THE SOIL.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLV, Issue XLV, 24 March 1910, Page 2

THE SOIL.

CVANiaiNG FfIUIT TREES. I MODERN METHODS. The discovery of the economic value of hydrocyanic acid gas as an insecticide was due to the discovery in Californian orchards of the cottony cushion scale, an insect unwittingly introduced from Australia. For a time it looked as though the pest would ruin the orange and lemon industry qver there, in spite of the concerted efforts of the most intelligent horticulturists to combat it, but to-day, thanks largely to the discovery of Mr. D. W. Coquillett, one uf the assistants in the Division of Entomology, U.S. Department of Agriculture, the problem .of" successfully combating these pests is no longer a problem. The chemicals used for generating hydrocyanic acid gas are (1) fused cyanide of potassium, (k) sulphuric acid, and (3) water. The main difficulty which early experimenters encountered was the injurious effect the gas had upon the foliage. The injury was lessened greatly by what is known as the "suda process ' of' Morse, which consisted in adding ordinary baking soda to the cyanide solution, 'using something like 2i- times as much soda, as- cyanide in the solution, the result being the production of carbonic acid gas,'thus diluting the hydrocyanic acid gas. But Mr. Morse eventually abandoned this process in favour of tlie "dry gas" method devised by Mr. Coquillett. It was generally believed by the experimenter at this time that it was the actinic rays rather than the heat rays of the sun that injured the foliage; it had been previously noted that trees were more injured during the middle of the day than at any other times, and it was usually attributed to the- heat.

' ADVICE TO MOTHERS '-Are you broken in your rest by a sick enile suffering with the pain of cutting teeth! Go at once to a chemist and get a bottlf of Mrs. Winslow's Soothing Syrup, li will relieve the poor sufferer immediately. It is perfectly harmless and pleasant to taste, it produces natural, quiet sleep, by relieving the child how pain, and the little cherub awakes "w bright as a button." it soothes the child ;fc softens the gums, allays all pain, re lieves wind, regulates the bowels, and if the best known remedy for dysentery arid diarrhoea, jvheiher arising fifon* teething or other causes. Mrs WinslowV Soothing Syrup is sold by Medicine Dealers everywhere.*

Working on this theory. Mr. Coquillett experiments with a black tent, and confirmed his belief flint it was the actinic and not the heat rays that caused the trouble. Naturally night work in fumigation soon followed. The success of tluso experiments has been far-reach-ing, the adoption of methods then perfected being practically universal. The gas proces was not. however, generally recommended for the' fumigation of deciduous trees until a few years later. But with the outbreak of' San Jose scale in Virginia .east of the Rocky Mountains, a new set of experiments'

was started by Mr. W. G. Johnson,, a well-known entomologist and author on scientific subjects. He practically made this subject of fumigation his own. and went to work in 1897 upon young plum, pear, apple, and nectarine trees, with ojily the. Californian experience to guide hfim. The results wer e so'very satisfactory that he was tempted to continue the work on trees in full bearing, and at this stage he perfected an outfit, and completed the first successful fumigation of a large orchard in the East. While methods of generating the gas have not been materially changed since those days, the amounts of chemicals have been adapted to suit various conditions. The table of quantities most generally adopted now all over America is that drawn up by Mr. W. T. Allen, fruit expert to the New South Wales Department of Agriculture. The apparatus for containing the gas while fumigation is going on has been improved, and all .sorts of. contrivances in the shape of boxes and tents can be procured, but the plain sheet appears to be hard to beat, both iii the matter of cost and effectiveness. The system has been taken up very largely by leading orchardists in New South 'Wales and Victoria, and it has a great deal to recommend it, especially in regard to citrus orchards. The orange tree, being an evergreen and of close habit of growth, is difficult to spray with any degree of thoroughness, besides which, fumigation will do the work of spraying with one operation as against two or three. Since. 1894 the gas has been used in greenhouses for the destruction of cer-

tain pests, and experiments have proved its usefulness and safety in dealing with tender nurs&ry stock; in fact. 110 citrus stock is allowed to enter Victoria now until it has been fumigated. In 1898 Air. Johnson first suggested the use of gas as a remedy for insects in mills, elevators, and warehouses, and the system is now in general use; indeed, he goes s 0 far in his advocacy of this g«* "•' to suggest the possibility of its superseding the primitive method of hangins; and the mere modern idea of electrocuting criminals. Cells or death chambers, he says, coultl b e made in any enclosure in which the gas could be easily generated, and the occupant painlessly and instantaneously put to death, without any of the horrors accompanying the gallows or the electric chair. Mr. Johnson has lately written a most useful book on fumigation methods, which covers the whole ground verv carefully and closely. It is published by the. Grange Judd Co. APPLES FOR EXPORT. A NEW SOUTH WALKS MOVEMENT. Mr C. Churchill Tucker, of Beeeroft, who is taking'air active part in establishing an export trade in grown in County Cumberland, New .South Wales, read a paper recently before the Fruitgrowers-' Union on the subject. Crowing apples foexport, he said, differs somewhat from growing apples for the local mar-ke-t. Apples for export must be ol good keeping varieties, have good colour, and be good gating. Lo»:i. ! I varieties also require colour iimi I quality, but their keeping qualities ,ir ( - not so essential. To find the vari">v j that possesses all these qualifications, and also a variety thai is early in ripening, should be the aim of those going in for apple-growing for export, and in this research the Department of Agriculture could render valuable assistance.

To obtain stock of all the bestknown varieties from other countres. and subject them to our own climaN condition", and soils, is .1 costly undertaking and would involve mneli care and study, but if it is worth the department 's while to spend large sums and make exhaustive experiments with various varieties of wheat, so also should similar experiments be made in regard to the apple. When we ?ee the ever-increasing trade of Tasmania. Victoria. South Australia, and even West Australia, in the'production of one of the most .healthful of food products—the apple—and compare their progress with our own, we must adni't that we are lamentably behind tiie other States in apple culture, and yet our possibilities are as great perhaps greater. He Ims the authority of a leading fruit salesman of Covent Garden. London. \vh 0 has personally inspected the apple-growing country of all the southern States, as well as our own. for stating that we possess excepti mnl advantages for apple culture. Being in a more temperate zone, our fruir riuens much earlier, consequently we should be able to catch the best British and Continental markets, especially if our early varieties will carry. Tll an endeavour to prove thai the fruit will carry, he has on several occasions sent a few cases in the purser's cooling chambers of some of our ocean mail boats, but the test is not a fair one, as the constant open : ng of the chamber for the purpose of taking out and putting in fresh supplfes' allows a constantly changing temperature. It is difficult, however, to arrange any other means of transport! unless Government assistance is obtained in order 1 hat. pwpr-r cooling chambers may be set aside for experiment purposes.before'the regular apple service of the southern States commences. A small shipment of ■Cumberland-grown apples forwarded to London by Mr Tucker and others in the s.s. Malwa recently is of value, but it would have been more satisfactory if the shipment had been made before the Tasmanian and Victorian appto were able to enter into competition with ours.

He pointed out that orchards have few opportunity's of exploiting the Home market without assisiansc. and suggested tkat next year's experiments should be mad o by the Department, the shipping companies, and the growers combined, the shipping cornin ' their vessels leaving three. l\\o, and one week before the first shipmerit of Victorian apples, the depnifmen't collecting, grading, and packing the fruit, and the growers providing the fiuit at market rates; any profits from the sale in London and elsewhere, of course, to go to the E-epay-ment of Agriculture. A sum of £s'.>»o placed on the Estimates for experiments cxtendino- say, over three, years, in opening up and developing the export 'trade in apples and other fruit from the County of Cumberland, wou'.d do more to place the fruit industry in this State in a healthy condition than anything else. For experimental shipments he suggested that the following varieties be selected:—fn the first ship, Carriugton (hard red variety), Lord Kelson, and Bismarck. For'the following shipment he would seleot Trivetts, Carpenter,' Aitken's Seedling, Cleopatra; and in the third shipment Jonathan, Granny Smith, Rome Beauty, and Fanny. t 0 be followed up by more Granny Smiths and other good keeping apples in the ordinary apple ships that call at Hoba.vr. Ho placed the Carriugton foremost, because it is a p'ood apple, and particularly suitable for export tf it will carry. ' Being somewhat delicate, it may require a lower temperature I hi), others such <as pears, and may need packing in a similar way—in trays. -"Daily Telegraph.'' " ' FROZEN MEAT MYSTERY. WHO ARE THE CONSUMERS? "NOT MENTIONED IN SOCIETY." A young colonial, who lias jus( returned from Great Britain, has been

lolling his friends in Ihe south of 'lis failure 1o ascertain who cats New Zealand frozen meat. When he nrrived in Loudon ne. like many other Xcw Zealaudors. was more than a little proud of the part played l>y his country in providing food for the mi'" lions of the .Motherland. JJe never loubtod that his ik-w acquaintances ami friends would rrcogijise gladly the connection between th L . s:ni' ; i'g plains of Canterbury and I In* lad> .1 taldes of English homes, and a', the first convenient opportunity he ''-■"' ed a hospitable housewife whether she used frozen meal. "It seen:..! rhat she would have felt as Utile ihilteivil had 1 asked her whether :-iie ate margarine.'' h e writes. "After a few days 1 learned that one iniisi he '.tit careful about" mentioning f;VivTP. meat to English people of the belier classes. In a London cltiii I was :n----foriiied. that 'no doubt some people

used frozen meat,' in a tone all r'i suggested that some Jirople would do all sorts of odd ihiin.'s. My h;»!<»: ;n ■1 country house said that sh;-. had heard iliat New Zealand, meal was fxceT-.:'.

but that her servants had obj. c.ni :<■ '.'itiug it. The subject siig.m" ;;•■.! Chicago to her. and she expressed lii■' hope that the 'meat people' had inproved their methods. I chok.'d d-.w > nv explanations. My <oiifidciice w;s shaken a little when I searched o-.: sonic cheap markets and found the prime Canterbury label attached hi joints which 1 hoped devoutly had come from the Argentine. I did no'. feel happy about the matter mitij _l :iad taken an opportunity fo v.sit Sniithficld. and had seen splendid New eZalitml miilon. apparently in prime condition, on its way to some unknown "Hisumers. A few weeks later 1 (i:d and a family who used N'e»v Zealand mutton, and' were not ashamed of i! I'hev said that they had no desire at :>J.I 'to replace it" by Ifmne-kiILJ ■neat.'' The experience of this New Zealander is not an unconion one. and it recalls a story fold by one of the merchants who conducts a whoK.iJo business in New Zealand meat in London. He changed his place of residence, and consequently became" a customer of the local 'butcher. Ci

whom he sent an ord«r for a quarter of "Prime Canterbury" lamb. The butcher replied that he dealt only 111 English meat, and could nof uiideitfike to deliver any inferior qualii \ lie had quife overlooked the facf I hat the man to whom he was writing was the merchant who supplied his weekly order for New Zealand meat.