Vol. XIV. No. 346. 



Till: AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



A new method, which is i I on quite another 



iple, is the direi t coi • I hj drogen 



under pressure a what elevated ire in the 



i c btalj I ic agent . 1 lurable circumstances 



a mixture of both gases combim i tysmall percentage, 

 while the reaction does nol go 1 

 will cease a equilibrium is atta 



The mixture is sufficiently i led to enable the ammonia 



tapped iff in liquid form, and then the remaining 

 mixture is 



Some general considei iti< subject of nitrogen 



en by I >r. < Jeerligs in I lie journal above quo ed 

 II is pointed out that the sou rgi ised to bring 



the desired combination is principalis wa 

 w hich i I well as cin V I hi pi i enl I ime, 



r, only ab ijjrogenous substanci 



used in the world s^re obtained syn Pertinent to 



the subject of this article is the [ready referred to in 



this journal, that the German Fermi i [ndustry [nstitute 



has found a means of coi i igen of ammonia 



into albuminoids by meai peast in a liquid 



containing mmonium sulpl md itber salts. By 



forcing air through the liquid, the yeasl is induced to grow 

 very vigorously, and to form alarge im ml of organic matter. 

 The dr) substance formed is equal gh1 oi the sugar 



employ tbout 10 per cent, oi the dry substance for d 



thus, consists of albumen. These remarks indicate that in 

 the near future it will be possible to obtain plant food and 

 plant material itself of a nitrogenous kind on an unlimited 

 irtificially. The establishment of an industry capable 

 of gaining such achievements would constitute an enormously 

 valuable asset to any country depending on outside sources 

 fi i it- f 1 supply. 



Jamaica Agricultural Society.— At the monthly 

 meeting of the Board of Management of the Jamaica 

 Agricultural Society held on Maj 20, L9*lo, some interesting 

 matters were discussed, and a report has been published in 

 the Journal of the Society for June 1915. Concerning the 

 subject of bananas, a table of analyses of banana meal made 

 at the Imperial Institute is reproduced, which shows that 

 while this material should prove useful locally as a supple- 

 mentary food, it will not compare in nutritive value with 

 either wheat flour Or maize meal. Am ■ther reference to bananas 

 is that which refers to an attempt made by the Society to 

 persuade the authorities at home to utilize banana figs as 

 food for the troops. These overtures appear to have been 



unsuccessful, though it is underst I that a considerable 



quantity of banana lips has been enl to Great Britain a 



a war gift. 



A fairly lengthy discussion took place at this meeting 

 on the subjeel oi Indian corn. Several of the branch societies 

 have senl in resolutions urging that the Government should 

 give preference to locally grown com. The Government, 

 though pi- i ite in the endeavour to substitute 



i l for the imported at present used at the various 



institutions, point out that in the past it has been difficult, if 



not impossible, to get properlj dried native corn of s I 



quality that will keep. Corn weighing, say, 64 to 66 lb. to 

 tshel, which was often supplied, would not keep; the 

 grain should be dried and sold at m I more than 60 lb. to the 

 I. The Society suggests tha a ceatral depot should be 

 established to which the corn - ent, dried, and sold 



in large quantities to the consumer. It appears that the 

 merchants in Kingston under these conditions are also 



■• willing t d the lo : d industry. 



LIVE STOCK NOTES. 



PIG FEED'ING. 



The following note taken from the Agricultural 

 Gazette of New'South Wa & Is with the subject -I 

 pig feeding in em m ing of 



tderation m the West [ndies. it will be notic I 

 thai the writer refers to certain ti mperate food crops 

 like rape and mangel vvurzels; for these can be 

 substituted in the Wi I [ndies crops like Guinea corn 

 and sw eel potatoes. 



The nietle-. I ei ill think is the bi 



erect pig proof fences, enclosing about I or 5 acres each, plant 

 with maize in the spring, and turn in the pics of all stages of 

 growth. It will be found that not a grain "ill i te, 



but care must be taken to allow the . water. 



A Her they ha\e finished the paddock, turn th m into another, 

 ami plough the finished paddoci md sow rape, field peas, 

 vetches or mangel wurzels. Rape is one of the m 

 valuable fodders for running pigs on; it is fit to feed off in 

 about six weeks from sowing, and will last right through the 

 winter if the land is well drained. Pigs of all ace- thrive 

 well on rape. Field peas and vetches are also crops on 

 which pigs make rapid growth. All these are good for sows 

 that an- rearing litters. After the pigs are large enough to 

 fatten, shut them up and top off with maize, milk, el . 

 I find that pigs fatten very quickly on maize after running on 

 rape and other succulent crops. Moreover, this method cleans 

 the laud ami puts it in good order for ploughing next spring. 

 1 have pulled very heavy crops of maize off land so treated 

 ami attribute the result to the fertilizing qualities of the 

 manure . . . While on the subject of food, the importance 

 of the mangel wurzel should be mentioned. Pigs are very 

 fond of them, and thrive very quickly on them. The seeds 

 are very shy to germinate, but they sometimes grow to 

 a weight of 30 to 40 ft>. each, and they are excellent keepers 

 in the store and the ground. Lucerne is one of the besi 

 foods for pigs; in fact, it is almost indispensable on a well- 

 regulated pig farm. It is an excellent diet at all stages of 

 a pig's growth, and sows with litters, mother them well when 

 fed on lucerne. In fattening with maize greater progress is 

 made when lucerne or alfalfa is added to their diet Arrowroot 

 and sugar-cane are also excellent food, but take two long to 

 mature. It is desirable to find faster maturing crops, and 

 I think we have them in imphi, rape, ,, e ld peas, 



mangels, and lucerne. 



The most prized breeds of pigs are the Berkshire and the 

 Poland China, and they cross with satisfactory results with 

 any other breed. The larger breeds of pigs, such as th 

 Taniworth and British Black; make i -apid growth without 



putting on the required amount oi fat,andcon equentl] bei 

 too weighty for first-class baconers. Hut when crossed with 



a fat producing pig like the Poland China, they cannot 

 surpassed. The Poland China is looked upon in America 

 a lard-producing pig, and I find that of all the breeds o| 

 pigs land 1 have had to do with them all) this breed will 

 fatten when others will only keep in good condition. 



