LEMON AND ORANGE TREES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 224, 21 September 1935, Page 6 (Supplement)

LEMON AND ORANGE TREES.

Lemon and orange trees have been affected by frost and the excessively wet state of the land. The continuous wet state of the land during the past three months has had a damaging effect upon the citrus family generally. If brown rot appears, as it probably will, the treatment is to cut off any branches that are near to the ground. -In fact, this method of pruning should be adopted with the lemon particularly. The low branches that are pulled down by weight of fruit should be cut away. The upright growing shoots will crop and in turn will lie pulled down by fruit. The .lowest branches of a lemon tree should be at least 18 inches from the. soil. Spray the tree when the weather is fine with Bordeaux mixture, the 0-4-40 formula, and surface dress the soil around the tree, as far as the branches extend, with sulphate of iron. Also apply a dressing of sulphate of potash. Lemons and oranges in stiff, retentive soils have suffered severely from the wet, hence the unhealthy yellow appearance of so many of the tiees.

THE ORCHARD. No time should be lost in completing pruning and grafting in respect of any trees marked for renewal. Cleaning the ground of weeds, breaking up the soil and manuring should have attention. Good cultivation, and giving the trees manurial assistance annually, are the prime agents in keeping the trees in a healthy, fruit-bearing condition. In breaking up the soil, however, care must be taken not to plough deep enough to injure the roots, for when the trees arc in the best fruiting condition the fruit producing roots are usually not far froir the surface. In applying the manur; the material should be well distributed so that the roots will derive the greatest beneiit from it.