FRUIT TREE CULTURE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXII, Issue 18943, 14 February 1925, Page 4 (Supplement)

FRUIT TREE CULTURE.

THE WORK OF BUDDING. Trees that were budded during last lonth will require to be occasionally joked over, for if growing freely there ; always the rifck of the ties cutting into he wood, and injuring the buds after -i trie union is formed. Much, of course, will depend upon the condition of the trees wnen worked. As a rule, the older fruit-bearing trees arc the first to stop growing, and, in consequence, arc the first to need budding. DIRECTIONS FOE BUDDING. Directions h ave already been given for budding, and the condition of growth the tree should be in to secure the best results. In every case it is essential, no matter what variety is to be worked, that the budding be performed while the sap is a e uve and the bark easily raised. In this, trees differ widely, for, while some may require to be worked earlv in January to obtain anything like success, other varieties continue to make vigorous growth, and may be successfully worked up to the end of March. ADVANTAGES OF BUDDING. One great advantage of blidding is that- it requires to be done during the fruiting season, when the successes or failures of_ the varieties arc fresh in the minds of the growers, and when more approved and » profitable kinds can _____ __ selected, and the j trees can he renewed by rebudding with | the varieties required. PLANTING FRUIT TREES. j The time has again arrived when every available opportunity should be taken for | breaking up any land intended for Ireej planting during the coming season. Land j broken up roughly a.i this time, and ex- | posed to the sun and air, has time to i become thoroughly sweetened, and will before the time of planting bo in excellent, condition for working, and placed in the best possible condition for the reception jof the tree. One of the most important ! things to ensure success in transplanting j is to have the soil thoroughly worked | and sweetened before the season of plantj ing. This, too, applies, not only to fruit | tiees, but equally to trees intended for shelter plantation, as well as ornamental I trees and shrubs. | PREPARATION FOR PLANTING. I If planters would only treat young trees' j in the same way as they would treat any | other crop there would be Ictv complaints |of failures. Too often, however, no pre- ; pa ration is made until the season for planting arrives, when the work is rushed j through, regardless of the need and future j welfare of the trees. It should be borne' !in mind that- trees received from the i nurseries have been well grown and cared 1 for, and, to succeed, need somewhat similar j j conditions to enable them to become well- i ! established and make reasonable growth the following season. j TREATMENT OF DIFFERENT SOILS. j The amount of preparation necessary ; will naturally depend upon the nature of j the soil. Ground, for instance, that has j been under cultivation for other crops j will need little or no preparation beyond | marking out the sites for the trees, so I. long as there are free outlets for surplus j moisture. The want of good drainage is too j often the cause of failures, as trees i planted in such soil make but weak, feeble growth. This is especially the Case where holes are dug in land that has not been broken up for years. WORKING STIFF SOILS. The stiffer the land, the more necessary it is to have it thoroughly and deeply worked, and placed in such condition that no stagnant water can lie at the roots, for while a certain amount of moisture is needed to keep the trees in a healthy, growing condition, it must in 110 case be in excess, and on no account must it bo stagnant. It may not be always convenient to break up the whole of the land required for planting, and, in such cases, breaking up the land 6ft. or Bft. wide where the rows are to be planted, would answer the. first year's requirements; the intermediate spaces being broken up as , opportunity offered

SELECTING OF FRUIT TREES. In addition to breaking up the soil, there is no better time than during the fruiting season, when the merit ho different varieties of fruit:; are in evidence, for making a selection of the kinds to plant. By taking note of the fruits, and their season of ripening, the early, medium, and late varieties can be noted, and a selection most suited to the-grower's requirements made. In most sites selected for an , orchard, soil often varies in character and is more suited to certaiu varieties of fruits than to others. SOILS FOR DIFFERENT FRUITS. Where mixed varieties of trees'"are to be grown, the lighter land should be. SB* lected for the peach, nectarine, and other stone fruits, as \vell as lemons, or others of the citrus family. Apples, pears, and other pip fruits succeed best in soils of a stiffer nature. Provision must, nt almost every instance, be made for sheltering the trees, though the shelter required will naturally depend upon the lie of the | ground and the natural shelter alreadyprovided. The different fruit trees vary as to the amount of shelter necessary to produce the .best results. For dense trees an evergreen shelter is riot conducive to fruit fulness as almost every tree is. benefited by reasonable exposure during the | season of rest, as it is a means of the wood j and buds becoming better ripened and | matured. i SUMMER PRUNING. Some weeks ago attention was' called to the importance of thinning out. or summer pruning, of all healthy, vigorous growing trees, and as the present month is the best time to perform this operation no time should be lost in completing this work. In large commercial orchards, with the amount of summer work involved., it may not always be practicable to systematically carry this out, but iti smaller orchards, or wherever it, can be performed, better results are almost certain to be obtained. The effects of winter pruning only can be seen every season in the production' of a host of young sappy growth that only tends to darken the centre of the trees and prevent the proper ripening of the wood. The removal of all seedless shoots gives the sun a chance to reach all parts of the tree, and ensures a greater and j more effective ripening of the material | required for fruiting. Such an exceptional! v favourable growing season has naturally resulted in unusually vigorous growth, especially where the trees have had reasonably good cultivation. The main object in summer pruning is to bring the trees into a better condition of fruit-fulness, and to encourage fruiting spurs to form throughout ihe whole body of the tree, instead of leaving a lot of useless sterile growth that in many instances only dies back and leave the main branches bare cf any fruiting materials. The pruning consists in shortening back all needless and superflous growth, the weak sappy shoots being cut back to about three buds, while the stronger shoots that are not required for shaping the trees should be cut back to within six or seven leaves of then' base. The tree, thus relieved of much 01 its burden, not only ripens its wood and develops more perfect buds, but is assisted to mature and ripen more perfect fruits.

TO COKBESPONDEKTS.

T.C.. Three Kings.—Xame of shrub you see cultivated as an hedge plant is Leunoua leonurus (lion's tail). F.C.8., Papatoetoe.—-Names of fruits arcs: —Plum, Doris; peach. Golden Queen: apple> too poor a specimen to identify. A.11.. Manurewa.—Paulownia t may be raised from seeds sown in a shallow seen, tray. The seeds, being small, must bo lightly covered. I'.C.T.. Kussell.—Name of grass is Panicum erus-galli, a- British species, of {inmitu duration. The apple may be an immature Pride ot Australia. Mrs. F.G.M.. Onewhero.—Tree tomatoes: An occasional one is likely to die A y,\ el * coming into bearing for some reason taat. the writer cannot assign. A.11., Manurewa,—Seed pod to identify belongs to Paulownia imperialis, a- revf handsome, hardy deciduous tree, a monotypip genus, with habit of catalpa. G.N., Norsewood.—Names o? ferns are:--1 No. 1. Asplenium falcatuni. 2. AsplennU'i I culbiferm. 3. Asplenium lucidum. ;4. 'M'" antum affine. Polypodium nennigernm6. Species of asplenium. 7. Pelltea. rotundii'olia. ,J.H.A.. Resolution Bay.—The name, of yellow-ski lined and fleshed plum is Ogoii, a Japanese variety. The large purple I>®n with the peculiar flavour is Wick son. 1" 1S variety is liable to canker, and is superseded by local seedlings. X.2. City.—Aspidistra leaf is badly infested "with a very small scale. similar t" the species that attacks the cabbage tree. Spor.gmK the leaves with Gishurst s cowpound or other reliable insecticide cleanse the foliage of scale and other insects. H.W.0., Otorohangn.—February and March are about the bcr.t months to bud plums-. As the stocks, are usually in a stood condition, the sap flowing- freely, this etttou. the bark to separate for the insertion ot tno buds. Insert the buds on the mam stei or branches without cutting the tops bach. Cut back to the bud toward the end o. winter. N.Y.10, Woodh ill.—Recipe to .make sulphur was only recently given.. xl \ formula is:—To make 20 gallon?, weigh 81b. (iuicklime and 71b. sulphur, lo ' >rß! ? this, take Mb. lime and 71b. sulphur; place in a benzine tin three-parts full or waie . Boil until the sulphur is dissolved. -A *'? glassful of caustic sock helps to <m-° the sulphur. Pour into a tub contain l , h 20 gallons of water. Next add the reinai ing 3lb. of iime and well stir. T.S., Waitoa.—The prickly seed pod.- to identify belongs to the plant called " J ',° , fastuosa, an annual species from tne ft#. Indies. Nectarine fruits are attacked b. species .of fungus. It is too late n<"f,. , prevent tlie fungus. Preventative reweoi , should be taken when the fruits are ab half grown. The formula is full strens. Bordeaux or lime ami sulphur. gallon; atonic sulphur, 61b. to about - gallons of water. Syringe every 10 d*j»KepoS,