HOME GARDENS

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 15, Issue 76, 31 July 1950, Page 6

HOME GARDENS

(By J. S. Yeates, Massey Agricultural College)

FURTHER NOTES ON FRUIT This week we give notes on some of the more popular fruits, concerning the pruning of which most people are at least hazy.

Most amateurs do not prune passion fruit, and the whole plant grows into a tangled mass of vine which is very liable to suffer badly from disease and to bear poor, small fruit. The fruit is produced only on growth of the current season. The principle of pruning passion fruit is therefore to let the plant develop about five main vines or leaders, and to encourage a new crop of branches each year along these main vines. This is done by cutting back each lateral branch in early spring, almost to its junction with the leader, but leaving about two buds at the base. One of these buds should grow out into a new branch in the spring, and flower and fruit the same season. The leaders should be replaced after bearing three or four crops. This is done by allowing a vigorous branch from near the base of the plant to grow unchecked, and then cutting away the old lateral. The Chinese Gooseberry

This fruiting vine has been mentioned before, but’ it is worth mentioning again. It is a rampant grower and a very hungi’y' feeder, so do not plant it unless you have a fairly good soil and plenty of room. It is best trained on a high (6 to 8 foot) wire fence or on a pergola. At the Awapuni Racecourse it has been used in this way to make living car shelters. It will stand very cold winters, but hard late frosts may damage the young growth. In its fruiting habits the Chinese gooseberry is rather like the passion fruit. It bears flowers and fruit on the current season’s wood. The plant is usually trained with several main stems. On each main stem will be 'developed a number of laterals. The laterals are first thinned out by removing • surplus ones entirely, and the remainder are shortened to about five feet and tied in place. Side branches from these laterals produce flowers and fruit. Each winter after the fruit has been picked, these fruit bearing branches are shortened back, leaving only about four buds on each to develop next year’s fruiting wood.

Also, each year about one-third of the laterals bearing fruit branches should be cut out, and new ones should be tied in their places. By doing this you ensure that all the laterals will be replaced about each three years. Pruning Citrus Fruits

Most people are far too pessimistic about their chances of growing citrus fruit. There are few North Island districts where Meyer lemons cannot be grown, and coastal South Island districts in the northern part of the island should be suitable also, especially if a sunny and sheltered spot is chosen. A constant supply of lemons is a great asset and I find it quite possible. The Lisbon lemon is for milder districts, and the Ponderosa lemon is a poor fruit in spite of its size.

The New Zealand grapefruit is quite hardy around Palmerston North, and in a favoured spot I have just picked good, thin-skinned sweet oranges of the St. Michael variety. Citrus trees like not only warm conditions but also moisture in the summer and plenty of nitrogenous fertiliser and decaying organic matter in the soil. Nitrogen is the main part of the story, and to do citrus well I should give dried blood or blood and bone twice a year, using from one to five pounds per tree, according to the size of the tree.

The pruning necessary is of twm sorts. With a young citrus tree it is better to prune, as with a young apple tree, so that the tree has a good frame of well-spaced branches. That means pruning out extra branches and trying to keep an open-centred tree. When once the framework has been formed, the mam pruning that is necessary is cutting exit crossing or crowding branches, any “water sprouts/' and dead or dying branches The Feijoa

This subtropical fruit is more hardy than is generally imagined, and I have heard of one place where it crops well in spite of 22 degrees of frost. Seedling feijoas cannot be recommended, as their cropping and fruit quality are a gamble. The most reliable that I know is the variety • Coolidgei—propagated by layering or budding. They are attractive, small trees reputed to grow to about 15 feet in a long time. For good crops the ground should be kept clear of long grass and the trees should be given fertiliser each year. Pruning of feijoas is the same as for citrus fruits. Some people grow them as a hedge In this case the plants should be allowed to retain all their branches that arise near ground level.