94 



at the end of winter. Four cwt. of nitrate 

 of soda per acre should be given, divided 

 into two dressings, in the early spring. 



A liberal supply of potash is, in our 

 experience, essential to the growth of a 

 first-rate crop of gooseberries, even with 

 a good dressing of stable manure. 



Currants. 



These may be treated similarly to goose- 

 berries. 



Raspberries. 



Taking one year with another, we have 

 found that a moderate dressing of stable 

 manure has done as well by itself as when 

 supplemented by chemical fertilisers. In 

 some years the addition of chemical ferti- 

 lisers has increased the crop, but in other 

 years the yield of fruit was less than with- 

 out them. Heavy dunging, with as much 

 as 25 tons per acre, has produced on the 

 average a smaller crop than light dunging. 

 Our experience, however, has been con- 

 fined to the soil of one particular field. 



It may be added that we have also tried 

 the growth of raspberries without any 

 stable manure at all, and under these con- 

 ditions the fertilisers already mentioned 

 for gooseberries will produce good results 

 if stable manure cannot be spared. 



Plums. 

 With the exception of one year, the trees 

 have borne well during the last five years. 

 The results of manuring in different ways 

 have been very variable, but as far as 

 they warrant a conclusion it would be that, 

 taking one year with another, the most 

 economical way of manuring well-estab- 

 lished plum trees would be to dispense 

 with the use of stable manure, and to 

 give an annual dressing of superphosphate 

 or basic slag — say 4 cwt. per acre of super- 

 phosphate, or 6 cwt. per acre of basic slag 

 — with, say, 4 cwt. per acre nitrate of soda, 

 the nitrate being divided into two 

 dressings. 



Apples. 

 Apple orchards should be kept clear of 

 grass. This is not the usual custom, but 

 i-ecent investigations have proved very 

 clearly that the well-being of young apple 

 and pear trees is seriously hampered by the 

 growth of grass, apparently owing to the 

 excretion from the grass roots of some 



substance which, though minute in quan- 

 tity, injuriously affects the roots of the 

 trees. If bush fruit be grown between the 

 trees and manured as already directed (see 

 paragraph relating to gooseberries), the 

 fertilisers being fairly distributed over the 

 whole of the orchard, the apples will get 

 their share of the treatment, and will be 

 grateful for it both in development and in 

 fruit production. Heavy applications of 

 stable manure, such as 25 tons per acre, 

 have proved disadvantageous as regards 

 yield of fruit. A moderate dressing of 

 stable manure, with phosphates, potash 

 salts and 4 cwt. of nitrate of soda per acre, 

 applied as just suggested, will exercise a 

 good influence on the trees. 



General Observations. 



In the foregoing notes it is assumed that 

 the soil is an average loamy soil of fairly 

 heavy consistency. On very light or freely 

 draining land it would be desirable, where 

 4 cwt. of nitrate of soda per acre is re- 

 commended, to substitute, for the first 2 

 cwt. of nitrate, 4 cwt. of high-grade Peru- 

 vian guano, or 5 cwt. of fish guano, or 8 

 cwt. of rape meal. This should be dug 

 in with the phosphatic manure and potash 

 salts, 2 cwt. per acre of nitrate of soda 

 being then given as a top dressing. But 

 where the soil is of fairly strong to medium 

 consistency, 4 cwt. of nitrate of soda per 

 acre, divided into two dressings, may be 

 looked to for producing the same effect. 



On land that is poor in lime it is well, 

 instead of using superphosphate every 

 year as a source of phosphates, to use 

 superphosphates one year and a liberal 

 application of basic slag or phosphatic 

 Peruvian guano the next year, and to con- 

 tinue this alternation. 



Manures Recommended by Fruit 

 Farmers. 



Mr. Charles Martin, when at Todding- 

 ton, found phosphatic guano, superphos- 

 phate, or other phosphatic manure good 

 for both bush and top fruit. 



Sir Walter Berry, of Faversham, ap- 

 plies one ton wool waste, and half ton 

 bone meal per acre before planting goose- 

 berries and fruit trees. 



For strawberry growing near Southamp- 

 ton peat moss manure is applied before 

 planting. 



