226 



the suggestions should be proved to be impracticable owing to 

 local circumstances, at least no harm can be done by having them 

 under discussion, 



AGRICULTURAL AND PASTORAL. 



What is the condition of affiiirs in this colony ? Is tlie yield of 

 wheat anything like what it used to be ? On all sides we hear 

 statements of the great differences between the yields of earlier 

 and later years. It goes without saying that a great deal depends 

 upon the rainfall. Nothing can be done without water, and it is 

 a matter of satisfaction that the settlers in the colonies are 

 gradually becoming alive to the absolute necessity for better water 

 conservation. But given fair average seasons, how is the falling- 

 off in the crops to be accounted for ? The obvious answer is — 

 Exhaustion of the soil. But what are its causes, and are there 

 any remedies ? Every year sees the export from this colony of 

 thousands of tons of wheat, to say nothing of other cereals. Now 

 ■every ton of wheat contains on an average about 181b. of phos- 

 phorus oxide and 7 lb. of potash. Both of these substances in 

 ■certain forms of combination are essential elements in a fertile 

 soil ; but they are only present in very small quantities even in 

 the best land. Besides this a not inconsiderable quantity of 

 potash is carried off with all the unwashed wool that leaves our 

 shores. If this is to go on without some compensation the yield 

 of cereals, grasses, (fee, must inevitably become smaller and smaller, 

 and the crops will be rendered more liable to be attacked by 

 parasitic diseases. Deeper ploughing mil do something for a time, 

 but only for a time ; something more is necessary. In many 

 cases, I fear in most cases, nothing is being done to make up for 

 the loss. Nothing in fact can be done, except by the addition of 

 natural or artificial manures and systematic farming. This, of 

 course involves careful preservation of all materials which can in 

 any way be applied to manurial purposes. In this last respect 

 there is great want of care. If anything successful is to be done 

 with working men's blocks and such comparatively small tracts 

 of land as are likely to be benefited by the Beetaloo and such like 

 irrigation schemes, careful cultivation is absolutely necessary, for 

 water alone will not supply all that is needful for the growth of 

 crops. What are the facts in most cases ? Little or no care is 

 taken to utilise farmyard manure to the best advantage, yet this 

 is a form of manure eminently adapted for most purjDOses, con- 

 t lining as it does nitrogen compounds and phosphates in a form 

 especially suitable for assimilation by plants. Wood ashes, which 

 contain a considerable proportion of potash salts, and of which a 

 not inconsiderable quantity is produced every year in every farm- 

 house, are thrown out anywhere and everywhere. Tlie same is 

 true of bones. With a little extra trouble they could be all burnt. 



