FARM AND SATATION

Oamaru Mail, Volume XL, Issue 12538, 8 May 1915, Page 8

FARM AND SATATION

SELECTION OF LAYING HENS, Writing in, the Perth Sunday Times, Mr James Hadlington, poultry expert to the New South "Wales Department of Agriculture, says : The selection of laying hens has been almost exclusively confined to the use of trap nests, single pens, and systems more or less mechanical and limited in. their application. On the other hand, Selection hy type and conformation and other visible' signs are little understood, .and have been almost, wholly neglected. Obviously the trap nest and single pen are limited to a small number of birds, and their use is thus of necessity confined to the selection of breeding stock. Their utility is still more narrowed down, and made even more'wasteful in effort, but the fact that in'most cases rio selection is made of the- pullets .to be so tested, consequently at the end of the test the .rejects or poor layers are altogether out of proportion to the effort made, when compared with what would have been the case if selection, in the first place, had been made on the lines of type.and conformationbefore .submitting them tothose, expensive tests. "... ■[ Whatever benefits may bo derived from ascertained tallies by means of single pens and trap-nests m regard to testing for breeding stock, as lias already been stated, these means have •'such* limitations as to render them im r-praetic-able for flock testing, and a-sim-pler and more rapid lnethod'-pf selection miist be adopted. Iti njy inspection of these different means of testing, including those penned by competitors in the. single_ pen tests, and also in tho "test of judgment" section in the Hawkesbury Agricultural College laying competition, it is quite obvious to me that, were type and conformation, and visible signs generallj', properly understood a, very large portion of the -pullets would not be submitted by their owners to a. mechanical test, involving as it does much .labor and expenditure on plant, cohering a period of 12 months' work, and a portion of the useful life of tho hens. ■ -. It should be understood that I am not here undervaluing the aid to selection i"afforded by some of the systems offered ito the public. Most of them are of moro or less educational value when properly understood, but do not take into account the visible signs which I here wish to refer to, but any one of these methods of selection that have proved of value, when applied, will ouly .assist to 'confirm what is here sought to b& impressed. Unfortunately", a tremendous fallacy has come to be accepted by many poul-try-keepers in regard to tested layers, insomuch as they have come to look upon breeding from tested stock as the. only means of selection and perpetuating desirable qualities.' regardless of the fact that selection is /hot likely to attain the desired end. Pullets to be selected should be less than six months old.

Head—Fairly long, and rather narrow.

Face—Long and deep, lino in texture and free from wrinkles.

Comb—Of medium size, without coarseness.

Eyes—Large, bold, and expressive. Neck—Fairly long, and not too thick. ■Body—Rather long, carried well up from the horizontal, symmetrical, and well proportioned. Legs—Proportionate in size to the bodily development. The above description is intended to portray the breed here commented upon (White Leghorns), but as a matter of fact is applicable to the laying type ot fowl generally. The head of any breed is undoubtedly the best visible index to a layer of that breed. It should indicate activity and alertness. Any coarseness in face and comb, particularly if accompanied by a thick skull and heavy eyebrows, is asure indicatioii of an indifferent layer.

This subject of selection of layers is of special importance at •the-present time, owing to the high price of feed. It would bo of immense value to poul-try-keepers • to possess -a knowledge-of selection, which would enable them to weed out the unprofitable factors in their business., and thus reduce their feed bills without materially reducing tlie egg yield. This can be accomplished without waiting for the results of a slow testing process, or in the case of the "systems" for the hen to arrive at the stage of development necessary for .testing, which in some-cases nrght entail .months of unprofitable and-use-less feeding. BITTER -PIT IN FRUIT. ITS CAUSE AND PREVENTION. EVIDENCE BY INVESTIGATOR. Interesting evidence regarding the cause and prevention of bitter pit in fruit was given before the State Royal Commission, on Fruit and Vegetables, at State Parliament House, Melbourne.' The' Commissioners present were Messrs Prendergast (chairman), Snowball Rouget, Hogari, and AVarde, M.L.A.'s." James B. Brewer, secretary of the V ictbrian Fruitgrowers' Association, gave._evidence as to the views of the Association .upon the subject of marketing of fruit. The- .objection to adopting the American system of grad- . ing_.:fruit in Victoria was the dissimilarity of conditions. There was a- tendency for Government inspection of fruit to become increasingly rigid. He was of the opinion that inspectors could .be used to better advantage. If a man sent away inferior fruit on one occasion. lie was not likelv to do so again. ■ ■ Air Snowball: Then vou think the inspector s certificate is of no value:'. Witness: It is practically worth nothing, David M'Alpinc. bitter pit investigator for the Commonwealth and" State Gov.einments, said that bitter bit- belonged to. the apple, .the ;pear, and the quince. Neither insects nor fungi were responsible for it. Bitter pit had been known in Australia- before spraying was thought of., If, as had been suggested the absorption, of poison from the ground had anything to do' with it, one would have thought that the whole apple, and not one part of it, -would be affected. His experiments were concliu siye against this poison theory. I n bitter pit- tissue the cells had- collapsed, and contained much less : water than' they should. Owing to this -absence of water the acids became concentrated, and were injurious to the substance of the cells causing bitter pit. It .was an ' external disease showing brown ; flakes on the.'flesh immediately beneath the I skin, usually towards the eye-end, with corresponding depressions on the- ex- j terior. .■""•■-.

The, Chairman: Could yon tell us ■something about prevention and cure?. Witness: In dealing with this'disease, mo such thing iis « cure was recognised. ISio means were known whereby a- cni'o might lie effected, but the. endeavor was to prevent the disease. There was the question of the prevention of tlio disease in the store". It was well

known that apples could be picked perfectly clean,' and afterwards develop bitter pit. The apple, when' picked irom the tree, continued to breathe—acid gas_ for some weeks. At 32deg. to take in oxygen and exude carbonic of tlie 'freezing-point of water respiration was suspended. If the apple -were kept at this point in a dry atmosphere it would undergo no change. It was a c"sp of suspended: animation. Not only did keeping apples-at this temperature retard bitter pit, but it- would .also -prevent ripening. It was well known to growers that, although bitter pit might ;>ot appear on the outside it was there m_ an incipient stage. The freezingpoint for nDples and pears- was from 28deg. to 39deg.

Dealing with the question of predisposition, the witness said that the Yates variety was practically immune, while Cleopatras were very* liable to contract the disease. There were comparatively few apples free from bitter bit. By keeping apples at- a- constant temperature of 32deg. they should' arrive in London free from pit, and in the same condition in which they were

(By. "Coulter.")

placed oil board the ship. Tho occurrence of tho pit on the growing tree could not lie absolutely prevented. He had carried out- a number of experiments, and there was not a single ration or method 'of treatment that would prevent it ui the tree. By the application of various measures the intelligent orchardist could bring the disease within manageable proportions. It had been found possible to reduce 60 per cent, of pitted fruit on a- tree to 4 or -5 per cent. Heavy pruning, for instance, encouraged bitter pit. Cultivation tended to reduce bitter pit, because it enabled moisture to bo retained, and the more equally and regularly the tree was fed the less was the liability to pit. If the" tree was properly shaped, pruned, and nourished so that the apples' were Well distributed over the tree, enabling each apple to got its proper share of nourishment, much would have been clone to prevent bitter pit. He .considered -that in alii of the States horticulture had been neglected from the experimental point of'view. It Was time that the industry was. given some ..attention,- alid .tlhlt the breeding of fruit trees .was placed oil' a similar footing to the breeding of wheat. If a Federal bureau of agriculture and horticulture were established, one of the most Valuable things it could do was to endeavor to iH'odyice pit-resisting trees. Of course, thiit would take ten or twelve years, tiiifc the results would be worth while. In conclusion, the witness said that his full repor toll bitter pit would bo issued, shortly, A QUSSTIOM OF BREED.

What Is a purebred, tyhat is a crossbred, and what is a grade:-. It has been asserted that there does not "exist nueh an animal as :i purebred, meaning that •such a thing, as perfect purity of "blood, of a distinct type; breeding, and character is unattainable. It is argued that, as the whole cf the so-called pure breeds of the present day are the result of a careful .selection from animals of mixed breeding as near alike as possible, and then interbreeding those selections until a certain degree"of fixity o; type lias been secured, a claim for an absolutely ! pure'bretd cannot be made. However | this may be, yet for all practical purposes animals which, for several generations, have been bred on fixed lines possess all the required characters of a purebred, in that their progeny is as. certain as anything can be to "be of similar type" and term to those possessed by her parents. This quality alone should be sufficient to make good the claim-of breeders of pedigree stock that they are of almost inestimable value in the production of the most valuable animals in the form .of crossbred*. The term "crossbred" was originally intended to denote an animal which resulted from the mating of a sire and of a dam of. two distinct or dissimilar breeds of the same variety of animal. At the present time, when nearly the whole of the principal breeds have their respective herd books, it, is semewhat difficult to avoid looking upon a crossbred as the outcome of the mating of animals of two of the" distinct breeds of cattle whose pedigrees have for some years'been registered: but it is not imperative that a tine crcsshred should bo so bred, all that is requited being that the sire and dam should have been of a somewhat divergent but distinct form and character, so that the produce shall not take the characteristic qualities alone o: either parent, but presenting ;t compound of the varying points cf both parents. LUCERNE AND GLOVER "BLOWING." ■An unusual ninnher of cases cf "Wowing,"' many of them proving fatal, have occurred among the cows of the Blenheim district, during the last few davs (says the ilarl borough Times). The most experienced and cautious of" cattleowner.s are losers, .preconceived ideas as to the correct principles to follow beim: upset, and the problem of grazing stock on lucerne and clover without risk has now became more vexatious than ever. Ihc epidemic, as it may be filled, is attributed to the quickness- and luxuriance of the growth brought on by theautumn rains, following on a length v spel lof dryness. The treacherous nature of green fodder of this description is illustrated with special force by the experience, that befel Mr Jas. Pe'tmev, of Riverinn. After losing his valuable Jersey milker "Franzi" last month, he redoubled his precautions, which had always been strict; but. nevertheless, he has lost another of his purebreds, the three-year-old -cow "Phyllis,'' 'which came to grief on some short red clover. The herd was carefully watched after ■being turned on to the Haddock: and, though they were. limited to a verv short spell on it and they were not given access to water, two animals were so. badly affected that the puncturin"" 'treatment-had to be resorted- to, even this being too late to save "Phvllis." Stock-owners are beginning to rcaiiiso that no absolutely safe system of grazing cattle on lucerne and clover at all tunes •has; yet been devised, and that the wisest plan so far as animals of ■special value are concerned is to cut the growth and feed it after, it .has undergone a certain amount of dry-

SKIMMINGS. "At a meeting of the directors of the Stirling Dairy Factory recently it was decided to pay 16d per lb for butterfat. The. -company -manufactures cheese chiefly. The Temuka and Geraldine A. and 1. . Association, at a meeting of its Committee, had before it- a- orotest received against the-decision of the jiuhic in .awarding first prize in the early va-ij.-.'ty of potatoes- to am exhibit of Up-to-Dates as against an exhibit of Briton Queen, which .was awarded- second i;:ize. The protestant contended that ; an Lp-to-Date could not be classed »>■■ an early variety. ■ It was explained . that tin; -Chairman, class stewards, and the judge-, had inspected the exhibits ummediately after the protest- was made and had come to the conclusion that the first prize potato, although an TTp-to-Date. was riper and the .skin more firm than the second', urizetaker (British Queen), and was, therefore, rightly judged .as- an early variety. It"was suggested, as the matter might cro'n- no again, that the question of-'whether aii ! Lp-to-Date notato is an eariv van'etv be referred to Mi- M'Gowan. of Willowbridge, -as adjudicator. The cow-houses and farm build.incs in Holland are noted for their neatness and cleanliness-. Sometimes mats are spread hefbre the doors, evenof cowhouses, and' visitors are reouired to wipe their feet before entering. A m'arvellou.v flower grows on the Isthmus'of Tehuanteuee. Its -ch-'ef peculiarity is tlie habit of -changing its color during the d'ny. In the monili-ng it is white, when the sun is at its zenith, it is red. and* at- night it : a blue.

"It .-s said that tin- farmers' have h-.id a bumper rear ami should uay the war tax." remarked -Mr H. D~ Vavasour in his Presidential address to the Marlborough Farmers' Union. He proceeded to say that such had not been the case. The farmers had had anything but a successful year. A Winton citizen recently went in tor a bit of farming on a simile scale the Record). He put down. 4.V acres nf cats. The labor and seed cost hmi £l4. Ho got 4J tons of chaff <a* a result of the harvest, and cfei'iosed' of ir at £5 per ton. Tuni-insi the cro D into cha.fr .meant an expenditure- of .some £S. He .s now of the opinion that there's- nothing in fanning. Mr D. Hebenton of Mnsterton. See. retary nf the New Zealand Lincoln Sb?er> Breeders' Association, has received a letter from Mr E. Clifton, the New Zealand Commissioner at the Pmn.nrop. Exposition, stating that the exhibit of wool forwarded to the Exhibit tion by the Lincoln Sheeobreeders' As- j sce:ati.on arrived in perfect condition, j ■and' is shown in the New Zealand! Court in the Palace of Agriculture. I hhmdreds of pounds worth of stock

have Weii |(sst ill the Marlborough district "this .season through bloating on hice'riio and red clover. 31 f Benjamin iilicU give* the' following hints.—-'-.See thai a'"cow is scoured ;'••' relaxed in Ine !;i.nv,>!s before going into a paddock: never lot a cow, go on ll!'.;stho when hiiiigrv: .sc ! rl.at vous h;Hv {limit v of water, preferably .'» .the paddock, .so t'hni they v,-'i!l not drink * at one time aITVr a good feed. It is a good nian to give a co;" tor a rev. days l-eiorc nutt-.u-g"it on lucerne, innrfgokis or otiier greeli feed and plenty of salt and water, so as to sCOMrJier.

A Stratford oorresponcieii*.'" writes:"The dairy factories on Tuesday .y.nipluM life-biocd 'to the Stratford district to Ihe value of gome £23,0Q0. This should keep up our vitality Until the winter 'bonuses' begin to come in.' War sets in some-queer blows, Lately for instance, word went from Loudon that business in Australian rabbits was slack. As a regular thins tee Commonwealth shins from 3.3,000,000 to 20:000,000 frozen rabbits it >-«ar, and', as the rood is good and cheap, and m'ght therefore be take the place of dearer meat in b:i<J times,-the siump was very astonishing. Then t.io explanation came alone. A very bur proportion of the retail rabbit trade: is done from harrows by niyht. the "market" being lit bv (hires. But tin res are prohibited lest'thev should br a help to William'.-: air valdets; aik! it. a i case of.no flares no rabbits'.

The hor-o that stumbles should riot be whmrie'd fof the accident. He may stumble because fie in badly ->hod. He may have a nervous disorder that oe; cas'ionaTly causes him to lOsv' control over one or other part of the iio'ves that are used in this complicated work of walking, trotting, or running, while pulMng a'lfeid or hold'ng it back. AVhatever mav he cli/?. of his stumbling, whinping the st-ftinbler will do no good. The hur. ? does not ..-tumble for pleasure or through desmn. Stiimbling is na infill to him. Just why ho shoiild !)(' tortured with a whip after lu's iviiole uer'Wius system has been wrenched-in a stumble ;u\<\ struggle to keep his feet., no one" caff tell. The whipping comes after the ace'dent. The liors-o doe- not understand that the .-thiiiin-: h'-'- :,, -5J is a warning to him not" to *>r "eMe .again. Ho regards it mere'v '• .ill .<>ddod torture. — Farmers' Guid-

The note:; Leiet s.lcr ram kuow'fi as His Maiestv. the property of Lord Crichton-Ste'wait. M.J'.., died, recently. This sheep 'w-s Urobabiy the mest successful breeding rfiffl' of the uast twenty years. His .dam,- alt old Humstock "owe produced three rani;. wk:ch sold for £1.70.1-10, and :£65 respectively. His Majesty's nrogeny were winners at all the leading shows, and one season seven shearlings off him made £lO ap : eee. He was the sire of perhaps more stud rams entered in recent volume-- of the Flock JJook than any other single sheep.

To ii dairyman. \ who complained of lumps in the teats of liis. coirs, scorainglv movable, and' about the size of peas, .Mi- Place, the South Australian Government veter'iiarian, replied: — ■''The malady is mummitis, probably of the co nt agio us form. You should handle the* affected cows after the others at milking time, and take precaution ¥■ to wash yo\u- hands before handling another boast. Rub in hot soapsuds once or twice a day to the ■affected quarter, and inject for three or four days half a cupful of warm water, with; a saltsuoonful of borao'e acid dissolved- in it. Belief can usually be given with a . cursfiiily sterilised test syphon. The main thing to remember is the contagious nature of tlm di-oase and to u-e all Precautions to prevent its spread.

la an experiment with ten cows at [lie Kansas Agricultural College it was touml that for the first five days alter dehorning tlie cows lost an average ol lib of milk a day. At the. end of the tilth day they began to return to their normal flow, and in a few clays eight 01 them were giving a substantial increase. The greatest gain was' with the cows that had been hcoked and driven away lre-'m their feed previous to the dehorning. The two tnat did net increase in production were the "boss" cows of the herd. Cattle that are dehorned before the coming 0? warm weather and Hies usually heal without any trouble. Much tune and trouble is saved by dehorning the calves with, caustic potash. This should be done before the calf is a week old, or a stumpy horn, with develop, which will have to be .removed later with clippers or saw. Scrape tlie button or young horn with a knife until it is red; Then moisten it and rub it well with a stick of caustic potash, or with household lye, being careful not to get it in the skin around the liorn, as it is very irritating to the call's tender skin. This should be repeated in a few d«ys if a deep scab does not form in the ccntre'of the horn. — Farmers' Gazoete. October 23, 1914. In. an experiment which was conducted throughout Ontario for five years the mangel crop was increased to six tons per acre by an application of 1601b of nitrate of scda when the plants were 3in. tall. The same, quantity of nitrate of soda applied at the time that the seed was_ sown increased the yield of mangels 0.6 tons per acre.' In that part o; the second experiment which corresponds, with the first experiment the results are, therefore, quite similar—viz., that-an application of 1601b of nitrate of soda per acre is likely to increase the mangel crop about six tons, per acre. Under .average conditions of soil and climate in Ontario the yield, ot mangels per acre'has been increased or decreased according'to the amount ol_ nitrate of scda which lias been applied. The highest average yield of roots per acre in the. average of the pftst two years was produced trom 2001b of nitrate of soda per acre applied when the plants were- about 3in.~ in height. This increase' amounted to 5.60 toiis at

a cost of 25s for the- fertiliser, which amounts to 2s IC.Vd per ton, or a trifle over Id per bushel.

31 r AY. AY. Honker, representing Mills and Sparrow, largo butter and cheese factors, with headquarters at London, England, .spent a tew days iu New York last week on his way to New Zealand, ; ,ays the New York Pro. <luee Keview of 10th March. He called at the Review oflicc and outlined briefly the object of his trio to the Antipodes, which will extend over were than a year. The firm of Mills. ;md Sparrow handles large quantities of the Australasian 'products, and it lias been watching the American markets, expecting the time will, come when considerable lots of butter can be sent here profitably. M.r liowker took occasion t;? enquire as to the special, requirement* of the New York market, and it is Ins purpose to consult the .steamship line.?, in the belief that a direct route to New York via. the Panama Canal will be established. Speaking of present conditions m Great Britain, lie said that most of the xVorth. vSea. ports of England were elr.sed to cross sea navigation, and that London and Liverpool, the two main open ports, were absolutely congester with freight. Every dock was piled high with .-freight of all kinds, and when he left London forty-one .steamers were in the river trying to find a place to discharge- their cargoes: There was j a great .shortage of freight handlers.

ami tin- railroads wore under the control of the Government.- 'He said that fo-tgland was yetting abundant supplies or provisions, and the opinion prevailed that the war would be over by oarlv autumn: Mr Bowker loft on Thursday night For Vancouver, and will go from there to New Plymouth, New Zealand. Ihe Jersey cow. AYorksop Hollo, owned by Mr Thom.is Dixon, of Worksop. .road, .Masterton, is a really wonderful annual, so far as producing milk is concerned. The estimated weight of it-he cow is. about IOOOIbs, .and she has given more than thirteen times her own weight in milk in the year. The milk, it retailed at Is 2d per gallon the venr round, would be separated, the cream would make TWJIKs of butter., 85 per cent, fat, which would, d sold at Is 2d per lb, realise £42 lis sd and the skimmed milk for calf feeding-at 3d per. gallon would be worth £'!(> 17a id. Worksop Belle's In iter call, now a year old, is worth from -II) to .;>(> guineas, but is jiot: For ! -aie Worksop- Bo)],, i s ~ grand-daughter of K.L.8., an animal famous as a sin- of high-producing cows, and is a chim-ltu--of Primrose 27th, bred by .Mr J ;llm ., Stuckey. The year's production from Worksop Belle would be from .C'lo7 K to £125 (is, .according to the manner in which her milk was disposed of.