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Need for Agricultural Contractors

9th July 1937, Page 23
9th July 1937
Page 23
Page 23, 9th July 1937 — Need for Agricultural Contractors
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Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

WITH the return of almost general prosperity and conditions more favourable to farming, the need for the agricultural contractor becomes intensified. Much of the bigger and more costly agricultural equipment, such as the G3rrotiller and the larger combine harvester, will, of necessity, be owned by the large contractor, because of the amount of capital it involves and the fact that the individual farmer requires its use for only short periods.

Ever since machinery became seriously employed in agriculture the capitalizing of expensive appliances—idle; perhaps, two-thirds of the year—has been a bugbear to almost every farmer.

Economy to-day requires that all capital be used to the fullest advantage. In the case of large, expensive and durable machinery, it will be found cheaper, in nine times out of ten, to hire rather than to own, particularly as this avoids maintenance worries.

These remarks do not, of course, apply to the agricultural tractor. Every farm Deeds one or more of its own, large or small, according to the size and nature of the holding, in exactly the same way as most farms need a motor vehicle of some kind. As time goes on, however, the need for the services of the large-scale agricultural contractor to do the work which the farmer cannot perform with his own machinery will become more and more apparent. Such work as the contractor will be required to do, besides combine harvesting and Gyro-tilling will include, amongst other operations, spraying for the destruction of weeds, which has become more necessary than ever since the introduction of the 'combine harvester, and the up-to-date treatment of grass land.

The last-named subject requires a considerable amount of machinery which the individual farmer needs for only a few weeks a year. Often such machinery does not pay to own, but it pays well enough to hire.

It must be borne in mind, too, that with the rapid development of the system of grass-drying in this country a higher standard of grass turf must be maintained, and for this purpose mechanical treatment is equally as important as manuring.

So far we have spoken of the large contractor. There is also an increasing demand for the services of the contraotor owning the medium and small tractor and the usual every-day machinery.

It is true that the past winter was bad for work on the land and that when spring came it found farmers terribly in arrear with their work. It is also true that a large amount of work has had to be turned dawn by contractors because the demand for their services, being so great, they could not meet all the calls made upon them.

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