A THRIVING DISTRICT

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 59, Issue 71, 26 April 1930, Page 3

A THRIVING DISTRICT

FROM WILDERNESS TO PASTURE LAND. THE WAIKARE AND MATAHOURA AREA. FARMS A CRED1T TO THEIR QWNERS. In a trip through the Waikare and Matahoura districts with a settler in that area this week, I gained an insight into the wonderful way in which the farmers in tliat district have tackled their problems and tunied wliat was previously regarded as an area fit only to grow blackberry, light manuka, too't and stunted lieather, and wild strawberry, into country* capable of Wintering txvo and in some cases tliree breeding ewes to the acre. It is twelve years since the bulk of the lioldings were first taken over from the Government by their present occupants aud one of the more successful. of the farmers stated that at that time he had to cut a. track through the manuka to get on to his liolding. He was camped out there for nearly a week before he defined his own boundaries, so thick was the vegetation. In his case his property is of 1050 acres, cons.isting of clay hills and downland of the prevailing type in the district, comprising pumice covered with six inches of fine black soil. In the course of twelve years, despite war disabilities, this particular settler has transformed what was originally a wilderness into a prosperous looking little farrn and all the capital that he liad when he made his start was £300. This Winter he is running 1050 breeding ewes and 400 dry sheep on his pasture, while he has quite a considerable acreage under the plougli. WOULD COME AS SURPRISE. It would no doubt come as a considerable surprise to a good many farmers in other parts of the province were they to go into this area and see for themselves what has been done hy these warcrippled men in bringing into productivity and cultivation land that was despaired of not so many years ago. The chief cause of the district' s present state of productivity may be said to 'be the East Coast railway, by means of which fertilisers can he brought almost to the settler's door at the comparatively low freight rate of 15s a ton. Superphosphate is the fertiliser in which the farmers of the area place the most trust and the effect of top-dressing with this class of manure is to he seen on all sides throughout the area. The serub and other signs of poor country which previously marked the area has now very largely disappeared. The first step of every settler was to cut up his area with fencing and put a fire through the light scrub. The plough, a crop of tuniips and a liberal allowance of "super" was the next step in the way of improvement and then the area was sown down in grass. SUBTERRANEAN CLOVER. On some of the lighter hill land the settlers liad difficulty in getting grass to liold and a mixture of pasture grass and soft turnips has been found to do particularly well in this area, being a popular first sowing. A number of pastures newly sown contain a liberal quantity of surDterranean clover, concerning the qualities of which most of the farmers in the area are extremely sanguine. This particular type of clover is just the kind to prove most suitable on the lighter class of land. It seeds annually and throws out long runners, carrying seed pods, which strike where they rest and quickly build up a good thick pasture. The paddocks that have been sown for ajiy period in a mixture containing a large proportion of this class of clover are reeognised as the best in the district. IJp to three pounds of subterranean clover has 'been sown to the acre and it is considered that its introduction will considerahly increase the carrying capacity of the area. At one time it was thought that wild strawberry, a sure sign of poor, hungry soil, was going to cause trouble, hut topdressing and judieious stocking have consolidated the ground and there is not a great deal of the growth to he seen at the present. The district grows great turnip crops and some pax-ticularly good examples are to be seen at present. The first thing that struck me in the course of a trip through the district was the remarkable amount of cnltivating that was going on. Every available foot of land seems to be coming under the plough and even the clay hill country is being forougbt under cultivation. It is apparent that the farmers of the area have the right sort of spirit and deserve to sueceed. The measure of success which they have achieved affords an illustration of what can he done by the application of practical farming methods in bringing land of this description into productivity.