THE GARDEN.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLII, Issue 1016, 8 November 1917, Page 2

THE GARDEN.

j CORDON FRUIT TREES. ! "Fruit" say.-.: "Since 1 have been in this country I have been struck with one thing very forcibly, and that is the ■ absence ol cordon iruit trees in the gai[dons. I have visited a number of gardons in and around Palnmrstoii, and yet never in one instance have 1 seen a cordon tree. Can sou tell me why j this is! J In the village 1 come from in 1 the county of Berkshire there is noi ! one garden thai, docs not possess at least a few trees grown on this prin riple. There are plenty of small gar- ! ileus here where the work ton Id bo done to advantage, and still leave plenty ol loom for growing oilier things. The advantages of growing trees in this fashion are many, and il you will kindly allow me a little .'-pace, J will try and point some of them out. In the first placs file amount ut room devoted to a cordon iee is much less than given to a standard bush, and consequently more can be grown in a given space; in the second place, the tree's are noi allowed to grow, to any great height, but, by a regular system of .summer pruning

they are kept within their hounds and do not. shade the rest of the garden. J believe that in the stricter sense ol

; the word cordon means one .stem, bill. in this case I do not ask growers to slick to one stem or branch, hut thai all trees, whether they have one stem or a dozen, should bo trained On the cordon principle from the base. For instance, take a pear or an apple tree. Instead of those trees having two branches radiating away from tho base, or from the centre higher up, all growing too thickly together, such trees should have a limited number of main branches, thus obtaining a maximum amount of light, The summer pinning induces them to form fruit spurs from the base of tho apex, and in this way J am sure the trees can be, made to give

a greater amount of fruit per tree than I many of those one sees in gardens. In ! this way thoy would be more profitable land give less trouble than the severely 'pruned trees, which often have too ijiiany branches far too thickly placed, 'and consequently the centre of the trr'c is useless, and bears very little fruit. if any. A pear or an apple tree grown on this system may have branches a few foot long, and will in time be. quite rigid, safely carrying a full crop oi fruit. Of course then' are some varieties thai, are a good deal of trouble to work into shape, and for a beginner these are better left alone. Some ni' not .sturdy enough and others grow too ranky. The fruit produced on white and I'd currants is far .superior both as to crop and quality to that which is prodn ed on standard trees. The reason is tin ; branch gets tho maximum amoi it ol light, sun and air, and these things together go to make the fruit richer and of a better colour. Gooseberries, plums and cherries _ can be treated under similar conditions with success. Trees may require a little more time to lay the foundation, but tho alter results will amply reward the grower. There is another tiling about the work, and that is it teaches the

grower very soon to .find out for himseii where the pruning must be done, and how to do it. There is anothei side to fruit growing. This is summer pruning, which is not practised to the extent it should ho. I consider thai summer pruning is the inusl profitable work that an orchardist can go in for. Trees can be kept lower mid cany twice the amount of fruit they do at present, and the fruit is easier to get at. both for spraying and picking. II the cordon system was taught in Lit" school gardens i um sure that in alter life the children would carry out some of the principles involved to their advantage." ROSES. Hoses are coming on well now, but in many cases they arc being attacked by greenfly, and sonic means have to he a.looted to get rid of them. The linger and thumb method is the simplest, and in many eases the best, but when a lot of roses are being grown spraying ■ may he the quickest:' Kerosene emulsion is a good remedy as long as the emulsion is porfoct. If there is any free oil about, the plants are likely to suffer from it. There are other good remedies, such as "Katakilla" and "Vistuliiie," which must bo used according to the directions supplied on the packets or tins.' In a few places mildc A' is getting a strong hold on the plants and should be checked at once. Liver o\ sulphur is a very good thing to use, at the rate of half an ounce to the gallon of water. Lime-sulphu solution is good, and the effect is ver lasting as long as a little treacle o sugar is added to the mixture, to cans, it to stick. Whatever remedy is a| p"'C'l- it should be well sprayed on t both ,sides of the leaves, and then i the plants have been cleaned of it. ther is a reasonable chance that they wil keep clean for some time. The pro portion of lime-sulphur to use is about one part of the preparation to one hundred parts of water. A weaker solution such as one to one hundred ftnd fifty lias proved < ffeetive when the ph.iijs are not badly affected. If good large blooms are wanted, the plants must be systematically disbudded and given weak nppjipqtiop.s ol liquid manure to begin with, Ifoo the ground round the plants when the gnfUiul surface has dried alter each application. Liquid manure should he given about three or' lour times a week and never when the soil is in a very dry state. When the blooms are beginning to .show colour, some means must be devised to shade them from the direct

(Specially written for "Standard."). Notes are published weekly under this .Leading, and readers interested in gardening are invited to send in questions relating to matters upon which tji«J wish expert advice; answer* will ho published will.' the we.-U}' notes.

'J his is the best rime oi the year to put on! tomato plants, and if they are -ei out now they will soon catch up to those nut out earlier, and the crops ."ill be heavier. If manure is used, put i well down below them, and give, a ,ood dressing of superphosphate a.s soon s the growth begins to be active. When lettuces are sown at this time ■f the year, the ground should be very ich and well worked and a lot of water uindy to force them on quickly. A well kuoV'u market gardener, speaking the ther day about lettuce growing, said hat he would not think of growing I'ttuces on new land, but would trench he land and add as much manure to it a.s he could get, and would keep this process going. 'When land has been overnianured in this way the best crop to grow is lettuces and early radishes,

mid then follow on with peas. Runner beans «;l all sorts can be safely planted now, but a strict guard musl I'l,' [fept over Lhem, or stilus will get them evui] before they appear above ground. The bent thing to do is to sow the seeds in pols and transplant out when they arc strong enough, Isy doing this there is U-aa ehanee of hlugs getting tlhmu. as thuv can be planted on I when th«y have started to ran,

j rays ol the sun, such as wire frames 'covered with Canvas, calico, or even waterproof paper, and made in such a way that they can be tied to a stick, which can he stuck in the. ground, and the covering adjusted to cover the flower. Most of the deep reds will stand plenty of shading, and also .some of the pinks that hum in the sun. K\perienco is the only thing that will show you which need covering and which do not. Very often the life of a good bloom can be prolonged by tying some soft wool round the flower' to make ii hold its shape. The wool should not be Lied very light, bill jus I enough to hold the bloom together. SPRAYING FOR (1)1)1.IN MOTH. As soon as the petals have fallen from the blooms j s the best time to spray apple and p,. !ir trees for codlin moth. This first .spraying is a most impi rtnnt on?, and should he undertaken at the right season to do the greatest amount 0 | good. Pears remain open at the calyx for some time alter the blossom petals have fallen, but with apples the ease is different! As soon a.s the young fruit begins to swell the. calyx commences to clfi.se 11]), and unless the spraying is don e before this there is always a. chance that a

young grub will find its way into the fruit. _ Once it g ( >f, s j n ni) 'poison can reach it. Aresnate of lead, used at the rate of about one pound to forty gallons oi water is the best thing that can be used, and il the work is well done, theiv is little probability of any of the grubs getting a hold at all. It is generally recommended that the leaves bo sprayed on both sides until they drip. the grubs hatch out in many cases on the loaves and feed on them until they pin strength enough to hunt round fi; >- """it. If the spraving has been properly done. lnPv w {\\ } )( , | c j|j ec | w ] nl(l leodmg on the leaves. The second spraying should follow the first in aboni three weeks' time and every three weeks or so alter that.

WEED KILLER. "Inquirer" asks "how to make a good weed killer for paths.'' A good weed killer for paths can be made by boiiding one pound of common washing soda in one gallon oi wafer, and when the soda is all dissolved, stir in one pound oi white arsenic. Add the arsenic slowly and keep stirring tho whole time. Another way is t,, us,- two gallons of water and one pound of caustic Soda, and when the soda is dissolved •stand a tin containing Lite arsenic in the boding soda and 'allow the water to flow over the top, stirring the arsenic slowly until it is all dissolved I freak (Jown the quantities by adding twelve to fourteen gallons of water ],.'- ore using Use a special watering can to apply the mixture to the. paths and use when the ground is fairlv dry After three or lour days the weeds will all turn brown, and in a little while caii bo swept, up an<l; burnt. Take care that none of the mixture gets on the grass edgings or plants in the border. It generally takes from twenty minutes to half an hour to dissolve the amount of arsenic stated. If the whole o| the mixture is not required for immediate use, bottle and label and store away from children. j Vk'GKTAW/KS.

'I he heavy rain last week brought a tremendous lot of slugs out on the warpath, and it would be advisable to go over beds ol various seedlings such a.s 'carrots, parsnips, etc., and see if they cannot be resown in places. The wet weather mad,, the use of lime very ineffective, and although il may 'have killed hundreds, there wore many more that escaped. Finish planting out the main crop of potatoes and hoe up and spray the earlier crops us they are fit. In dealing wnli potato sprays, it is interesting to note, that if a little sugar (about a icaspooni'til pei gallon) is added to Bordeaux mixture, the latter will keep for a fortnight or so. li' pumpkins, marrows and cucumbers have not already been sown plant the seed at once. These vegetables like a Well manured soil in which there is a good deal oi fibre. They are noi deep! rooting, and oil that account, tho ground I round them should be kept well stirred as long as if is possible. When they j life growing veil they cover the soil . with their leaves, and in this way stop, undue evaporation of moisture.