26-i THE farmers' handbook. 



SHEEP ON THE WHEAT FARM.* 



Sheep must be regarded as an indispensable factor on the wheat farm. They 

 are valuable as part of the working plant of the farm for the control of weeds, 

 &c, and as an important and reliable source of income. 



While, as a general practice, the use of agricultural land for sheep-raising 

 is unprofitable, if due consideration is given to questions of interest and 

 other items of a like nature, it cannot be taken as a hard and fast rule, as the 

 indirect value of the sheep is frequently of greater importance than the cash 

 return. It is. essential to the success of the crop that the farmer have on 

 his holding as many sheep as possible, compatible with the most economical 

 use of the land for wheat production. 



Sheep are useful and valuable on the following grounds : — 



1. They consume and turn to profit the straw left after the harvest. 



2. They turn weeds to profit and prevent them from seeding at times 



when the farmer is unable to deal with them, owing to pressure of 

 other work. 



3. Their manure improves the fertility of the land. 



4. When the season is so bad that the crops fail to produce grain, sheep 



turn them to profitable account. 



5. The income from the farm is rendered more certain, as the farmer 



does not then depend entirely upon a crop that may be destroyed 

 by fire or hail. 



6. Sheep necessitate the adoption of a rotation, which tends to improve 



the fertility of the land, and to increase the yields of the crops 



7. They can be used to feed off crops that need such a check. 



8. A supply of cheap mutton is made available for the farmer's own 



household. 

 To these advantages might be added the pride and pleasure derived by a 

 farmer from the possession of a good flock. 



The Number to Carry. 



The number of sheep that can be carried on a wheat-farm varies according 

 to the class of soil, climate, and the farming system adopted. If the sheep 

 are regarded purely as an adjunct to wheat-growing, and are kept principally 

 for scavenging, then the number must be strictly limited. If. on. the other 

 hand, a farmer regards lamb-raising as an important part of his enterprise, 

 and makes provision for the growing of crops solely for sheep-feed, then the 

 number may be very considerably increased. Some who adopt the latter 

 practice carry as many as one and a half sheep to the acre, and still grow a 

 considerable quantity of wheat. 



In districts with a distinctly summer rainfall, particularly the north" 

 western portion of the State, it is doubtful whether it is a sound policy fo r 

 farmers to endeavour to grow wheat as the main source of their income- 

 Some have already realised that their income is more assured when sheep 

 take an important place in the farm operations. A very great deal of the 

 land in the north-western districts suitable for wheat is not good land for 

 the carrying of sheep in its natural state, but it is immensely improved by 

 cultivation, and after being used for wheat for a few seasons it makes splendid 



* A. H. E. McDonald, Chief Inspector of Agriculture. 



