The Farm Prize Competitions. 'ill 



the calves to consume the whey, for cheese is made on this 

 farm all the year round, as has already been noted in the case 

 of another competitor. The pigs are of the middle white 

 breed, and some forty are got off at about 240 lb. dead weight 

 to the bacon curers. Mr. Warren has erected a new imple- 

 ment shed at his own expense, and in other ways has effected 

 improvements upon this nice little grass farm. 



Arable Farms. 



Class III. — 150 acres or over. 



Coming now to the farms chiefly arable, there were twelve 

 entries in the large farm class, ten of which were from 

 Shropshire and two from Staffordshire. The first prize was 

 awarded to Mr. J. Morris Belcher, of Tibberton Manor, 

 Newport, Salop. The farm is situated about five miles west of 

 Newport, eleven miles south of Market Drayton, and about 

 seven miles north of Wellington. It is within a few miles of 

 the Staffordshire border, and many of the great centres of 

 industry within that county, such as Stoke, Stafford, and 

 Wolverhampton, lie within a 20-mile radius. The farm is 

 compact, with a very pleasant farmhouse and buildings con- 

 veniently placed about the centre of the holding. The plough 

 land varies very much in quality, but the grass land is mostly 

 on clay and peat. The farm extends to 480 acres, of which 

 about 298 are arable. A four-course rotation is followed, but 

 on the lighter land Mr. Belcher sometimes takes barley after 

 clover instead of wheat. The acreage returned under crops 

 this year was as follows : — 



69 acres roots 



97 ,, barley 



67 ,, seeds 



40 ,, wheat 



273 



The remainder of the acreage was in carrots, parsnips, and 

 potatoes. 



The root crops were beautifully clean as a whole ; occasional 

 patches in a less satisfactory condition show how land so highly 

 farmed as this is must grow something. Great crops of carrots 

 are grown ; up to 20 tons of " intermediates " have been 

 produced on this farm. The barley seemed a great acreage, 

 but the reason for this has already been given ; some of it was 

 rather laid, but there should have been a tremendous crop, and 

 the same may be said of the wheat. Mr. Belcher's practice in 

 manuring is as follows : — swedes and mangolds receive 7 to 

 10 cwt. of basic slag, or 7 cwt. steamed bone meal, and in either 

 case a top dressing of 1 cwt. of nitrate of soda and 2 cwt. of 



