HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3017, 10 January 1912, Page 12

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Bt J. Gebbib.

A NEW FRUIT. A new fruit named guayba has been discovered in Uruguay, which is said to be unique in its way. It grows upon a of the nature of a cactus. The most striking feature of the plant is the way in which it produces its curious fruit. It bears red flowers, which form at the edges of the fleshy loaves, and at their base the fruits are eventually formed. The skins are of various colours, chiefly red, green, or blue, and in their wild state they are covered with minute hairs like the prickly pear. Under cultivation these hairs disappear. The skin of this peculiar fruit is thick, after the manner of the ordinary fig, but tougher in texture. The flesh is red, white, and in some instances blue, the pulp being very sweet. It has a fine, rich, inviting flavour, which ranks with the peach or nectarine. The plant fruits freely, and although it withstands several degrees of frost, yet it fruits and develops to perfection under glass. Tests have demonstrated its commercial importance, but whether it is suitable for our climate or not remains to be seen. THE BANANA. We know -a little now about the banana, which is so generally esteemed and forms the chief food of millions of human beings. It may bo of interest to many to learn that by some persona the banana is believed to bo the original forbidden fruit of the Garden of Eden. In any case, it is oiie of th* curiosities of the vegetable kingdom, being not a tree, a palm, a bush, a vegetable, or a herb, but a herbaceous plant with the status of a tree. Although it sometimes attains a height of 30ft, there is no woody fibre in any part of its structure, and the bunches growing on the dwarf banana plants are often heavier than the stalk which supports them. No plant gives such a quantity of food per acre as the banana. It yields 44 times more by weight than the potato, and 133 times more than wheat. No insect will attack it, and it is always immune from disease of any kind. *THE QUINCE.

According to a writer in the Gardeners’ Chronicle, the introduction of the quince into England was due to the Romans during their 4-00 years occupation of the country. They alao introduced tho grape, fig-, apple, pear, plum, mulberry, and damson. Other fruits wore propably introduced by tho Danes, Saxons, and .Norsemen who had settled in the country. The common quince is a native of Austria, Portugal, and Spain Of late years quite a number of varieties of garden origin have been brought into cultivation, and some nurserymen catalogue nearly a score of varieties. Quinces are ornamental shrubs or small trees. In the Middle Ages the common variety was much valued for its fruits, that formed a constituent of a delicious pijeeerve called ootignac. This delicacy was an accompaniment to many kinds of meat, and this variety was eo highly esteemed that it was seldom omitted from the dinner table of the French nobility. When Joan of Arc entered the City of Orleans in 1429, after raising the siege, this preserve was first offered to her by tho inhabitants. Of the many varieties In cultivation Van Deman is one of the best. Tho fruit ip of good flavour, texture, and quality for all purposes that quinces are used for, and it is an early and heavy bearer. Portugal is large, of fine flavour, and turns a deep crimson when ccokcd. Rae’s Mammoth is a fine variety, with large fruit, which keeps well The tree is a good grower, and very productive. Quinces prefer a moist, rich soil, although they will como early into bearing in a dry one. their duration will be much shorter than in soils that are rich and mellow.

TREATMENT OF PELARGONIUMS, j Aa soon as pelargoniums have done flowering they should be removed to some sunny place m the open air so that the ' wood may bo well ripened before being cut down. The plants will require very little water and in a few weeks’ time, when tho ! wood has turned a brown colour, they j should bo pruned close down and the ' cuttings, if required, trimmed to about ! 4in or bin long, and inserted in sandy soil, j either in pots or in the open border. Little ! or no shading will bo required. After cut- 1 ting down, the old plants should be kept dry by turning tho pots down on their j sides for, say, a fortnight or so. when some ! new growth will have started. They should then bo turned out, of their pots, tho soil shaken off, and the old roots cut away [ and repotted in much smaller pots than i they flowered in. For a while they should stand in the garden frame, and be kept on the dry side, and plenty of air given them. I CUTTINGS WITH HEELS. An experienced cultivator knows very well what is meant when ho reads that tho cuttings of certain plants should bo taken off with a “heel,” but the amateur is not so well up in gardeners’ phraseology. Some plants will strike roots from cuttings whether they have a heel to them or not, and it is not material to success whether the cutting bo cut oft at a joint or not. Of the immense number of plants propagated by cuttings some variation in the method of taking tho cuttings is necessary Broadly speaking, (he cuttings taken may be divided into two sections, one with a small portion of (.he older wood, which constitutes tho heel, and the other (hose which are cut immediately below the joint Guttings that are taken off tho parent plant with a slice of the older wood at the base give the best results in the propagation of the hardier shrubs. With a firm knee, • such os that formed by tho older wood, ■ there is but little danger qf the cutting ; deraving as is the Case with filow-rooting ! plan 1 when, (ho cuttings are prepared j by putting them under a joint, and the ! practice has much to recommend it in the j case of these plants. A USEFUL PALM. \ Palms are of immense importance from

an economic point of view. From this order of plants are obtained most of the necessaries of life of the aboriginal inhabitants of the tropics, and (he inhabitants of Europe consume immense quantities of their produce in the shape of fruits, oil, wax, sago, sugar, etc. They play, indeed, a large part in supplying our daily wants. As an illustration, the carnauba palm of Brazil may be cited. All parte of this )>alm arc of commercial value. The young tops are used as an article of food and are highly nutritious. Sugar, wine, vinegar, and a substance resembling sago are made from the palm. Its wood is utilised for the manufacture of musical instruments, water pipes, and cubes for pumps. Cork is made from its pith, and its roots are used medicinally, having similar properties to sarsaparilla. The fruit is used in various ways The pulp is a nutritious food, and tire nuts, when roasted, are used for coffee, and a kind of flour is made from them. An oil is also extracted from the nuts. From the trunk a strong fibre is prepared, which is used in the manufacture of mat®, hats, baskets, and brooms. The leaves yield of wax which is used in candle-mak-ing. This useful palm, which grows wild In Brazil, is therefore of inestimable value to the inhabitants of those districts where it abounds.