2nd Progress Report - Part 1

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This transcription is complete

10653. By Mr. VENN: You have had considerable experience in potato growing?—Yes, I am considered a judge of potatoes.

10654. What do you consider are the prospects of this industry here?—The prospects of potato growers are good. There is a lot of land in the district which, properly worked is suitable for potatoes. It was considered no good until recent years. The land is known as the blue gum flats. It consists of a black loam. There are thousands of acres of it. It only requires proper working to get phenomenal results. In its natural state it is very hard.

10655. Do you find the potatoes in the district clean and free from disease?—I have never had any disease in my potatoes. I have never sprayed my crop, but I am careful from whom I buy my seed. If I buy from some unusual source, I segregate the seed. I am growing seed now, the result of a quarter of a cwt. of Delawares which I purchased about ten years ago, and they have not "run out." They are as good to-day as when I first planted them. I change the seed from the hill country to the flats, and I pick out always the best tubers. I sell, and also use for the summer crop, well shaped tubers of reasonable size, say about two ounces or over. For my own Winter use I cut the big seed. In the swap the cut seed is satisfactory provided it is planted in moist weather. I plant the cut seed in the swamp about four inches deep. This, of course, is in well worked ground. At the present time I am not cutting seed as I have plenty. I spoke at one of the agricultural conferences on the question of potato growing, and I think my paper was very favourably received, and I hope bore good results. In the matter of fertiliser, I have been experimenting and have finally decided that Mt. Lyell No. 2 applied from 14 to 16 cwt. to the acre will give good results. Nothing under 10 cwts. is much good. I scatter it well. The general average of this district is poor principally due, in my opinion, to bad farming. The Mt. Lyell No. 2 manure in normal times cost £9 15s., but it is unobtainable this year. I have had to take to No. 1 at £8. I always plant a double quantity for seed. This year I planted four acres. I put in the general crop early in July, but do not look for very heavy yields from this crop. The swamp crop, I find, is usually free from disease. The worst thing we have to contend with is the potato fly, and the department notified me some time back of a mixture for the fumigating. I used it last year, but found that it was no good. I have gone into the matter of dealing with the fly, and find that after planting on the same land the fly always appears. By changing the land on which the potatoes are grown I am not troubled with it. It can be destroyed in the sheds by fumigating.

10656. By the CHAIRMAN: The State maintains at considerable cost a Department of Agriculture with various experts. What is your opinion of the usefulness of the Department of Agriculture?—We had Professor Lowrie here, and some time after that Mr. Connor, and so far as this district is concerned he has never been of any use to it. Up to date I consider it has been good money wasted.

10657. To Mr. VENN: I do not do much dairying, as labour is the trouble. Nevertheless there are more cows milked here now than there have ever been. People realise that dairying is profitable, and are going in for it. Unfortunately I find that my boys will not undertake dairying: they prefer the sheep and potato growing.

10658. By Mr. PAYNTER: In regard to the Agricultural Department's potato inspection, do you think any good has resulted from this?—No, I cannot say that is has. One inspector has been on my place in ten years. Generally speaking they give no information. This is the experience of my neighbours also.

10659. By Mr. VENN: It has been suggested that the Government should establish pure seed farms. Do you consider this a good idea?—It was a failure when the department tried it before, and I do not consider that it would do any good. It would cost a lot of money, and I doubt if we would get very much benefit from it. The chief inspector advocated it in the Press, and I wrote against it. I consider that the grower can make a better job of it than the department.

10660. By Mr. PAYNTER: Do you sell seed to potato growers?—Yes.

10661. What area of land do you consider a man should have in this district to make a decent living?—For mixed farming a man should have a fair quantity of land. He should be able to carry some sheep and a cow or two. If he had 320 acres this would be small enough. For potato growing alone in order to make a good living a man should have ten acres of swamp land with other land besides. There are men growing potatoes between the hills on small patches of land, who fill in their time sleeper-cutting, and they are making money. The cut-out timber country, that is the old forest land, takes a lot of money to clear; I should say anything up to £20 per acre. I do not consider that the occupation of small blocks is likely to be successful.

10662. By the CHAIRMAN: Why?—I am opposed to small blocks, as I consider that land for mixed farming should be selected. Often, for instance, the market is bad, and we have to feed our potatoes to the pigs.

10663. To Mr. VENN: I favour crossbred sheep for this district, although for the last year or two I have been going in for merinos, on account of the extra wool. I have tried subterranean clover. It does remarkably well but it dries off very fast.

10664. By Mr. VENN: Is there anything you can suggest which could be done by the Government for the improvement of the district?—I think the encouragement of the cultivation of paspalum would be a very good thing, both on the hills and in the gullies it does well. My paspalum is planted high up on the hills, and there is no chance of it dying. It has been established for ten years, and if the sheep can get a feed of this during the summer months they do well. Most of our grasses do not survive the summer. So far as pigs are concerned, I find them very profitable. I run them out instead of keeping them enclosed. They give me a very good margin of profit.

10665. To Mr. PAYNTER: In regard to the use of second-hand bags for potatoes, personally I think that these should be allowed. We get bags containing other produce which I think we should be allowed to use for sending away potatoes. Growers will not buy old bags indiscriminately.