10 
The ‘Orchard. 
Operations for September. 
By W. J. Auten. 
The citrus growers of nearly every dis- 
trict are complaining of very light crops, 
and much of the fruit is only just colour- 
ing being much later in ripening than 
during ordinary years. In the ordinary 
course of events producers would at the 
present time have been busy. pickiny, 
pecking, marketing large quantities of © 
these fiuits. This year, however, they 
have had to find other work to cccnpy 
their time, and I trust that most of them 
employed as much of their spare time as 
was possible in carting either soil or 
manure in order to assist as far as possible 
in bringing the trees back into good 
uormal condition, I cannot help but 
think that there is many an unprofitable 
orchard in the fruit growing districts 
which, had their owners been a little 
more liberal with manure, would still be 
yielding fairly good returns. 
The grafting of deciduous nursery stock 
should be now nearly completed, and 
should there be any unprofical le apple, 
pear or other trees standing in the or- 
chard, these also may Le gratted to good 
varieties. Grape vines are easily grafted 
Just as the buds are well swollen and 
about to burst. Old peach, plum and 
apricot trees will be found wuch harder 
tograft than either ap,le or pear trees. 
li there are any such in the orchard 
which are unprofitable it would be as well 
to cut them back and graft to better 
varieties, and in the event of the grafts 
not taking young shoots might be allowed 
to grow and buds inserted either in the 
summer or fall, 
Besides the above work, there is the 
winter spraying with the salt, sulphur 
and lime solution, which will kill two 
birds with cone stone, being both an in- 
secticide and fungicide, It answers fairly 
well in keeping 1n check the curl leaf of 
the peach tree: bnt for this latter dis- 
ease Bordeaux mixture is even better, 
Trees treated with either of these solu. 
tions will show very little curl. 
The lime sulphur, sulphur and salt is 
one of the best sprays we have for Sai 
Jose scale; but where trees are badly in- 
fested, it is best to give two Sprayilys, 
one in the fall and another in the spring, 
Just as the leaf buds begin to swell and 
before the trees are in bloom. 
For peach aphis the resin and soda is 
a good useful spray, as is also the blue oil 
emulsion, but it usually takes several 
applications to kep this pest well in 
check. ; 
Another mode of treatment is to dis- 
solve a cake of Sunlight soap in two gal- 
long of water and spray when warm. This 
is easy to mix, and has given satisfactory 
results in destroying this pest, and the 
wash will not injure the blossom, conse- 
=a 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
quently the trees can be sprayed at any 
time. It is not safe to use other sprays 
when the trees are in bloom, 
At time of pruning, particularly in 
young apple orchards, a sharp-look out 
should be kept for tho appearance of 
woolly aphis, and should any trees be 
found infested they should be carefully 
pruned, removing and burning as many 
of the infested twigs as possible, Then 
either scrub the trees thor ughly with a 
strong kerosene emulsion or fumigate with 
hydrocyanic acid gas so as to eradicate 
this pest if possible. _ 
All old bark should be scraped from 
apple, pear and quince trees, and the 
scrapings burnt, and everything in the 
orchard which would be a harbour for 
codlin moth destroyed. 
Keep all fruit-houses a3 clean as possible 
as there is no doubt that they are respon- 
sible for harboring a great many moths 
during the year, therefore keep the room 
as air tight as possible, and as soon as 
the moths begin to hatch in the spring 
burn sulphur fumes in the rooms once 
every other day for a fortnight so that 
the moths may be Cestroyed as they 
begin to fly. 
In working round vines keep a sharp 
look out for the pups of the vine moth. 
If there are any cld, partially rotted 
stakes, the moths will he found adhering 
to these, and also to the old bark which 
is hanging to the vine, Crush these when 
found, and thus assist in keeping down 
this pest as far as possible. 
Growers who intend using quick-acting 
fertilisers should make the first applica- 
tion this month. It is best not to apply 
too much at one time, but rather make 
two applications—one now and one after 
the fruit is well set. 
By Apert H. Benson. 
Orange trees require attentive treat- 
ment in the matter of Maori or rust, 
Maori is ciused by a very sinall mite, 
which begins its attack on the young 
fruit when it is about the size of a 
marble, though the injury it causes is 
seldom noticeable till the fruit begins to 
ripen Spraying the trees with a mixture 
of sulphur and soft soap or with a weak 
solution of sulphide of soda, or dusting 
the trees with fine sulphur, will destroy 
these mites. 4 
A careful examination should be made 
of all fruit to see if any contain laryz of 
fruit fly: and if such are found they 
should be destroyed, as if extreme care is 
taken during this and next month to 
destroy the larva: of all fruit flies, when- 
ever and wherever found, this great curse 
of the fruitgrower would be greatly re- 
duced, as it 1s on the careful destruction 
of the earlier broods of flies that the 
saving of the main crop of fruit will prin- 
cipally depend. Though the first damage 
caused by the flies is comparatively in- 
significant, they reproduce themselves so 
rapidly that a few mature insects in the 
beginning of the season become many 
thousands before it closes, 
SEPTEMBER 1, 1906 
The Crown-gall and Hairy-root 
Diseases of the Apple Tree. 
A preliminary report of investigations 
on the crown-gall and hairy-root diseases 
of the apple tree has been issued by the 
Department of Agriculture, U.S.A., for 
the purpose of calling the attention of 
apple growers to the different diseases and 
to interest them in the collection of data 
regarding the predisposition of varieties 
to these diseases. 
The investigations have resulted in 
separating what was previously called the 
apple crown yall into two diseases, The 
disease now designated as crown gall is a 
callous-like gall growth following wounds 
on sume portion of the root systein of the 
_tree and whch rarely occurs above the 
ground on parts of the trunks or limbs, 
> The malady now calle] hairy-root disease 
is characteriseil both in seedlings and in 
grafted or bud lel trees by a stunted root 
systeu, accompauied with an excessive 
production of small fivrous roots, often 
originating in clusters from the main or 
tap ruot. Galls often occur in connection 
with the hairy root, but these are the 
results of wounds rather than a forin of 
the disease. 
The apple crown gall is of two types. 
Tn one a hard callus is formed on grafted 
trces at the union of the root-and scion, 
or at any other point of the root system 
where wounds occur, and the result of 
extensive inoculation with this type have 
failed to prove that this disease is of a 
contay;ous nature. ‘lhe second type is a 
suft form more common on seedlings, 
occurring rarely on grafted trees. ‘These 
softer galls resemble those of the rasp- 
berry and peach, in that they are soft and 
often rot off, but it is not certain that 
they ate rep.aced the following year by a 
hew growth, nor is there any proof that 
they are of a contagious nature, 
Nurserymen are advised tu give careful 
attention to the selection of seedlings for 
grafting or budding, rejecting all that 
show tufted or hairy roots, as these will 
develop into hairy-rooted trees with a 
very deficient root system. So far as the 
investigations go the disease is not con- 
tagivus. It is hoped that in the near 
future practical means for reducing the 
percentage of trees affected with these 
diseases will be known. 
Highty acres of the Rose de Sargeant 
prunes, in the Bathurst district, produced 
izuu lo of dried fruit, for which a ready 
maraet was found at eightpence per lb 
wholesale, which is equal to £40 per acre. 
The trees are vigorous. 
If you want to keep your trees free from 
scale and other insect and fnngus diseases, — 
be energetic in swabbing and sprayimg 
with lime, salt and sulphur. 
Lime dus ed out ot a bagis a good 
remedy for slugs, 
The orchardist should be careful in 
purchasing young trees, and see that they 
are not only true to name, but all they 
should be in root, and trunk and branch 
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