S August, 1907.] Fifth- Convcniion, Cliambcr of Agriculture. 483 



following are the particulars of the arrivals of butter in Melbourne for May, 

 1906 and 1907 : — 



Ma\-, icioO. May, 1907. 



District. Tons. Tons. 



North-Eastern ... ... ... 275 ... 108 



Northern ... ... ... ... 100 ... 57 



Gippsland ... ... ..• ... 50S ... 296 



West and South-Western ... ... 388 ... 366 



Total 



Cultivation is Essential. 



The time is past when land in Victoria might be obtained so cheapl\ 

 that it would pay to trust to grazing alone. Everyone who takes up land 

 must make up his mind that seed-time and harvest-time are to come 

 round year by year with the regularity of the seasons. Part of the 

 produce so raised may be sold direct as such, but the greatest part is 

 to be fed to the live stock on the farm. If it is said that it will not 

 pav to grow food for live stock the following facts should be carefully 

 weighed. Granted a man with one horse and single furrow plough 

 broadcasting both seed and manure in the old fashioned way. Under 

 these circumstances the cost of putting in the crop will be from 15s. to 

 j[^i per acre. In the suburbs of Melbourne you may get any little 

 irregular paddock cut with the reaper and binder at los. per acre. The 

 total maximum cost therefore is from 25s. to 30s. Suppose the harvest 

 yields 20 bushels of peas, or 30 of barlev-, or a ton and a half of oaten 

 hay. Grain at a shilling a bushel or hay at £^i per ton is so cheap that 

 it is impossible to feed them tO' anv good class of live stock without 

 securing a handsome profit. On the score of profit every farmer should 

 use his plough. But there are two other equally cogent arguments. The 

 Australian climate is dead against continuous grazing. The superabundant 

 growth of spring soon dries up in summer, and as we have seen, inste-^d 

 of grass hay there is nothing but grass straw tO' be found for the stock. 

 Then again, by long centuries of selection the most prolific plants are 

 those which are cultivated, and with the single exception of lucerne it 

 may be said that an acre of cultiation will yield from four to eight times 

 as much fodder as the same acre of land under grazing. 



These ideas with regard to the importance of the question of fodder 

 for the dairy herd have been emphasized bv the information received 

 from several parts of the State since the passing of the Milk and Dairy 

 Supervision Act. The purchase of bran at the present time absorbs much 

 of the profit from the cow. In some cases dairy farmers supplying milk 

 to the cities require to secure returns of ;!^io tO' ;^i2 per head before 

 they begin to make any profit. A small area well cultivated is the remedy 

 for this state of affairs. In countrv districts the profit from the pig 

 should pay the expense of growing the crops for the herd. 



It will be seen then that I look upon the production of more fodder 

 whether for sheep or cattle as the chief problem in the immediate future. 

 The results already obtained are so good in both these branches of agri- 

 culture that there is no doubt about the success of the movement. A man 

 with rich land may venture to trust to natural conditions alone; but all 

 our second class land requires the plough to start it on the up grade. All 

 our great export staples may thus be easilv doubled. 



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