80 



Goat-keeping. 



[Apr., 



Ant-hii.ls in grass land are not only unsightly but they 

 prevent the use of the mowing machine. To level and distribute 

 Ants and ant-hills by hand labour is a tedious and 

 An* hills costW proceeding. Ordinary zig-zag and 

 chain harrows make little or no impression 

 on them but a drag harrow behind a tractor does quite efficient 

 work, levelling and distributing the soil evenly in one operation. 



On sloping or uneven ground, where the use of a tractor would 

 be difficult, a tractor paring-skim pulled by two horses will cut 

 the hills flush with the ground, but a considerable amount of 

 harrowing is afterwards necessary to disentangle the soil from 

 the turf. 



It must be remembered that the levelhng of the ant-hill does 

 not destroy the nest undergi'ound and there is always the risk 

 of the ants getting to work again. To obviate this, it is advisable 

 to apply some form of manure which will have the effect of 

 encouraging a rapid growth of the grass. If it is possible to 

 mow instead of grazing for two or three years, so much the 

 better, as the ant does not seem to flourish in a heavy growth of 

 grass and is not much met with in fields continually mown for 

 hay. 



How far ants may be considered to benefit the soil is a question 

 which still awaits final solution. It is possible that some grati- 

 tude is owed to them for more than their proverbial example of 

 industry. It is conceivable that they may serve a good purpose 

 in promoting the aeration and drainage of the soil by their sub- 

 terranean activities, and in bringing up the lower soil for dis- 

 tribution as a top-dressing. In a chalk country, the surface soil 

 long denuded of lime may be benefited by the addition of the 

 lime thrown up from their workings. At any rate, there is no 

 doubt that the soil from ant-hills is sought after by gardeners for 

 potting and for spreading round transplanted trees and shrubs. 

 * * * * * * 



The Ministry of Agriculture has recently issued two leaflets 

 on goat-keeping— Leaflet No. 306, The Goat as a Source of Milk, 

 and No. 383, Hints on Goat-keeping. 

 Goat-keeping. rpj^^ Ministry attaches importance to the 

 development of goat-keeping in this country for economic reasons. 

 There is undoubtedly a considerable quantity of waste vegetable 

 material in rural and urban districts which could with very httle 

 trouble be converted into valuable human food by means of the 

 goat. Moreover, there are many people living in more or less 

 remote districts who find difficulty in obtaining adequate suppHes 



