On Growing Small Fruits

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 136, 11 June 1938, Page 16 (Supplement)

On Growing Small Fruits

Garden Notes

OASPBERRIES may now be Iv planted and old plantations put in order. When selecting plants for a new plantation, it is not wise to take ripe canes. Many people are tempted to do this, thinking to get fruit quickly. Often they do get some the first season, but they are got at the expense of growth, and such plantations usually become worthless in a short time. The beet plants are young 6Uckers taken a little way from the old stools. Choose the strongest of these, plant them three in a triangular clump, each plant about 12in apart, and the clumps about sft apart aiul the rows sft apart. When the young plant* are in cut them down so as to leave two or three buds; strong growth may then be expected if conditions of soil are suitable. Raspberries require moist ground, or heavy dressings of stable or farmyard manure. It is not worth while to plant raspberries in very dry or poor soil;

they will not succeed. Old etoole should be relieved of last sea6on'e bearing rods which are now dead. They can usually be broken off close down by a good pull; reduce the new rods to about six of the r-toutest, cutting off about 12in of the top of each. It is not advisable to epade the ground between the linee of an established plantation. Roots should be encouraged lo fill the top soil, which is the beet, and shallow cultivation will on that account be preferable. If a good mulch can be given early in summer there will be no need for digging, for if the soil is covered very few weeds will grow, and such ae do are easily scuffled off, because the decaying mulch will make a very light and loo>e surface. If there are euckere growing between the rows or clumps they should be forked out. It is useless to cut them off, for they spring again. It is best to take them out in eumnier when they first show up. This saves a lot of trouble later and keepe them from robbing the soil. Where this has been done it will be easy to put the plantation in order now.

Loganberries are becoming a popular fruit. They may be planted now, ami old plante put right for next eeasou. The fruit is borne on long poles of ths previous season's growth. From every bud on these in the spring will iesue short laterals, terjninating in a bunch of fruit. The young rods are in general produced in sufficient numbere to entirely furnish the bush anew. When this occurs all the old rode should be cut away, but if there should not be sufficient the old, rods will bear fruit a second time if the laterals are shortened to about two buds. They appear unable to bear a third season. There are a number of wave of supporting the growths—on wire, trellised fencee or outbuildings. When only a bush or two ie grown, train the rods so as to cover the wall or fence evenly, and secure; 6ft ie quite close enough to plant them. Red currants not infrequently fail to produce fruit. This may be attributed to ft bad variety being grown. Some varieties that are in good repute in other countries are nearly or quite barren here. They should be pruned so as to secure an open bush that will admit of sunlight to all parts, a few

main branches and all side shoots being cut back to ehort spurs, bearing in mind the fact that fruit is never borne on young wood, but on spurs,, on wood two yeare old and more. Sometimes in a few years the spurs become crowded into branched; the fruit they bear is poor. Such spure require thinning. Gooseberries should be pruned bo ae to keep the branches off the ground; leave ae leaders shoots that have an upward tendency, and prune to an upward bud. Have the brancb.ee far enough apart to allow sunlight to penetrate, and to render fruit gathering easy; a crowded bush gives poor fruit. Good varieties are very numerous; indeed, there are no bad ones, though some are better than others. Black currant* require a good eoil and a damp, moist situation. On dry or poor soil they refuse to grow. They are satisfactory only when making strong growth. These boar on young wood; that ie to say, growth of the previous season, as well as on older wood. This should be kept in mind, young shoots being shortened only sufficiently to remove the immature tips. It ie wiee to retain strong young branches, removing old ones to make room for them. Thie is the best way to fight the stemboring maggot. Plenty of manure to encourage good growth, and keeping the bush young by frequent removal of branches, ie the way to get black currante.