208 AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE. 



start growing, and there would bo a certain amount of 

 green crop for feed or to turn under, and in this way there 

 would be some return in the shape of manure, but in u dry 

 season the grain would not start till too late in the year. 

 When pigs are allowed to run in the stubble, there will not 

 be much of the shelled grain wasted, nor much chance of 

 weeds and other bad growths springing up. They hunt 

 over the ground and root out all they can find. Even nut 

 grass roots disappear before pigs. 



Wheat and Maize as Feed. When wheat is cheaper 

 than maize, weight for weight, and when mixed with maize 

 it gives a better result than maize alone. Thus 



Flesh formers Heat givers. Fat. 



Wheat 10 ... 65 ... If 



Maize 9 ... 70 ... 5 



Maize and Wheat mixed .. 10 ... 67i ... 3J 



Maize is a rapid fattener of the pig, but the meat is 

 neither so firm nor so good in flavour as where the maize 

 is mixed with wheat, or when milk helps the maize. 

 For fattening, therefore, it is advantageous to use one- 

 hird wheat to two-thirds maize, while for growing pigs 

 and stores one-third maize may be added to two-thirds 

 wheat. 



Australian Points in Pig liaising. Gum leaves and 

 bush scrapings generally, make excellent bedding for the 

 farrowing sow altogether much better than straw. The 

 little suckers are great on burrowing, and when covered 

 up in straw are in danger of being overlain by the 

 mother and smothered. 'J hen the bush stuff is 

 dryer, warmer, and altogether more cleanly. The expe- 

 rience is that pigs that farrow amongst gum leaves very 

 seldom if ever worry their young. Bat, perhaps, that may 

 be because of a habit of rubbing the little ones soon as 

 possible with a sponge and a little eucalytus oil It is an 

 unfailing precaution against a very common mishap, espe- 

 cially during warm weather. The first litter here as a rule 

 is smaller than in England. Six, seven, and eight are the 

 numbers with us, and more often six than eight. In the 

 old land, ten is common with both the white and black 

 breeds. But tl.e after litters are up to the full number, 



