The Akaroa mail FRIDAY, AUGUST 21. 1896.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume XXIV, Issue 2080, 21 August 1896, Page 2

The Akaroa mail FRIDAY, AUGUST 21. 1896.

FRUIT CULTURE. Wβ regretted seeing so few at Mr Blackmore's lcefure on fruit culture and orchard peets ou Tuesday evening. Thi* thirty or forty present, however, wero ail really interested in the subject, afid no doubt these will disseminate Mr Blackmore'e ideas on fruit culture through a wide area of the Peninsula. There is no doubt of the f-xeeptional capabilities of parts of the Peninsula for fruit growing. All over ihe world it is noted that localities that have been recently divested of great primeval forests are most capable of producing good results in the matter of fruit growing, and it i«» certain l,hat in ihe world have fruit trees been more productive without special attention than on Banks Peninsula. Of course, as Air blaekmore puts it, the trees cannot produce big crops year after year without something being returned to the soil to make up for what has been taken away ; but that is just whnt we have expected them to do ; and we hear ridiculous grumbling about the decadence of orchards, whose owners have done nothing to keep their trees in bearing condition. Mr Blackmore is excessively practical. All he.states is the result of actual experience. It astonished many present on Tuesday to jear him remark that New Zealand was peculiarly favoured in the matter of fruit growing, and had little to contend with in the matter of orchard pests. Certainly the idea of most residents in this district has hitherto been that we have been particularly sought out by Providence as the place on which most fungoid and inseetive plagues were to be inflicted. Mr Blackmore tells us, however, that these complaints spring entirely from our own neglect, and that every pest can be easily gut rid of with a little care After hearing, we thoroughly believe him, but, as he says, the job is to vet people to take the necessary trouble For instance, a man who3e trees are suffering from codlin moth, allows the frait to fall off aid He under them, thus providing in the best possible, way for a big crop,of the pest next, year; or he goes through the farce,of burying the '• infectad fruit, thus providing a warm win- , ter, covering for the chrysalis of the m< th. ' Mr Blackmore devoted hi<nself in ih<» ! matter of pests to the beet methods of , destroying scale bight and codlin moth ! The scale is going so fawfc by itself that ' we bolieve it will speedijj dieiipue.ir ? bin ' if it does not, a few dresbipge propm'ly applied will clean the trees The cud I h ".= moth, which is an increasing »; « present, can (according to Mr Bbu>k r r more) be destroyed wtib <?<jual m?e, He &uggaate spraying; tha iroqa beiWe tfa- j }

leaf with Bordeaux mixture, and ja*t after flowering with another mixture, in whch caustic potaoh nn<) ho;] a \>Uy a leading pnrl, . He further advocnies plac'ng loose baudagen round the'trunks of the trees, and 'crumpled paper i« the forks, and- ,hollows, as the caterpillars crawl into these, and can be taken off and burnt; above all, says Mr Btackmore, destroy the 'maggots in the infected fruit by throwing them into ■■•'•boiling water. By these means, Mr Blackmore believes that a grower can clean and keep cltfan his orchard in spite of careless neighbours, who breed the moth ; but at the same time he advocates the passing of a Bill inflicting; a penalty on thosp who will not take proper precautions to keep their trees in good order.

We look forward to the time when large orchards will be numerous in this district. Our hill sides are exceptionally well suited to the growth of the peach, nectarine and ai ricot, and the culture of th»Be trees is most profitable. The time will come when, in addition to the establishment of a j*ra fac'ory, we shall have a hirge fruit preserving establishment in onr midst.