306 
Farm  Prize  Competition,  1909. 
The  land  occupied  by  Mr.  John  G.  Rymer,  at  Apperley, 
Tewkesbury,  consists  of  60  acres  arable,  and  296  grass.  The 
arable  soil  is  a rather  heavy  red  loam,  good  for  wheat,  beans 
and  clover,  and  will  grow  heavy  crops  of  mangold  and  cabbage. 
The  greater  part  is  top  dressed  with  farmyard  manure  each 
year.  The  rotation  of  cropping  is  wheat,  oats,  beans,  (or 
mangold  and  cabbage),  wheat,  oats,  clover.  The  grass  land 
is  three-fourths  meadow  land  subject  to  flood  by  the  overflow 
of  the  river  Severn,  which  keeps  up  the  fertility.  It  is  not 
impoverished  by  successive  mowing,  and  is  better  mown  than 
grazed.  Consequently  a large  area  of  hay  is  cut  each  year  and 
stacked  on  the  river  bank  ready  for  transportation  by  boat  to 
the  midland  towns.  These  meadows  cannot  be  flooded  regularly 
or  at  will,  only  when  there  is  an  unusual  rainfall,  which  may 
take  place  twice  in  three  years.  Should  a flood  come  early  in 
the  autumn  or  late  in  the  spring,  or  at  any  time  when  there  is 
a quantity  of  grass,  a loss  is — for  the  time  being — sustained, 
the  grass  being  spoilt.  A flood  generally  runs  off  in  about  a 
week.  The  meadows  are  seldom  stocked  in  the  spring  in  order 
to  allow  a good  head  of  grass  before  the  dry  weather  comes  in. 
The  upland  pastures  are  grazed.  Shire  horses  are  kept  and 
bred,  the  colts  broken  in  and  sold  at  six  years  old.  There  is  a 
dairy  herd  of  twenty  unregistered  shorthorns.  The  system  is 
to  rear  the  calves  and  replenish  the  herd  from  the  best  heifers, 
and  sell  out  the  older  cows  with  calf  at  foot.  The  steer  calves 
are  retained  and  fed  out  at  about  two-and-a-half  years  old. 
Being  some  distance  from  a station  the  milk  is  used  for  butter 
making,  for  which  there  is  a good  local  demand.  Mr.  Rymer 
does  not  keep  a standing  flock  of  sheep  owing  to  the  liability  to 
flooding.  The  arable  land  is  too  heavy  for  sheep  folding,  and 
such  sheep  as  are  required  for  grazing  are  purchased  from  time 
to  time.  Two  large  black  breeding  sows  are  kept  and  the  progeny 
fed  for  bacon.  About  50UZ.  annually  is  spent  on  purchased 
foods,  in  addition  to  the  consumption  of  a considerable  amount 
of  home  grown  produce.  Labour  amounts  to  16s.  per  acre. 
This  farm  is  well  and  economically  managed,  and  shows 
evidence  of  great  personal  attention  to  detail.  The  land  is 
well  cultivated,  clean,  and  carrying  good  crops.  The  horses 
and  stock  are  good  and  well  looked  after. 
The  competition  in  this  class  was  good,  and  Mr.  Rymer 
wfell  earned  the  Second  Prize. 
The  Dilden  and  Housemoor  Farms,  occupied  by  Messrs.  C. 
Pendock  & Son,  comprise  83  acres  arable  and  100  acres  grass, 
which  is  chiefly  old  pasture.  The  soils  are  red  soil  and  heavy 
loam,  the  loam  on  clay  subsoil — good  quality  soils,  capable 
of  producing  good  crops,  very  wet  and  cold  in  the  winter 
and  quite  unsuitable  for  sheep. 
