TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 199, 23 August 1930, Page 6 (Supplement)

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

oU es "■ ™ ru "»" suw W-8A " ,6e 7 o_\ V rlte on one side of the paper, ana maKe all communications as concise ,ra,, t-C ?:«rriT«s-.r ™ -»« de plume or initial may be given for publication.

AM. (Mt. Albert), L.V. (Remuera), NATIVE (Beresford Street). —Letters received ; will answer next week. MAC (Waiuku) asks: (1) How to clear black smut from an Olearia Foster! hedge? (2) Is there any means of preventing the smut referred to?—(1) H»cure some red or spraying oil and spray the hedge, using one part to -o parts water. Give a second spraying about a month later and if there are any signs give another spraying a month later. The first sprayings are usually sufficient. (2) Black smut is due to a scale insect which, puncturing the skin of the leal, causes the exudation of a sticky matter or honey dew. The spray will get rid of the scale and "no scale, no black smut. AMATEUR (One Tree Hill) writes (1) I have a poorman's orange, .six or seven years old. It gets plenty of sun and shelter from cold winds. Last 3' ea r it had only one small fruit and again this year only one. Can you tell me what the tree requires? (2) I have three lemon trees'which are near the orange and they seem to have something wrong .with them as they have little or no fruit on them. I let out the fowls and they scratch round the trees and expose the roots. Would they do any harm? (3) Is it too late to spray peach,, apple, plum and occturine trees with lime sulphur?—(l) I - think "that it is due to the scratching of the fowls that the tree is not bearing. Could you not put a bit ,of wire netting round the trees ' to stop the fowls scratching directly . . under the trees Where the roots are? (2) The same applies to the lemons. _ If the wire netting was laid on the' soil under the trees -it would prevent' the fowls scratching tlie roots bare. (3) It is not too late if the trees are not' in bloom. Use lime, sulphur I—so on the peach, nectarine and, plum trees, but I—ls1 —15 on the ' apples., ,Spray the peaches and nectarines after the petals have fallen, using lime sulphur I—l2o.

HARRY (Parnell) sends some specimens for identification.—(l) Gaaania splendens, (2) keppia japonica, (3) choisya teruata, (4) specimen not large enough, (5) leonotus leonorus, (6) cassia corymbosa, (7) anemone japonica, (8) solanum capsicastrum. AMATEUR (Helensville) asks When to sow or plant so as to liave blooms at the end of January, (1) gladioli, U) stock, (3) sweet pea, (4) zinnia (o) dianthus?— (1) Plant in tlie begining of December. Keep the bulbs well watered, and a little shading will be necessary if weather is very hot when blooms are opening. (2) Ido not think it is possible to get ten-week or beauty stocks of any quality, owing to the "fly." If you can control the "fly," sow in November. (3) Sow at end of November, and keep well watered. Deep, rich soil and disbudding would be necessary. (4) Sow end of November. (5) Sow in November. JARDINIERE (Panmure) writes :—I have procured some mushroom spawn from a seedsman, and wish to plant it. How should I prepare the bed, and what should I use as manure? The best time to plant?—To grow the mushrooms you must have horse manure. To make a mushroom., bed in the correct way is rather a'long job, and is too long for this column. I will give an article dealing with the subject later on. You could take out a patch on the lawn, say about 18 inches square and three inches deep. Place in the bottom three, inches of horse droppings, trod firm. Break up the cake of spawn into pieces about an inch square. Put about eight pieces equidistant in the manure and replace the soil and turf. When first done it will cause a rise in the'ground, but. will eventually settle down when the manure consolidates. This could be done now, but the best time to make a mushroom bed with the idea of growing mushrooms out of season is in early autumn.