HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2949, 21 September 1910, Page 10

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

By J. Gf.bbie.

The ;ri>&tJhod of pruning peach tree.' on walls does not appear to be understood by the majority of orunens, iudging by the s-rc-acimens of wall trees I have seen in var'ous parts of North Otaeo and other districts. The method in vo*rue is the spur system, every tww; shortened back to two or three eves, and the whol etree bristling with snags. With standard trees the spur system is right. enou<rhd, but with wall trees •it, is out of nlaee. The best form of traininsr the peach is the fan. and' the way in which it is formed is to cut back the one-year-old tree to three or four buds, and to again shorten the branches at the two-vear-o!d stage. This 'cuttincr back results in a number of shoots, which will form the ribs of the tree. The peach hears its fruits ur*in the previous year's growth; therefore the more one-year-old shoots the tree has the better will be the orospeot of a crop. A tree well looked after aaid in a healthy condition should be full of health}' young shoots from the base and The way to obtain the young shoots is this: In the spring the buds buist into growth and a number of these mtust be rubbed off when they are small, oth.eir'wiee the tree WC>uld become overcrowded with growth. Rubbiner off the you Jig growths is called disbudding, aixl it is imoortant when carrying out this operation! to leave a good shoot near the base of the older one from which it springs. If the bud at the base is weak and does not seem as if it weald grow, rub it off and leave a better one above- it. This will develop during the summer, and the following year will bear flowers and fruit, while the older shoot from which it arose will be cut oiut to make room for it. The same prtaetide must be applied to each of the- shoots. There is usually room for two or raoto shoots, and these should be left where- there is a vacant space on. the wall. The branches of a peach tree ought toj be trained about, 2in or Sin apart. Peaches ■do well on, the wall of a dwelling faicing :iorth or north-east. ROOM PLANTS.

Amateurs as a rule are far too fond' of sriving their plants cote of too largo a size. Unless a plant is badly cramped for root room it will hs> best in a rather small pot. because it is more easily managed and more useful for decorative work. If the house plants require rcootting now is a good time to do so. All may not require repotting; perhaps some only warnt a little top soil removed and replaced with some fresh compost. When repotting is neces--ea.ry the new pots ought not to be more than 2in more in diameter than the old one. In the case of an unhealthy specimen it may only require a pot the same size a« it previouslv occunicd, removing some of the old soil to admit of its going into a pot of this size. Top-dressing consists in removing an incli or more of the old Burface sdlil and replacing it with new. A goad potting soil for room plants is composed of good fibrous loam,, two pa.rts: well decayed manure or leaf-mould, half a part; and cdarse sand, half a part. For succulent plants such as cactus leave out the decayed manure and mix a good amount of broken brick and old mortar with the loam.

NASTURTIUMS. In Amer'oa the nasturtiums rank with sweet peas a;? the most popular annuals. They aro easily grown, and for dry, sunny positions in the garden they are specially suitable. In a poor s<Al they bloom more freely than in a rich one, the latter causing .1 too rank growth at the expense of flower*'. The colours of the flowers are very brilliant, and when out, and placed in water they will last for a considerable timeThere aro two classes cultivated —the tali and the dwarf. The forttier will be found dsoful for covering verandahs, trellis-work. or arbours for the summer months. The dwarf varieties, which grow to the height of a few inches, are well adapted for bedding purposes. When planted in masses and in full bloom with the sun shinin,g upon them they have a showy appearance. Of late years variegated leaved forms of th© taill and 1 dwarf varieties have be-en introduced, and these are very beautiful both in foliage and flower. In warm climates these nasturtiums may grrow and flower all the year round, but with us they are only igrown as annuals, a few degree*? cf frost killing them.

DUNEDIN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY.

The schedule of prizes for the year 191011 is new obtainable from the secretary, 'Mr D. Larnach. Bond etreet. Dunediirr. We notice tiiat four shows are to bo held during the season,, and the prize-list is a liberal one. At the spring show, to be held on the 28th and 2Sth September, narcissi will be the leading feature, and for these a gold medal, cup, ant! liberal cask prizes are offered, which, should help to induce competition. Roses are the leading feature, of the summer show, to be held in December, and at the autumn show in March sweet peas and dahlias- will be the attraction. And at the winter show in May chrysanthemum growers will have an opportunity of exhibiting their skill in the culture of the qu?en of autumn. This ol<Jestablished society is worthy of a little more support from horticulturists than it receives. The rising generation don'', E>nm to take the same interest in garde::-' ing that they do in. cJiber amusements. Ilortieult-.ual societies should give more encouragement to young exhibitors.