The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1860-03-20 00:00:00

WOOL

WINE/tali FARMERS' CIA:R.—The monthly meet-
ing of the members of this club was held at the
Black Bear Inn, Wool, on Wednesday, when the
subject of discussion, " The best sorts of mangolds,
their cultivation," &c., was introduced by Nil.. T.
Randall, jun., in a very able address. After many
highly important and useful observations, Mr.
Randall concluded with the following remarks on
the most economical method of feeding or expending
this root :—For late autumn or winter feeding I
should prefer turnips or suedes, especially if for a
breeding flock, as the mangolds at that season of the
year are of such a watery nature that the scouring
they often produce does a serious injury, by making
the ewes cast their lambs, or producing what are
generally called water-bellied lamb.. But on farms
were lambs are kept and sold to the butcher as two-
tooths, you may, by the use of corn or cake, with a
proportion of hay, which would act as a corrective,
feed them with advantage. Should the roots be
I wanted for immediate use in the yards for beasts or
I pigs, I would place them in such a position that the
air, sun, and wind, may take full effect on them, and
so in a measure dry up a portion of the water con-
tained in them, but as spring advances the fattening
qualities of the mangold increases, and their watery
nature begins to deciease. For store neat stock, in
the straw yard, I would recommend about 56 lb..
per day, which is equal to one bushel, one half to be
given in the morning, the other half in the evening ;
for fattening stock as many as they can eat without
waste. If you are giving the fatting beasts cake
or corn, with a quantity of good hay. I think three
bushels of roots per day quite sufficient. If you
wish to give meal of any kind with the roots, I con•
sitter Bentall's pulper about the best machineto reduce
them to a proper state to mix with it. For ewes,
after lambing, if a few were given every day on the
grass land, they would materially increase and en-
rich the milk, which would greatly benefit the
lambs. If young lambs bad a few pulped or shreddacl
mangolds given them every day, apart from the
ewes, they would, I consider, do them a great deal
of good. For sows in farrow, it is not good to
give many, especially in the autumn, nor to young
pigs, as I have seen several die from living on
mangolds alone; but in the spring, pulped mangolds,
combined with corn or meal, is at first-rate food for
store or fatting stock of all descriptions. It is also
good if mixed with meal for weaning calves of two or
three months old. In fact, there is no doubt that
all kinds of stock are exceedingly fond of it, and
will, if judiciously given, thrive well on it. I have
thus, gentlemen, given you my opinions and ideas on
this important subject. My only inducement to do
so was to find out whether I am right or wrong in
those opinions. Where lain wrong. I hope you will
tell me, and I have no doubt that I for one shall go
out of this room wiser than I came into it. A long
discussion followed, which ended in the adoption of
the following resolution :—" That clean and deep
cultivation in the fall of the year, with a liberal
allowance of both farm-yard and artificial manures,
are essential to the growth of a heavy crop of man-
gold; that thc globe is generally preferred to the
long sorts ; that salt should be used with caution on
light lands where chalk has been found injurious;
and that a medium Quantity of roots to the perch is
preferable to a very thick or even thin crop." A
vote of thanks to the chairman closed the proceed-
ings.