TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LX, Issue 272, 16 November 1929, Page 6 (Supplement)

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Several letters have been held over till next week owing to want of space.—Ed. REMUERA sends two specimens for identification.—The creeper is Manettia bicolor, and the white flower Silene inflata. IRIS-. (St. Heller's) sends a flower for identification. —It is Iris sibirica, a species that likes a rather damp soil. It grows well, but does not flower too freely about Auckland. F.L.G. (Kakahi) writes: Growing in a garden is a laburnum with two distinct ■*. coloured flowers, one pink, the o-ther yellow. Can you account for this? — It is cytissus Adami, a variety that does have the habit of producing blooms of two different colours. GARDENER (Pukekolie) writes: You stated last week "this 1 is the time to . prune lilac trees." To what extent ' should they be pruned ? —No more than is necessary to keep the shrubs a good shape, free of dead wood and weak laterals, and to'prpvent the centre becoming crowded. If the tree is not making much growth cut back to strong buds and give a good manuring. •PURE (Pukekobe) writes: My perennial gypsophila, 1 now two years old, grows well, but does not flower. ' Can you tell me the reason?— The gypsophila is a plant that needs a'lot of lime. Exactly why yours does not flower I cannot say, except that the soil or climate does not suit. it. - Try the plant in a well-drained, rather dry position, and add a lot of ~ . old lime nibble to the; soil. W.J.F. (Parnelii writes: I have some lily-of-the-valley, and, although they grow,-: there are no flowers. I was thinking of digging it up and putting lime and blood and bone in the ground before planting again?— Leave the plants alone and pnul6h' with some leaf-soil. ' Give a little blood and bone or bonedust also. They require a moist soil, also shade. It is'a mistake tb lift them more often than necessary; leave them, to" get well established. CONSTANT READER (Manurewa) writes: I have sown macrocarpa seed three years in succession,, and. nave had no luck with it. Should I steep the seed in hot water? I collected the pods, and put them in t bfig : in the hot water cupboard to open them. Was this method too quick for them? Is it too late to sow seeds for ' transplanting next"winter'?—l cannot give yon the exact reason why your seeds have not come. Usually the pods open fairly .easily if stood in the sun. It depends on the heat in the cupboard as to whether this spoils the seeds. Macrocarpa. seeds are not difficult to procure. They fall out of . the pods with a little drying. One essential is that the seed bed must be- shaded and • 'kept -shaded .-and. moist until .the .'seedlings are an inch or so high. _ Seed sown now would be late in germinating, but if carefully tended the seedlings would be large enough for transplanting, but hardly large, enough to plant but in ' their ' permanent quarters. • PRUNER (Auckland) asks :' (1) How-long, is it advantageous to keep, Jnwnure dry under cover before using it? What is the most effective way ,to use it spread it broadcast over the whole area, or to. the plant ,to be .manured? Is it better to leave it on "the, surface, or ditr it in? " (2) How soon could I cut off the tops of old pinus .insignis, 3'°un£ Lawsoniana, and acnena .trees? .(3) When cutting roses, .how many, joicta should be left on the bush so that Its vitality shall not be reduced .—(1) Fowl manure, if kept dry, would keep indefinitely, but it would, have, to be. dry. In time It becomes more powdeiy, but I do not think it would lose any of Its manurial value.' You could eitherspread it broadcast or close .to the plant,,, it depends on what crops' it is used for. It is best to lightly rake or fork it Into the soil. (2) You can top the, pines and other trees now. (3) It depends on the vigour of the rose. Stronggrowing varieties will stand almost any amount of cutting, whilst 'the 'weaker growers could only stand the flowers pulled off. I cannot give you any defl- »" -nite-rulies -applicable' to' all varieties. •'

TULIPS (Nortlicote) writes: I have some tulip bulbs from abroad. Shoyld I plant them now or keep them until the proper planting season?— Plant the bulbs now and keep them watered until they die off, which they will do during midsummer. Tney will then start again next autumn in their proper season. To try and keep the bulbs out of the ground till the autumn would be to lose the lot. INTERESTED (Ellerslie) sends a piece of a peacli tree for examination. It is from a tree that was cut down about two years ago.—The trouble is silver blight. This disease is a wound parasite, and is often fpund on trees that have been cut or headed back. There is not much hope of your saving the tree or the fruit, and the best thing would be to cut the tree out, taking as many roots as possible, and burning the lot. The burning is necessary, as the disease develops and . produces spotes after the tree is dead. CITRUS (St. Hclier's) asks: (1) A tree tomato, planted last year, grows well, but the leaves curl and wither, and flower buds fall. (2) A naveleneia orange, planted last year, has made no progress until the last few weeks, due probably to the use of four ounces of nitrate of soda to four gallons of water once a • fortnignt. Is this sufllcient? If so, how long should the applications be continued? (3) This spring a Lisbon lemon was planted, but the leaves are going brown and falling off.; • What can be done to promote growth?—(l) Spray with lime sulphur solution, 1-125, Two or three applications, at intervals of about three weeks, will probably be necessary. The trouble is a fungoid disease that attacks the tree tomato, and has become very prevalent of late years. (2) Citrus trees respond to nitrogen. I should say you are giving quite sufficient. Once a month should be often enough. The applications should be given during the spring months and again in late summer, say, October, November, February and March. (8) I should think that there is something wrong with the tree or the roots. Often citrus trees do not do very well when first planted, especially if the ground Is wet.