HORTICULTURAL NOTES,

Otago Witness, Issue 2686, 6 September 1905, Page 10

HORTICULTURAL NOTES,

Bt J.'Gebbie.

j — Seiila, Siberica.— A genus of bulbs, for most part i hardy, and ranking among: the prettiest ornaments o£ -early spring 1. They are of /easy culture, I growing well in. any moderately good gar- I den soil, but have a. preference for a free, lig-ht loam. Tliis is especially the ease with I the- -"smaller kinds. The typical S. Siberica I is the most .beautiful blue to be found in; any plant. 4, There is also a pure white,' dark j blue,, and 1 striked form. The subject 'of this note is distinct porcelain* blue, the inside, of the flowers being paler tban tLe i exterior. Some seasons they bloom with the snowdrop, and form a delightful contrast, especially if they 'are grown together. ! They multiply rapidly by , means of off'shopts, and their culture is very simple, ' fof .they-merely require to be planted in iho A autumn, and' they may remain year after year, the-patches of bulbs increasing yin eize, until is ..required to form new 'plantations. - Except for this" purpose, or for"th"© sake of increase, the less they axe .the better. There axe many species in cultivation, and all are beautiful in their -way. \ —Dressing Seed Potatoes.— ! . The potato disease is perhaps the most . formidable of all the pests that, attack this valuable "tuber. It is commonly called the Irish blight on account of its great ravages in Ireland/ and its destruction of the crop which, caused a faming. Its depredations have-^puzzled the hybridiser and the cultivator. New. varieties have been introduced, eaid to be disease-proof, and to a certain extent they may be. But all life—animal and vegetable —from the very nature of things has a time of decadenoe. It must follow that potatoes grown from the same j stock year aiter year will be more liable to the blight. The disease has been known in New Zealand for years, but the last season has been by far th© most disastrous. Change of seed, new land, and cledn cultivation are all factors ir^the production of potatoes free of disease. Dressing the seed (either whole or cut) has been practised with varied success. Soaking 1 the seed in corrosive sublimate solution (2oz to 20gal of soft water) for 30 minutes, has been recommended; likewise in Bordeaux mixture of 2lb of copper sulphate, 21b of quicklimes and 20gal of soft water. A solution of lib copper sulphate in 20gal of water has also b&en tried and approved of. These mixtures should be mads in wcodem vessels. In all cases the potatoes should be laid out to dry, and immediately planted. These precautions may he tried on a small scale, and if successful, larger quantities might be dealt with. The agricultural. Department haa issued, a leaflet regarding the spraying' of crops that aa"e I affected. If the spraying be done at an ' early stag© of tne disease, the" crop may be 'saved. Forcing in too rich soil, and especially in soils rich in atnmonieal manures, is said to be favourable to the spreading of the disease. The foregoing notes on potatoes wei'e furnished me by one who has practical experience in agricultural prp.-

• ducts, and as tho question has been asked, "What is the best dressing for potatoes io \ prevent disease? I have given them a place in Horticultural Notes. — Dunedin Horticultural Society's Schedule. — < The schedule and list of prizes, together with the annual report, is just to hand. I notice that for each of the four shows to bo held during the season a very liberal prize list <s offered. For the bulb show, to be hold in the Garrison Hall on a date to bo fiexd this week, several guinea prices are offered, also an elegant silver cup cr vase, value £7 7s, given by Messrs Barr and Sons, seed merchants, etc., Covent Garden, London. This is offered for the best collection of cut daffodils, to comprise 40 distinct -varieties, of which 30 kinds must be represented by at least three blooms. The society offers two guineas for a collection of not less than 24 varieties. In the sections for pot plants and floral work, j liberal prizes are offered, and I notice tbat , the children have not been forgotten, although a little more inducement for the young to compete might have been given. We -hope that the weather may prove favourable for the spring flowers, and that the forthcoming show may eclipse its predecessors. „ By the Hawke's Bay the jnanager of , the j^Earket' Gardeners' Assooiatiou f (Victoria) sent a trial shipment of two-crates j (11 dozen) of cauliflowers to Durban, Natal. , | The trip takes 26 days,' and the vegetables : are sent in the refrigerator. If the experi- | ment is successful, thare -will be a big trad© ! dona from April t© July. The. Influence of Artificial Light.— rTlie influence /of acetylene "light upon plant life has ' been on trial. The acetylene illuminaut was xised in two houses, one in - which "warm-blooded plants were- grown, such as tomatoes and beans, and the other in which plants requiring a looser temperaj ture were .grown. The light was turned" | on in both cases as soon as daylight waned | and was maini-iined until daylight returned. | The experiments were commenced last December, during which month and the month l following, owing to the prevalence of cloudy weather, the most striking results were to !«• expected. Marked effects (says 11-e periodical Light in some particular of the-[-■work) were noticeable in flowering plants, i Those under the acetyleae light influence j appear to be more floriferous. Foliage i plants were- making more leaves, and bulb- ; ous plants were growing faster than those | unlighted Reflectors were used to direct • and somewhat concentrate the light rays. | Tho Scdd Spray for Scale.— Students of i a sohGol at Cape Giraocdeau, Minnesota, j under the direction of Professor R. W. | Clothier, ha/c begun a .ra,r of extermina-' | tion upon tho San Joss scale, which | abounds upon the' fruit trees in that locality. Tho method used is a modification, cf that employed by the United States Department of Agriculture, and many of the .experiment ■ stations, in which a prepara-. -tiori of linue-, sulphur, .and salt is used- -as' "'the-. j d€stroying^golution: / The' solution ,used at 'the school is prepared as .follows:— Heat Isgal"to 20gai of water to- boiling. Weigh" 1 out 2olb of sulphur, and stir up- to a paste with about 2gal of hot water. There should be^.'Tio lumps, of dty sulphur left, floating in '""the watew Weigh out 401b of good quicklime, and place in a 50gal barrel. Pour over tliis as quickly as possible about 15gar of the boiling water. Immediately add the sulphur. Then at once sprinkle in about 51b of crude 'caustic soda, 80 to 90 per cent. pure. Usev gloves to protect the hands, and l stir as mudh as possible with a' hoe. The ! leaction is very violent, and sometimes the i mixture boils over the top of the barrel. '■ Should this ocour, or should the mixture solidify during* the reaction, ' add more ; water. When the boiling ceases, fill the bsciTel with either hot or cold-water, strain through a brass o>* iron strainer, and spray upon the trees when in a dormant condition. This solution was sprayed upon 200 ' trees badly infected with scale, with the ' result of complete extermination. Peach j trees half in bloom were sprayed with this mixture without injury to the blossoms.