TUE (iARDEN AND FIELD. 



October, 1913 



The Value of Herd-Testing. 



Tlio cstablishiiiL'nt of a herd 

 testinjj association has been re 

 centlv urjiod ii]>on the dairy far 

 mers of Ouccnshmd. So far, tho 

 attempts made hv the Agricultural 

 and Stock Departments to intro 

 duce herd-testinir on tli€ dairj 

 farms, thouj;;h the result^s have 

 shown the advantajjes of it, havi 

 not been vcrv successful. Rasv 

 jroins; methods, in many instances, 

 are jireferred to more exact and 

 scientific ones, and while good sea- 

 sons have continued and the j^eue 

 ral results have been satisfaetory, 

 there has been little inclination to 

 trouble to make systematic inves- 

 tijjations of the value of the^ cows 

 or to jrrade the h'ards up to their 

 most profitable productiveness. But 

 the difference that might be made 

 in the annual returns from the 

 farm' by it, and in the increase oi 

 the amount and value of cream 

 sent to the factorv are unmistak- 

 able. In Denmark, where herd- 

 testing had its origin, the results 

 have been very striking. The first 

 herd testing association was form 

 ed there in T»95, and the good 

 effect produced was so pronounced 

 that in 1909 there were 530 asso- 

 ciations existing in that country, 

 and the average number of pounds 

 ' of butter per cow had greatly ad- 

 vanced. In 1894, according to the 

 Government statistics, the aver 

 age was Ii2lt)s. per cow ; now it 

 is 224lbs. In other countries where 

 associations have been established,, 

 though the result might not have 

 been quite so great, in every in- 

 stance there has been a very 

 marked improvement in thei value 

 of the herds and in the output of 

 the butter. An association form- 

 ed bv the dairymen in a district 

 in Queensland for the purpose 

 would do much m,ore than the visit 

 of a Government expert to test an 

 occasional herd. The interest in 

 the testing processes would be 

 keener and more likely to be sus- 

 tained. Oo-operation, too, would 

 create healthy rivalry, increase the 

 knowledge of the best breeds for 

 milk production, and tend to im- 

 prove the whole of the stock. The 

 cost of forming and maintaining 

 an association need not be great. 

 The chief officer to be employed 

 would be an expert tester, duly 

 qualified and with an accurate 

 knowledge of the scientific appli- 

 ances necessary and of the calcu- 

 lations to be deduced from thiem, 

 of breeds and of foods, and the 

 also some knowledge of the value 

 general care of the stock. Much 



would depend upon the selection of 

 thy tester, am! al.sY) ujion the co- 

 operation of the dairymen in mak- 

 ing and keei>ing record.'^ and sum- 

 marising them at the end of cer- 

 tain periods. Hut all this would 

 jiresient little difliculty, and thci in- 

 terest awakened and the .service 

 rendered in the tabulated results 

 would soon overcome an^- di.sindin- 

 ation towards the system adojited 

 and turn this work into a iileasure. 

 An association in a district 

 would lead to mutual co-op- 

 eration in obtaining the best milk- 

 ers, the best foods for the stock, 

 and the best breeds. There is no 

 question that nothing but scien- 

 tific and systematic te.sting can 

 discover the value of the individual 

 cow in any herd. It is easy for 

 the' dai'ryman to be deceived, (^ows 

 that have been sujiposed to be of 

 the best milk-producing calibre 

 have been found when tested to; be 

 not paving for their keep. Perhaps 

 thev gave in their first milking 

 days a large supply of milk and 

 won a good reputation, but for a 

 long time afterwards yielded little, 

 and when the long meagre yield 

 has been balanced with the first 

 supplies a different opinion has 

 had to be formed. Others have 

 \'i'elded little at commencement, 

 but taking the year through have 

 been good milkers. Rough esti- 

 mates are unsatisfactory and mis- 

 leading. The dairyman can (^nly 

 get the full advantage from his 

 herd by knowing the value of each 

 of his cows, and culling out those 

 for the butcher tliat are scarcely 

 paA'ing for their keep. Butter-fat 

 miist be measured with the cows 

 rations before its value can be 

 known. An association among the 

 dairy farmers in Oueensland for 

 herd-testing would be of untold ser- 

 vice in many directions,^ and once 

 formed would so'on prove it value. 

 — " Dalgetv's Review." 



4 



The Silio. 



The Missouri State Board of 

 .Agriculture repo'rts : — It does not 

 matter what naterial the silo is 

 made of ; it must be airtight on 

 .sides and at bottom. Any crack 

 or knothole or poor joint at the 

 door will admit air, and the sil- 

 ag-e will rot iust in proportion to 

 the amount of air that enters. The 

 receptacle must be strong enough 

 to withstand the lateral pressure 

 of the silage when it settles. This 

 lateral pressure at loft. from the 

 top is iiolbs. per square foot, at; 



20ft. 22()ll>.«;., and at yAt. },^o\ha., 

 and at ^oft. (toibs. It is very 

 dinicult to make deep rectangular 

 silos whose walls will not spring 

 enough to allow air to circulate 

 up and down the sides and ' cause 

 losses. The dei)th should be made 

 as great as i)ractical, becafise — 

 fi'rst, in this way the largest 

 amount of food per cubic foot of 

 si)aee mav be stored ; and, second, 

 the silage kee])S better because 

 packed so solid ; and, third, there 

 is less relative loss at the surface. 

 The top of the silage always .spoils 

 to a dei)th of 2 to Sin. No silo 

 20 by 40 will hold twice as much 

 as one 25 by 25, and one ,36 ft. 

 deep will hold five times as much 

 as one I2lt. deep. Summ'er silos 

 should be deei>er in proportion than 

 those intended for winter use, be- 

 cause the silage spoils faster in 

 summer and must be fed down at 

 the rate of about 3in. a day to. 

 have always fresh silage. ' The 

 foundation must stand on level, 

 firm earth, and .should extend 

 about 2ft. above the surface of 

 the ground. If the foundation is 

 started deep the hole should be 

 dug la'rge enough to give ample 

 room outside the wall to tho- 

 roughly tamp the earth up close 

 to the foundation. It is a good 

 plan to dig down 4 or 5 feet in 

 order to secure good, firm earth 

 on which to start the foundation, 

 and also in order to get the great- 

 est capacity in the silo without 

 going too high into the air. Deep- 

 er than ,sft. would not be either 

 convenient or safe. Care must be 

 taken in wet jilaces not to dig 

 down much, or else the .soil must 

 be dtrained. In many places even 

 a good wall of stone, laid in ce- 

 ment and well plastered in.side with 

 cement, will not keep the soil water 

 out. On sandy soil a floor will 

 be needed to keep out soil air, but 

 on clay land there need be no 

 floor unless rats and mice t'rouble; 

 then a cement floor may be laid. 



C. A. SMITH & CO. 



ENGINEERS, 

 WAKE'FIELD STREET 

 ADELAIDE 

 (0pp. Gawler Place). 

 Sole Makers of the 

 " DON " Centrifugal and Double 

 Action Pumps, Horizontal and 

 Vertical. 



The best on the market. Repairs 

 to all kinds of Machinery. 

 'Phone 766, 



