Jury 14, 1906 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
7 
Se ee eee ee 
The Crehard. 
Do not attempt to plant orange, lemon, 
and similar trees until the soi! bezins to 
gel warmer. The check oceasioned by lift- 
ing out of the nursery beds supplemented 
by remov tl into ¢ Id soiland cold air wil 
probably kill ths tr as, or at any rate they 
vill not make as mu:h July progres: or be 
as healthy as trees planted at the end of 
hext August. Some people who sell tre s 
do not care whether they-live or die so long 
as they get the money for them, and they 
are ready to sell as many more to fill up 
the gaps. Such trees can he safely planted 
from middle of March until end of April, 
oc from end of August until mddle of 
Oetober. After planting they will :equire 
some attsntion in watering, and the surface 
soil should be kept pulverised or be covered 
with some litter. When water is wanted 
the edges of the leaves curl inwardly. If 
the Jeaves assume a pale color it is advised 
to sprinkle about 2 1b weight of sulphate of 
jron over the area covered by the branches, 
Some bonedust or superpho-phate and a 
little nitrate of potash is always beneficial 
if applied in the same way to orange, apple, 
‘pear, and other fruit trees. 
‘Training of Fruit Trees. 
(Mr. Gro. Monks.) 
The aims and objects of fruit-growers 
shonld be to so train their trees that the 
fruit bearing area shall be as large as 
possible, compatible with the ability of 
such trees to sustain the weight of fruit 
which they are called upon to bear. Un- 
fortunately, in the past, as far as most of 
the hills growers are concerned, trees were 
allowed to take their own way; and ag 
Nature is not a good trainer of fruit trees, 
the result was bad, pruning having to be 
done at the eleventh hour, and trees that _ 
should have been shapely and well formed 
are an eyesore to all. The old idea, as far 
as length of stem or trunk of tree was 
concerned, was that it should be from 2 ft 
upwards. The present system, or at least 
the one generally adopted, is from 1 ft to 
1 ft Gin. It was also thought at one time 
that the higher the fruit grew the better 
was the quality; lut that idea is pretty 
well exploded now, it being a fairly well- 
known fact that fruit grown within a short 
distance of the ground is not only of better 
quality, but of a more even and regular 
grade. It is also a fact, but perhaps not 
well known, that the lower the branches 
emanate from the stem the stronger they 
are, and the better abie to bear the sirain 
of frnit-bearing. No well-trained tree 
should be allowed to bear its fruit much 
higher, if any, than an ordinary man is 
able to reach it from the ground. 
There are two ways of training fruit- 
trees, which I propose to deal with. Both 
systems require just about the same length 
of time, viz, about three years of winter 
pruning, to briug them into shape. 
The first is to allow three main branches 
to grow from the stem, pruning each of 
these the following year, so as to produce 
six; and the next avain cutting back so 
as to provide a tree with twelve branches. 
It will be seen at onee that a tree of this 
kind which has only three branches eman 
ating from the trunk has every year all 
the weight of fruit upon these branches. 
Take, for instance, as x-bushel crop. That 
means to say that each of those branches 
has to bear two bushels of fruit besides 
weight of toliave, ete. Rightly or wrongly, 
[Lam under the impression that twelve 
branches are too many for a feait-tree — 
parucubuly an apple-tree —alchough some 
growers advocate at least fitteen. 
The other system of training, and one 
which I sin experimenting with, is to have 
at least six main branches, all starting 
from the trunk. Winter prune as in the 
other system for three ar four years, 
filling up, by means of Summer prnning, 
all main branches with spurs from 2 in to 
6 in long. I am satistied, as far as my 
little experience goes, that six main 
branches are enough for a fruit-tree, espe- 
cially an apple tree, and can be so filled 
up with fruit-spurs that no waste space is 
found; and, also, that each tree will bear 
the strain of crops much better than any 
other in existence Another great advan- 
taye it bas, aud that is a Jarger fruiting 
area can be built up with it, as there is 
not the same danger of breckhing dewi 
the tree. 
rn 
Export of Fruit to South Africa. 
The Secretary to the Commonwealth 
Department of Trade and Customs has 
forwarded to the Secretary for Agricultnie 
the copy of the following communication 
received from the Director of Ayriculture 
? 
Cape Town : — R 
In pursuance of my cablegram of May 
20, 19V0, relative to consiguinents of Aus- 
tralian apples for this colony, Lain directed 
to invite your atteution to the necessity 
of the fru t being free from diseases aud - 
insect pes-s, as itisanticipated thit several 
thousand cases of Australian apples wall 
be landed at our ports during the coming 
season, The common “ Black Spot”? of 
Australia (Fusicladium dendriticum) has 
been found on apples in South Africa, 
but is very limited in its distribution. It 
does not occur at all in our most impor- 
tant fruit-growing districts, and there is 
every reason to believe that if it got 
established it would cause considerable 
loss here during the rainy months. In 
conseqnence, our fruit-gruwers are very 
anxious lest new centres of infection 
. 
‘ 
should be established, and this Departl 
ment apprehen!s danger from the exposa 
for sale of infected fruit in the shops-- 
Another disease of Australian apples, and 
one which was found to be common on the- 
frut sent to this country last year, is 
“ Fly Spot?’ (Leptothyrinm pomi). This 
disease does nor ocenr, as far as is known, 
anywhere in South Africa, and this De- 
partment is naturilly very anxious that 
it shonld not be introduced. The Secretary 
for Agriculture feels that importers have 
been given qmte enough warning, and 
that if consisnments m°terially atfected 
by these or other fungus diseases, or by 
codlin moth, arrive, he would be fully 
justified in orlering their confiscation or 
immediite ship nent t» some port outside 
South Africa, Ele would, however, reqnest 
your Go ‘erument to kindly warn shippers 
as was done a yer ago, and thus minimize 
the risk of loss from our refusil to receive 
shipments. J may mention that it is ox- 
pected that all consignments of apples sent 
to our ports from Canada hereafter will 
be examined by Government inspectors 
before their despatch, with the view of 
eliminating parcels which would not be: 
acceptable here. _ 
emer ernmenens  ee 
wi is. 
Cacti—ijlocereus Schotti. 
