24 



in treating oidiiim with sulphur, unless the heat of the sun was 

 strong enough to melt the sulphur and cause the fumes to rise it 

 was of very little use. He had tried it two or three times last 

 year, and had great difficulty in getting rid of the oidium. As 

 to black spot, that could be eradicated. It was only necessary 

 to open up the ground round the roots, cut away the fibrous roots, 

 and keep them open all that season ; the next season dig very 

 early and leave ground rough j the soil would then take sufficient 

 nutrition from the air and rain, and there would be no more black 

 spot. The first ten years in his vineyard he had the oidium and 

 black spot very badly, but for the last. 20 years he had had it very 

 little. 



Mr. Ceaike thought a slight addition should be made, to render 

 the Bill acceptable. The idea had been mooted that many of the 

 clauses were too stringent. Several leading vine-growers in the 

 Geelong district would agree with him in suggesting the insertion, 

 after the words " Governor in Council," the words " on the request 

 of the central board of advice." The Governor in Council or 

 the Minister might be requested by an inspector to declare some- 

 thing a fungus or an insect pest under the Act when it might not 

 be^ necessary, whereas if it were proposed by the central board of 

 advice then all fruit-growers would have confidence that the 

 thing was required. The apple root-borer was one of the most 

 serious of the insect pests, and it was not mentioned in the Bill ; 

 and the fusicladium was not mentioned amongst the scales. 

 The only ones mentioned were the lemon and the orange scales, 

 which only affected a very small portion of the colony ; while the 

 black spot on the pear and apple were spreading very rapidly 

 through the colony. He thought the root-borer should be included, 

 because it destroyed the trees ; whereas the codlin moth did not, 

 and was a matter easily coped with. 



Mr. Bbettjch seconded the amendment. 



Mr. Haebis said he would like to hear the opinion of the vine- 

 growers as to the advisability of including fungus at all. One or 

 two Members in the House spoke strongly against the fungus 

 clause. He thought it ought to be inserted, but would like to 

 know whether the vine-growers present thought the oidium, the 

 black spot, and other fungus diseases of the vine should be 

 included ? 



Mr. Lang said he believed fungus was left out of the Bill 

 because at the time no remedy was known for the cure of black 

 Spot m the apple and pear. But since the Bill was before the 

 House Mr McAlpine had found a remedy for thoroughly eradi- 

 cating black spot. He and his neighbours had last year tried the 

 remedy suggested by Mr. McAlpine, with thorough success. One 

 01 his neighbours had a large number of Cleopatra apple trees, and 



