THE FRUIT GARDEN IN JUNE 



WM. HUNT, ONT. AGRI. COIvLEGE;, GUE;LPH. 



THE ground around the plants in the 

 newly planted strawberry patch 

 should be kept well surface stirred. This 

 not only kills out all weeds whilst small or 

 in the seed leaf, but the loose soil forms a 

 mulch that assists the young plants ma- 

 terially in making growth. Unless the old 

 patch is in very good condition and free 

 from weeds it had better be dug up. Toma- 

 toes, potatoes, beans or corn would be the 

 best garden crops to plant where strawber- 

 ries have been dug or plowed in. 



A better plan still to bring the ground 

 back into good condition after being ex- 

 hausted as it is by growing strawberries, 

 would be to dig or plow the patch up, har- 

 row or rake lightly, and sow a cover crop 

 of vetches — the hairy variety preferred — 

 or crimson clover could be sown. This 

 cover crop can be dug in late in the fall. A 

 good coat of manure can also be added, es- 

 pecially if the cover crop is not of very rank 

 growth. Strawberry plants should not be 

 planted on the same ground again for three 

 or four years. 



PLUMS. 



The curcuHo wnl be busy on the plum 

 trees as soon as the blossoms are fallen. 

 Spraying plum trees with paris green or 

 Bordeaux mixture is of little use to pre- 

 vent the mischief of these destructive little 

 beetle like pests. The old fashioned plan of 

 jarring the limbs of the trees and shaking 

 the curculio from the tree into a sheet pre- 

 viously spread underneath to catch them is 

 perhaps the surest way to kill and destroy, 

 and prevent injury by these little pests, as 

 they can be crushed or put into a tin con- 

 taining coal oil and destroyed when caught 

 on the sheet. 



A flat strip of inch board about 2 inches 

 in width and about 2 or 3 feet in length with 

 the sharp edges sawed ofT, and the sheet or 

 white cloth before mentioned as well as a 

 short heavy club or wooden mallet are the 



only implements necessary for this opera- 

 tion. Bind one end of the flat strip of 

 board before mentioned with a few thick- 

 nesses of old cotton or cloth to prevent in- 

 jury to the limbs of the tree. Place the end 

 of the strip protected by the cotton or cloth 

 against the limbs of the tree and give it sev- 

 eral hard blows with the club or mallet. 

 This will jar the limb sufficiently to cause 

 the curculio to drop into the sheet, which 

 should be spread under the tree before the 

 tree is shaken or jarred. The curculio can 

 then be picked from the sheet and destroyed 

 at once. Shaking the limbs with the hand 

 is not as effective as the jarring, method, al- 

 though some good may be done by shaking 

 the tree. 



Another very effective remedy or preven- 

 tive of attacks of the curculio, especially on 

 trees of moderate size, is to thoroughly 

 sprinkle or dust them with dry wood ashes 

 or chimney soot, or both mixed together. 

 This should be done once or twice a week 

 during June or perhaps early in July as 

 well, directly after the blossoms have fallen^ 

 and on until the fruit has attained to about 

 half its full size. Early in the morning or 

 late in the evening, when the dew is on the 

 foliage, or after a shower of rain is the best 

 time ^o dust the trees. A step ladder will 

 be of assistance to reach the larger trees. 



Dust bellows can be purchased at seed 

 stores for distributing this and other dry 

 insecticides, but good work can be done 

 with a fire shovel, a piece of tin or shingle, 

 and a little perseverance. Start as soon 

 as the blossom has fallen, do not wait until 

 you see that a lot of the fruit has been stung 

 before you start. If you do the remedy will 

 be of little use. Prevention is the remedy 

 in the case of curculio, as there seems to be 

 no method of applying insecticides to kill 

 the curculio effectually when once they 

 commence operations. 



Spraying the cherry trees with kerosene 

 •46 



