568 Jonni'd of Agriculture, Victoria. [10 Sept., 1917. 



cutting. This latter crois is cut and carted out and fed to the cows in 

 the paddock, usually lasting about ten weeks. 



Not many dairymen fully realize the advantages of keeping up an 

 unbroken milk supply of the herd during the early summer months. If 

 a cow is permitted to slacken off at this season, through shortage of 

 succulent fodder, it is almost impossible to bring her back again to her 

 full flow. Therefore, to maintain a good summer yield it is very 

 important to feed greenstuff liberally at this time. Half feeding is 

 possibly even Avorse than not to hand feed at all, as it encourages the 

 cows to linger about, instead of grazing, and they do not get a full feed 

 altogether. When the spring of the grass comes after the autumn rains, 

 if the cows meanwhile have had a timely supply of green fodder, the 

 dairying season will be extended by at least two months, and it should 

 also be remembered that the price for butter fat is usually good at „nis 

 period of the year"; In consequence of the drought in the autumn of 

 1914, butter fat was bringing about 2s. 6d. per lb. in the month of May 

 of that year. Mr. Warren was then sending five cans of cream weekly 

 to the Stony Creek Butter Factory, the price per can exceeding £4, 

 though most of the other dairy herds in this district were then dry, and 

 in some instances dairy farmers were even buying butter for their own 

 household use. A reference to the returns of this farm as published 

 below will show that during the dry spell in January last they were 

 highly satisfactory, and they will compare favorably with any farm on 

 the far-famed Tarwin Meadows. 



Another great advantage of the system of growing fodder for hand 

 feeding the cows is that they are kept in good condition during the 

 winter months, and when they come in to full profit in the early spring 

 they are in good flesh, and can milk to their best right from the start. 

 Good grazing paddocks are here reserved for the cows when not in 

 milk, which is in marked contrast to the custom of many dairy farmers, 

 who turn their cows out into the scrub country during the winter 

 months, with the result that, when the, milking season commences, they 

 are in such poor condition that the spring is nearly over before they 

 really come to their full yield ; and in many instances it is very question- 

 able whether they ever recover, as their constitution is weakened through 

 poverty. Throughout the State a considerable number of cows are lost 

 every year throusfh the lack of better management in providing sufiicient 

 autumn fodder for them, and dairy farmers will do well to note the 

 several features mentioned here, which continue to give such good results 

 on this particular farm. 



From the three Berkshire sows kept for breeding purposes and mated 

 with a Yorkshire boar, the average nimiber of pigs per litter last year 

 was eleven, and a return of £227 was obtained last season by the sale 

 of their progeny. TTotwithstanding the definite advantages a dairy 

 farmer derives from breeding his own pigs, this side line of dairying 

 is often neglected. A farmer should seldom have to buy store pigs, as 

 on most farms some sugar, beet could be grown each year, and if well 

 cared for an acre would carry at least 40 pigs for three months, which 

 would mean that this small crop would last the breeding stock throuo-li 

 the winter, when skim milk is scarce, and if there were any quantity 

 of surplus roots beyond what was required for the pigs they are excellent 

 fodder for cows. The average dairy farmer too often depends on the 



