Departmental Activities. 305 



^\s f;ii' as we know, it lias not LriMi used on ordiaid imu\s, Itut lias Ijccii 

 found to l)e very eft'ective for tlii'i])s control on nursei-y stock. 



Cottori'Stainers Again> — The exact cause oi cotiou-.staiuiug' is not 

 yet known. It has not been conclusively proxcd that cotton-staineis 

 are entirely to hhiinc. That cot 1on-stainers do, at times, cause con- 

 siderable stainiii<^' is (juile prol)al)lc, Imt it is also \ery probalde that 

 other factors must he reckoned w ith. Aniono- these factors are in.juiies 

 l;y liollwoiins, injuiies by suckin^' insects, bacterial diseases intro- 

 duced b,\- insect injuiies, ailxcrse oi- abnorinal climatic (conditions, or 

 abnormalities of an heicditaix nature. The fcdlowing extract from a 

 letter by a coii'cspondent in the eastern Transvaal is interestino', as 

 it shows that enormous numbers of stainers with a minimum of 

 staining- is a })ossibility : — 



Last season we saw a few of the small col ton-stainei', but 

 saw no damag'e done to oui' cotton. 'Idiis yeai' they appeared in 

 milli(His with the last pi( king of cotton, and, although they were 

 in sucii numbers that they made the cotton appear to be ahnost 

 black (cotton which we had on benches diying), we found no 

 damage done, and the only stained cotton we had was stained by 

 bollworms. The stained bolls naturally ojiened before they were 

 nuiture through being- damagvd iiy bollworms, and as sooa as the 

 rain fell on the open bolls it became stained. In s\dte of a 

 plague of stainers, both large and small, our cotton croj) this 

 season is snow-white, and e\en the last jjicking- shows no staining. 

 We find it a great help if we destroy the large stainers as soon 

 as they hatch out, and they are easily controlled by sending 

 youngsters round e.irly in the morning and knocking the stainers 

 oh: into enamel l;;)wls, hlled with water in which a tablespoon ful 

 of parafhn has been pouretl." 



HORTICULTURE. 



The Fruit Levy and the Inspection Fee. — In terms of the bruit 



J*]x])ort Act, ex])ort Fruit is subject to an inspection fee of Is. 4d. 

 ])er ton (shii)ping ton of 40 cubic feet) on all boxes going 25 or less 

 to the ton, and 2s. jier ton at)ove this number. The Agricultural 

 Products (rrading Act, 1922, now piovides the necessary machinery for 

 raising a levy, but before this legislation was passed it was decided 

 by the interests concerned to have a levy of 5s. per ton on export 

 fruit, the proceeds to be devoted to the furtherance of the industry. 

 In the absence of the required legislation, it was decided to add this 

 5s. per ton to the existing inspection fee, and this was accordingly 

 done, the Government collecting the total fee of Gs. 4d. or 7s. and 

 paying over to the Fruit Groovers' Exchange its portion of 5s. i)er ton. 

 The passing of the Grading Act leferred to above has now enabled 

 the nmtter to be put on a proper footing : Government Notices Nos. 

 1448 and 1452 appearing in the Governmoit Gazette of the 8th 

 Se])tember, 1922, provide for the ins]iectioji fee as heretofore and for 

 the special levy, both having effect as from the 12th July last. 



