Marca 15, 1906 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
THE ORERARD, 
Plums and Peaches. 
(By F. A. Wavon and G. O. Grzznz, 
Massachusetts. ) 
Reports are here given on plums and the 
pruning of peach trees. 
The report ov plums deals principally with 
the behaviour of a large number of varieties 
grown at the station. Bradshaw has proved one 
of the best of the Domesticas grown, while Bur- 
bank, of the Japanese sorts, has proved the most 
profitable and productive market plum at the 
station. 
Experiments were made in marketing plums 
in 3-lb baskets, such as are used for grapes. 
This proved a satisfactory package, as it fur- 
nished about the quantity of fruit desired by 
most purchasers. 
Plums for canning were packed in Jersey 
peach baskets holding 16 qts: this proved 
satisfactory, cheap and convenient. Most mar- 
kets were found not to be fastidions with respect 
to the form of the packages used for plums, and 
any small meat basket or box will answer if the 
fruit is of good qualiiy and well packed. 
In pruning experiments with peaches one 
row has been left for 9 years without pruning. 
These trees are quite open-headed and have 
generally assumed a vase form, The lower part 
of the main branches is bare and the fruiting 
wood is sparse, weak and high up in the trees. 
The trees are much less thrifty and vigorous 
than pruned trees of the same variety. As a 
result of this lack of vigor a number of trees 
succumbed to the cold during the preceding 
winter, 
A row of trees next to this has been headed 
back moderately two or three times, as a result 
of which they are thick topped, with a good 
deal of feeble, sappy growth on the inside. The 
annual growth, however, has been much more 
vigorous and the health of the trees better than 
those not pruned. More and stronger fruits 
buds havealsoformed. The main fruit branches 
are shorter and ‘stronger and more capable of 
sustaining a large crop of fruit. The experiment 
is believed to show conclusively that the best 
form of peach tree can not be secured and 
maintained without pruning. 
~~ During the past three years a special experi- 
ment has been made in heading back peach 
trees in the spring. The conclusion reached rela- 
tive to this system is that ‘‘the heading back of 
peach trees’ in early spring is good practice and 
in all cases advisable: in this pruning from one 
third to two thirds of the wood of the previous 
year should be removed,” depending upon the 
nutuber of living fruit buds on the one year old 
wood, When from any cause there are no fruit 
buds advantage should be taken to cut back 
with comparative severity. Only in extraordi- 
nary instances should the cutting extend back 
into two or three year old branches. 
Some experiments were made in summer 
pruning peach trees. With early spring pruning 
it had been noticed that many feeble and useless 
shoots grew in the centre of the tree. It. was 
thought that if a considerable quantity of the 
new leafy shoots on the outside of the tree were 
removed, thus admitting a reasonable amount of 
light to the inside of the tree top, some benefit 
might result. ; 
“Tn no case were the results of this treat. 
ment convincing. The formation of strong 
shoots with fruit buds on the interior branches 
was never visibly promoted The outside 
branches which were allowed to remain seemed 
to profit somewhat by the removal of their 
crowding neighbors, and this was apparently 
the chief benefit derived from the experiment. 
On the whole, it does not seem to us that this 
practise is to be greatly :ecommended.” 
Cutting back the young growth of the out- 
side branches to correct overgrowth did not give 
satisfactory results. The stopping of the grow- 
ing shoots was usually followed by the pushing 
out of side buds and shoots lower down which 
mere nearly always too weak to set good fruit 
buds. 
Considerable winter injury was sustained by 
peach trees in both 1903-4. The damage was not 
serious in 1903, but in 1904 the trees were 
seriously weakened by freezing and some were 
killed outright. In treating the injured trees 
one block was left entirely without pruning, 
another was pruned in midsummer after the 
trees had started; a third was cut back from two 
thirds to three fourths of the ,previous year’s 
_ growth, and a fourth was headed back near to 
the trunk, only the stubs of the main branches 
being left. The following table shows the re- 
sulis— 
Effect of Different Methods of Pruning 
from Peach Trees. 
Total Living Dead 
Methodof Pruning. number autumn autumn Living 
pruned. of 1904. of 1904. 
Trees unpruned .. 121 13) 0a we S.0 Beem 3 
Moderately cut back 48 47.5... 4) on SY 
Severely cut back.. 68 55.0 13.0 81 
Cut back to stubs .. 46 24.0 22.0 52 
While a large number of the unpruned tress 
lived, the growth made by the headed-in trees 
which lived was much better than that made by 
the unpruned trees, It was the judgment of 
many who saw the trees that the ones moder- 
ately cut back showed the best growth and were 
in the best condition. The experiment is also 
believed to point out that trees seriously weak- 
ened by freezing should not be cut back close to 
the main trunks. 
Young hedges will do “best if the growth is 
interlaced or plaited with adjacent plants, in- 
stead of cutting back in the usual way. This 
causes a dense green growth right down to the 
ground, and the intertwining strengthens the 
hedge so that boys and pigs cannot get through. 
Cut the tops of chrysanthemums a little to 
cause thick growth lower down, remove weak 
shoots, give liquid manure and plenty of water 
at the roots. If the plants are not topped they 
will flower too early, and their value as latest 
‘flowering plants in autumn will be lost. 
Hollyhocks, dahlias, foxgloves, gladioli, tu- 
beroses, pentstemons, carnations, antirrninums 
and many other tall-growing or feeble-stommed 
flowers are likely to be ruined by the wind just 
at the time when they are well developed. They 
should all be secured to a stake or other protec- 
‘tive device, und protected to the top, else the 
wind. may bend the highest part against the 
string,’ and cause the very disaster against 
which provision is attempted to be made. 
5 
Origin of Luther Burbank 
Production. 
Tae Burbank plum was a direct importation 
from Japan. 
The crimson winter rhubarb was imported 
+o America from Australia. 
The sugar prune is a seedling of the prune 
d’ Agen. 
The crimson California poppy was obtained 
by selection from the California poppy. 
The “improved” everlasting flower was ob- 
tained from the star flower from Australia 
(Cephalipterum drummondii). This flower “ has 
undergone selection for size and color of its paper 
like bracts, until they have become large, rosy 
within and white without, and have stimulated 
structure and texture of artificial flowers to an 
extent that manufacturing milliners talk of its 
use by the million as serving the same end with 
much more grace and less cost than their cloth- 
and-wire creations.” 
The Wickson plum was produced by crossing 
Burbank and Kelsey. The stoneless prune was 
obtained by crossing an Huropean species, 
“which has never been of horticultural yalue,” 
with the French prune, followed by selection. 
The Shasta daisy was obtained by combining 
the moon daisy of Europe, the ox-eye daisy of 
America and a species from Japan and selection. 
The spineless cacti has been evolved by hy- 
bridisation and selection between five species of 
opuntia. 
———— esses 
Sorghum 
Amber Cane Lucerne 
Kissex Rape 
Globe and Long Red Mango. 
And Paspalum Seed 
0000 
Bone Dust 
Bone Super Ammonia 
Kite. Etc. 
Shell grit | Oyster shell 
Bone Meal ... and ... Chick Meal 
F. F. Clement, 
SEEDSMAN 
229 RUNDLE STREET EAST 
Telephone 1360 
GRIFFITHS BROS. 
—TRAS- 
SATISFY 
49 Rundle St., Adelaide, * 
a, WAND SAT ames Be 
MELBOURNE and SYDNEY... 
