THINNING GRAPES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 33, 8 February 1930, Page 6 (Supplement)

THINNING GRAPES.

When the cultivator possesses a good crop of nicely shaped, clean bunches, the work of thinning out the berries is a) very pleasant one. The bunches of all grapes subjected to heat were thinned a few weeks ago, but there are many bunches in cool structures that need attention in this way now. Fig. A shows at No. 1 the. right kind of berry to retain, and at No. 2 the small ones that should be removed. Pig. B shows the bunch properly thinned and the shoulders neatly tied to the stem- above. More

' berries may always be safely left near the top of the bunch than at the bottom—the point. ' The three end berrieß on all berry-bearing branches of the bunch sheuld be retained Jf they are well stoned. No. 3 shows a badly set berry containing one stone; No. 4 a well set one with full complement of four stones. More berries may be left in a bunch with over-shaped berries possessing long foot-stalks (No. 5) f&an in the cafee of round berries with short footstalks (No. 6). The berries should not be rubbed or handled. ... VEGETABLE MARROW. Overcrowding of the growth of vegetable marrows is sometimes a cause of the fruit failing when it is quite small, therefore it is advisable to train the shoots well apart, so that air can freely circulate amongst them. As soon as marrows commence to grow freely theymust be provided with abundance of moisture at the roots, while when the first fruits have set, frequent applications of weak liquid manure are essential. To prevent the marrows being discoloured through resting on the soil; it is a good plan to raise them a few inches from the ground

on wire netting or tanned garden netting fixed in the manner shown in the sketch herewith. Feeding by means of the bottle process is sometimes an advantage in increasing the size of,the fruit. Thick wool* is sewn through the stem of the fruit and, after soaking the wool with rainwater, the ends are placed in a bottle of rainwater, as illustrated; this, of course, keeps the whole of the wool always moist. Vegetable marrows should be cut as soon as they are a fair size, particularly during the early part of the season, because if left to develop to as great a size as possible, the plants quickly become exhausted.

THE GARDEN AND SCIENCE.

Feeding of crops is too frequently neglected. A larger supply of plant food is required by many soils, and here the work of the, scientist often comes to the aid of the gardener and farmer to such an extent that the two can walk hand in hand. Low yields and poor quality of crops are more frequently due to lack of food than to any other cause except adverse climatic conditions. There is such a close relationship between soil aiul crop that the improvement of the ono is dependent on the upbuilding of the other. Half starved, struggling plants that fail to mature a reasonable seed crop are of too frequent occurrence. In some cases lack of tillage is the cause of the trouble rather than lack of plant food in the soil.'. Tillage alone, however, important as it is, will fail to maintain the fertility of the soil. Tillage and fertilisers both have their place in plant improvement, and yet neither can take the place of the other. It is when tillage fertilisers are judiciously combined that the best results are secured. The role in plant nutrition of certain elements, as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and calcium, is so well established + hat the fertilising of soils to secure thf maximum of crops has become a reasonably well grounded science. It bears to crop production the same relationship as the science of animal nutrition bears to animal production. It may seem.to many to be foolish to say that all science bears primarily on soil production, but it is nevertheless a fact. For example, just think what botany, bacteriology, physics and chemistry have to do with the matter, and then again there is the regulation of the' water supply by irrigation and drainage, which are-.really a part of the science of engineering. One is dependent on the other, and none are paramount. The indirect influence of other sciences also is of great importance. There are two distinct phases of- the problem of crop improvement! The first is the acquisition of new facts with the view of enlarging the knowledge relating to the subject, and it is this quest and desire for discovery that is "so keenly enjoyed by the true scientist. The second phase is the. application of this knowledge > to some useful purpose." This is thn educational side of the question. While only a few can engage in scientific discovery all may benefit by the results obtained. A GARDEN OPTIMIST. • Was it not Tennyson who wrote:— And I must work thro' months of toil, And years of cultivation, Upon my proper patch of soil, To grow my own plantation. I'll take the showers as they fall, I will not vex my bosom, Enough if at the end of all 4 A little garden blossom.