1 Juny, 1899.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAN JOURNAL. BYs 
VINEYARD NOTES. 
By E. H. RAINFORD, 
Viticultural Expert. 
As soon as possible after the vines are pruned, the vineyard should be ploughed, 
and that to a sufficient depth if the ploughing is to be of any benefit to the 
vine. Deep cultivation of the yineis a point far too much neglected in this colony, 
our vignerons for the most part contenting themselves with superficial scarifying, 
apparently with the idea that so long as weeds are kept under it is sufficient. 
This is a mistake, for only the surface of the soil is.kept in a fine state of tilth. 
A few inches down a hard pan is formed if the soil is at all so heavy that even a 
fork will penetrate with difficulty. No fruit tree is more susceptible to stagnant 
moisture than the vine, and a certain amount of oidium and black spot is 
attributable to this cause. Besides breaking up the under soil hardened by the 
summer scarifying, and allowing free passage for rain water, deep ploughing 
brings it to the surface where, under the agency of the air and the sun, the 
mineral matter in the soil is decomposed and rendered ayailable for plant food. 
The first ploughing after pruning should throw the soil away from the vines, so 
that air may get to the roots, and should reach a depth of not less than from 
6 to 8 inches. The second spring ploughing should throw the soil back again. 
But vignerons who have neglected deep cultivation of their vines hitherto are 
cautioned against beginning it when their vines are some years old. The effect 
would be to break off all the roots that have formed a few inches below the 
surface, and to considerably damage the vines. In these cases, the best thing is 
to run one or two deep furrows down the centre of the space between the vines 
where the roots are fewer and smaller, and damage to them would not affect the 
vine. But to those are just starting a vineyard, deep cultivation cannot be too 
much recommended. ‘The roots will naturally seek the undisturbed soil, and 
these, by being deeper down, will not be so much affected by a sudden rise of 
temperature, which causes surface roots to circulate sap and prolong autumn 
vegetation. 
s 
Botany. 
CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FLORA OF QUEENSLAND. 
By F, MANSON BAILEY, ¥.L.S., 
Colonial Botanist, ; 
LICHENS. 
Tux following are determinations and descriptions by Dr. James Stirton, 
Glasgow, of the three small collections of lichens. No. 1, collected by C. J. 
Gwyther, at Jimbour (June, 1895) ; Nos. 2 and 3, by myself, at Thursday Island 
(June, 1897) and New Guinea (May, 1898) respectively :— :. 
Calicium subtile, 4ch. On decorticated Eucalyptus. Unfortunately, with two 
exceptions, all the capitula had delapsed or been broken off. The spores in the 
capitulum examined were mostly immature and colourless, and still retained in 
single file in the thee. A few fuscous free spores were seen, elliptical, 
unilocular, ‘006 — -009 x ‘004 — 0055mm. And go far they differ in shape 
from those of ©. subtile, which are oblong, &e. IT cannot however, meanwhile 
at least, reconcile myself to the separation of the two. Curiousl enough, this 
is the only specimen of this tribe of lichens that I have received from Australia 
or New Zealand, and, so far as recorded, the only other one is C. curtum, Borr., 
from New Zealand, given by Babington. The latter has much larger-soptate 
spores. 
