November, 1913 



shoots, far nothing goes into tl 

 fruit that has not first been ela- 

 borated by the leaves' 



The vine-growing districts ol 

 Australia are all fairlv hot, and 

 it is singular that in the districts 

 of Southern Europe, where the 

 climatic conditions are somewhat 

 similar, vines are not topped ; and 

 in France the method is confined 

 almost entirely to very cold dis- 

 tricts. 



\-igorous, or in districts where long 

 spells of dry weather occur during 

 summer, " topping " may be done, 

 provided it is not done drastical- 

 I3- ; in the case of very vigorous 

 vines growing. in a soil not ia<;king 

 moisture during summer "toppmg" 

 will hardly do a.nx good, and may 

 cause harm in the long run.- -Af./ 

 Blunno. — Agricultural Gazette, 

 N.S.W. 



♦ 



Where topping is done in the 

 north of Italy it is alwavs done 

 before blossoming," and the shoots 

 are not all removed at once, but 

 at different tini'es with intervals 

 of eight to ten davs, making gene- 

 rally three operations. 



Some growers in Australia 

 " top " principally because the 

 shoots interfere at a certain stage 

 \vith work in the vineyard. In such 

 cases, why not limit the topping 

 to the shoots that have grown 

 too long ? At any rate, five 

 joints should be left over the 

 grapes if th* shoot carries one 

 bunch, and three joints if the shoot 

 carries more than one. 



I should say that in the case of 

 old vines, or of vines not too 



Thinning Fruit. 



It is unfortunate that the tlun- 

 ning of.- fruit goes absolutely 

 against the grain of the average 

 amateur. He has planted fruit 

 trees to bear fruits, and he can. 

 not, or will not, see the advan-' 

 tage of remo\4ng them before they 

 are big enough to be of the 

 slightest value. By laying a tho- 

 roughly good foundation at the 

 start, the grower immensely bene- 

 fits in the long run, for-if a tree 

 is not subjected to the exhaustive 

 process of cropping in its earliest 

 days, it will bear regularly season 

 after season when it is established, 

 whereas, if it is overburdened at 

 the start, it will be stunted or 

 thrown into that peculiar 'state 

 which spells a crop in alternate 

 years only. 



♦ 



Moving Orange Trees. 



Though it is not good to move 

 trees when the}' are growing free- 

 ly. Nevertheless,, if it be neces- 

 sary they can be moved safely 

 during any cool change, and pre- 

 ferably 'just as the change is 

 coming on. Prepare the ground 

 well where the tree is to go in 

 a day or two beforehand ; dig the 

 hole, taking out one good spit, 

 and digging the next deeply, mix- 

 ing in some wood ashes and a few 

 pounds of crushed bones or bone- 

 dust— half a gallon will not be too 

 in'uch for each tree. Then water 

 and leave ; also water the tree 

 to be removed. When the work 

 is to be done the ground will be 

 in good working condition. Take 

 up as much root as possible, cut 

 oil the big roots cleanly, keep all 

 moist, and put, into the new posi- 

 tion, allowing for the after-sinking 

 of the soil, so that the tree will 

 finally stand with the swellings at 

 the base of the stem ; where the 

 big roots begin are ju.st above the 

 general surface. Spread the roots 

 well, cover with fine, moist, mel- 

 low soil ; keep the roots in their 

 proper j)lace ; firm the soil round 

 tliem gently, and water well. Thin 



OTit the top, corresponding with 

 the loss of the roots, more parti- 

 cularly taking ofi the tender 

 growths. When a tvse is remoVed 

 its first effort is ^to restore and 

 develop its root system before it 

 makes growth above ground. To 

 this end of leaves are necessary 

 for the elaboration of sap, but 

 the tender growths are of little 

 use for this purpose and require 

 nourishing to grow. They are, 

 therefore, a source of weakness, 

 and except under exceptional cir- 

 cumstances are better nipped ofi. 

 Cover the tree if possible with 

 hessian, and- it will hardly droop, 

 at all, and will soon start growing 

 again. 



♦ 



Young Trees. 



The first two summers are usu- 

 ally the most t'rying period for a 

 young tree, and it is during this 

 time that strict attention must 

 l)e given to them. After the se- 

 cond summer is over they will re- 

 quire very little attention, except 

 the ordinary cultivation. The 

 }'oung tree ha\dng been carefully 

 planted and staked during the 

 winter months will begin to make 

 its growth as the warm weather 

 approaches. When watering the 

 tree use a hoe or fork, and give 

 the soil a good stirring, this will 

 ■ allow the water to soak well down 

 into the ground, and the young 

 roots of the tree will follow it 

 down. Do not allow a hard crust 

 to form round the tree, which is 

 usually caused by the sun baking 

 the damp soilT-b}- giving the sur- 

 face soil a little stirring with a 

 hoe, this will be prevent^. The 

 use of grass or litter as a mulch 

 is to l>e recommended for when it 

 is provided for the trees, the num- 

 ber of waterings each summer 

 may be reduced. Remember that 

 one thorough watering is more 

 beneficial than two or ten sparing 

 ones. 



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