomes sealed on the surface,- and some are very difficult to work in the spring when it is desired to make the surface into a seed bed. By careful watching throughout the year, and by learning the experience of successful growers who have cultivated that class of soil for several years, it is possible to become so well acquainted with the soil that one knows well how and when to treat it in the different garden operations. This is knowledge which cannot well be taught, but can only be gained by actual experience. Turnips and similar root-crops have contributed largely to the development of the N.Z. Frozen Meat industry, upon which much of the Dominion’s prosperity has been built. To grow turnips to best advantage, they must be ridged: To ridge to best advantage the Macalister Ridger is “out on its own,” a fact officially proven by actual test, in whiqh it was awarded the Canterbury A. and P. Association’s Gold Medal. We now own and make all the Macalister Turnip Machinery. Get special catalogue. BOOTH, MACDONALD & CO., Ltd., CHRISTCHURCH, —Auckland, Hamilton, Gisborne, Hastings, New Plymouth, Palmerston North, Masterton, Ashburton, Timaru, Dunedin, and Invercargill.