PREVENTION AND CURE OF MILDEW.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVI, Issue 1, 5 July 1911, Page 41

PREVENTION AND CURE OF MILDEW.

I think it will be generally admitted that mildew is one of the greatest troubles a gardener has to contend with, more particularly the amateur who grows a few roses, and to show how this scourge may be kept at bay is the purpose of this letter. All that is necessary is a syringe fitted with a fine rose, or spray, for preference, and a tablet of carbolic soap. Take Jib. of soap, and dissolve with a gallon of boiling water; it saves stirring to do this an hour or two before the liquid is wanted; then add four gallons of hot water, and if convenient a wineglassful of petroleum, and you have one of the finest insecticides going. This is a certain cure for mildew, but it is not only a cure, but it is a preventive. Do not wait for the mildew to develop, but spray the roses whilst the buds are dormant, and cover every branch and stem with the liquid. They should be sprayed again later on, even if mildew does not appear; and readers will be surprised at the freedom of the rose trees, not only from mildew, but from insect pests as well. The liquid is most effective when used hot, but do not use it boiling or stronger than indicated. When the roses are in bud or leaf, it is advisable to syringe well with water an hour afterwards. The insecticide will have done its work by that time, and the water .will cleanse the foliage. The writer, an amateur, who has over 100 rose trees in pots, and Howers some of them every - month in the year, keeps his plants entirely free from mildew by adopting the above method. It is, too, a simple operation, not unpleasant for a lady or child, and the ingredients are available in most households. In conclusion, may I recommend readers to spray all their rose trees, whether they are varieties particularly subject to mildew or otherwise, and above all, to bear in mind that prevention is better than the finest cure. —W. Y. Sainsbury, Thorner, Leeds.