September i, 1883.] 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



193 



Seeds. 20 lb. per reygrass ... 4s 6d 



5 ,, clovers ... 4s 6d 



4 „ timothy ... Is 9tl 



1 „ parsley ... Uil 



turnips or rape (id 



12s 



£1 2a Cd 



If the object is to put tlio laud into wheat-bearing con- 

 dition as quickly as possil)le this will perhaps be best done by 

 sowing a crop of red clover only and either cutting or feed- 

 ing it off as the cultivation of this crop seems to leave in 

 the soil the elements necessary to the production of wheat. 

 "Where close to a market, grass cropping with potatoes will 

 have the same effect, and occasionally the crop is most 

 profitable. Whichever method is adopted this would be called 

 the resting or preparatory stage during whicli the land 

 would be grazed, or otherwise prepared, from 2 to 3 years 

 at the option of the farmer, when the land may be ag.ain 

 put in wheat as under : — 



rioughing 7s, harrowing 2s Cd, seed 6s, 



sowing Is, rolling Is ... ... 17s Gd 



The yield from land in this state may be fairly 



reckoned at 35 bushels per acre ; the writer has 



often known 4.5 to 50. 



Harvesting and stacking ... 14s 



Cost of producing in stack s.ay 

 „ of freight &c. as already given 

 ,, to Loudon „ ,, „ 



35 bushels at 3s 10* 

 4| quarter at 40s = 



31s 6d 



lis 



8s 2d 



2s 3d 



3s lOid 



£G 15s 7id 



. 9s lOd 



Profit per acre = £2 14s 4|d 



Thereafter the land may be followed with a green crop .and 

 fed ott with sheep to be followed by a grain crop and sown 

 down with grass at the option of the farmer. 



I tliink the foregoing results are easily obtained in the 

 hands of a practical farmer and will be found rather under 

 the mark. From grasses well laid down on carefully farmed 

 land good results may be obtained by running a good flock 

 of cros.sbred longwool sheep, aud for this purpose a regular 

 system must bo followed at the farm of having so much 

 in crop of various kinds each year, say one-third, and so 

 much in grass or greenfood, .say two-thirds, to be fed with 

 sheep. For this purpose on a farm of this size the pad- 

 docks woidd require to be about 150 acres, having say two 

 paddocks in grain crop each year, and one paddock in tur- 

 nip for winter feed, the remainder of the farm six paddocks 

 in grass or greenfood 900 acres. These 900 acres with 150 

 acres turnips should keep 3,000 sheep all the year round 

 with a return as follows : — 



300 sheep mi-xed sexes average clip wool 9 lb. per sheep 

 ■at an average price of 10s ... ... £1,125 Os Od 



Increase of lambs from 2,000 breeding ewes 



for sale cull ewes say 600 at 8s ... £240 Os Od 



„ „ „ Iambs 1,000 at 6s ... £300 Os Od 



leaving 4000 of the natural per centage .as an 



allowance to keep up the death rate of tlie 



flock 



£1,665 Os Od 

 le.'is * per sheep working expenses ... £ 187 lOs Od 



£1,477 lOs Od 

 I'rofit on 300 acres grain on the aver,age per 

 acre from improved land of £1 19 4^ ... £ 590 12s 6d 



giving ... ... ... ... ... £2,068 2s 6d 



as a rental or return of interest. A practical farmer will 

 have various methods or minor details of his profession by 

 which to add to the profit of the farm, such as feeding off 

 his refuse grain by a herd of well-bred swine, running a few 

 young growing cattle or horses to top any rank grasses 

 th.at get away from his sbeep ; grass seeds of various kinds 

 are also a fruitful source of income. The above is calcul- 

 ated on tlie main staples of wool and wheat or oats as 

 what may be relied on with almost certainty. One advant- 

 age we have in Southland is that we" can .almost to a cert- 

 ainty depend on cm' rout crops, in most instances without 



any application of artificial manures or special labor farther 

 than broadcast sowing on prepared soil, this giving us the 

 means of quickly restoring and reinvigoriiting the land 

 which has been somewhat exhausted by taking a gr<ain 

 crop and also of keeping our sheep stock and clip of wool 

 in a he.althy condition during the winter season. Labor 

 has hitherto been a great cause of anxiety to the N. Z. 

 agriculturist, but recent years have made such strides in 

 labor, saving machines such as double .and treble 'furrow 

 ploughs, reapers aiii binders, steam thrashers and' steam 

 rolling stock, that that obstacle had lieen very much over- 

 come, and the figures I have quoted for labor .are not likely 

 to be exceeded, as they are a good deal above the current 

 rates now. L.and carriage has also been very much facilit- 

 ated of recent ye.ars by our railway system, the extension 

 of which will no doubt keep pace with settlement, for 

 which there is yet so much room. As our land becomes 

 occupied by a good class of farmers our railw.ay tariff 

 will not only be reduced but it will pay to interweave the 

 country with branch lines, for which the level features of 

 the district are so widl adapted. There is little doubt 

 now^ the refrigerating pi-ocess— which is successfidly es- 

 tablished— .applio<l to our beef aud mutton .and dairy pro- 

 duce is going to assist us greatly in. obtaining better re- 

 turns from our soil than we have hitherto realized, and there 

 can be no doubt that a line of steamers calling regularly 

 at the various ports along our coasts thence to Great Brit- 

 ain fitted up with the means of landing our produce fresh 

 to the markets of the home country, will give, combined 

 with an influx of good settlers, such ail impetus to our pro- 

 duction and wealth as to exceed the most sanguine expect- 

 ations. 



THE DAR.J1LING CINCHONA PLANTATION. 

 Dr. King's report for 1882-83 (given ou page 763) 

 like all previous documentsof the same kind from hispen, 

 contains much that is generally interesting, besides 

 embodying facts which are calculated to be specially 

 useful to those engaged in the cultivation of the fever 

 plants. The total of trees standing iu the plant- 

 ations was 4,711,108, a decrease of about 50,000 

 compared with the previous year. But this is due 

 to the deliberate policy pursued of as speedily as 

 possible superseding the inferior species or varieties 

 by those proved to be superior as quiuine-yielders • 

 Accordingly 20,000 hybrids and 43,667 calisayas o' 

 poor .(uality were uprooted. The same process was 

 followed in regard to 160,085 eucoirubra trees, which 

 were repktced—ioi- the soil allows of successive crops 

 —by good hybrids and yellow barks. The hybrids 

 uprooted were such as. gave an analysis of only 0-97 

 of quinine, 104 cinchonidine, and O'SO of cinchouine 

 alkaloid. It was right that such trees should not 

 be allowed to cumber the grouud, when seven other 

 varieties of hybrids were available which gave re- 

 sults varying from 1'48 per cent of quinine up to 

 an analysis thus represented : — 



Crystallized sulphate of quinine 6'12 



_. v . ,, •> cinchonidine... 2'46 



Cinchonme alkaloid ... ... o-55 



Tot.al 9-13 



As this IS quite equal to the outturn of some of the 

 very best ledgerianas, No. 7 hybrid ought certainly 

 to be propagated largely, especially if, as is prob- 

 able, It IS of a more robust habit than the led<^eri. 

 anas. We were about to eay that thero would be a 

 run on Mr. Gammie for seed of No. 7, but for the 

 doubt that gentleman entertains if the seed of hybrids 

 will give plants true to type. When we visited the 

 gardens m 1S7G, the hybrid then provisionally kuowu 

 as ii/iiota was being prop.ag.ated from cuttiufs, and 

 it IS probable that such is the system still pursued 



