FIRST STEPS IN FRUITGROWING.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 437, 20 February 1909, Page 3

FIRST STEPS IN FRUITGROWING.

MORE ABOUT VARIETIES; GOOD.ADVICE FROM WERAROA: ' VI, • .~ No apologies. are needed * for the devotion of several articles of this series, to the quesZ tion of varieties. That phase of the industry • is so important and the knowledge, of varieties so limited that if one were to givo ; • selected lists from'twenty-of the best growers . ; they would all bo valuable. Approved Lists Wanted. . Some effort is desirable to compile ap- \ proved 'lists. of suitable-to; different :.vV.■ districts of ally New Zealand; and such 'lists '■■■ could, perhaps, best be.prepared by a council. ' of fruitgrowers • acting -in consultation with • • the horticultural exports of the Government. It might,' , perhaps, De difflcultj to'got such a 7 ■ . council together, partly because .expense would be involved, partly,becauso the men who could- best do -the. work would have least .-.to gain from; the results, and partly perhaps on 1 aocount of the. vein; of oonservatism . that pervades .-fruitrgrowers; — an eloi I mont' which would, . perhaps, tend to influ- ! cnco ; , .them..' against providing - this in- . : . formation — these tradV secrets —.to help .beginners '• to ' come in /and ■ . compete / :'; : ogainst . them. :;. ■ But.tlio, danger ' ii'oni 7 numbers is probably not nearly so. great: as fruitgrowers-ofteni supposo, for while an in-•-V creased output might at first seem, likely to" ■' reduce prices, it might in reality .. have the . . entirely, opposite. effect of; enabling, fruit-. .. - growers in- their> greater, .numbers to com-. bine and- ensure that the great gap between;. •■■■ • wholesale andretail prices, should: be. closed np. V/rong Sorts. •~. If tbo.varieties recommended for each fruit. . district wero well agreed on, there :would be' ... . . less annoyance caused by nurserymen mixing v ' . their sorts. : This troiiblo. is -said to be at times ;very-|senous.; :-'An .orchardist - might in . ■ his. early stages_ be' nearly ruined if -a . . nurseryman , supplied.': him- with the wrong - sorts, but while tho nurseryman has to maintain verying: quantities: of no. end of. sorts to bo ready for tne fickle fashion of the moment ho will always bo more.,likely: to get things . .. . mixed than if : tho.heavy.demand were mainly restricted- to half a dozen varieties of ; each ' kifid : ;of i Work of the Fruit-Testing Stations. ':,: With the development -of the fruit-testing / stations of the Government the work of selec- • ting-the suitable..varieties.' and of ensuring' ■ their trueness'to name will vbe greatly facilitated. The exports in charge of these fruitv. testing': stations are in .splendid positions to learn the'qualities of the different to impart tho information to otliers. The .: - . • list below, recommended bytMr.'iTaylor): the .v.j nurseryman in charge of tho fnnt-testing: station at. Weraroa, .will be worth remember- ; . ing by West . Coast 1 people.' ;

..Methods Criticised. The fruit culture practised at. Weraroa has been sometimes .' condemned, .because, there ; . are some glaring faults on tho farm, which, not' being-.'labelled' as > faults, are; taken by uninformed }visitors to represent the stylo, approval by the man in' charge; /The truth, i is this it is/quite.as important on an experiv ment farm to : show people the wrong ways as to show, them ,the rights ways,'.Most''meu, .: taking oversold orchard^ii^;New. Zealand today, -would take over .'orchardfula, of faults, and Weraroa can do good work by showing how to euro/them. But where Mr. Taylor . and th'oso'.'tb whom ho -i - responsible - have been laVingithemselves out: to' do things in the jright way,'.-very. good ..work- has bden done.?. I£:there is an orchard in-New Zealand •:■:/■in. wKelfcthe I ' peach '^tre^s 1 ; are: furnished: ; with; fruiting wood nearer to'.tho ground than they are at'Weraroa, one would like to hear'its name.

Best Varieties. Mr. Taylor's advios on. Varieties is'as follows: — ' ' Black Currants.—Thoro seems to bo difii- :, culty.' in getting the: varieties you r wanti ; • Take care to buy; from j someone who' will '-■'x guarante'o 'that the sorts, aro correctly named.. ; Kentish' Hero'' and -Champion-: aro' tho best., is.worthless, from all I have seen of it. > Bed . Currants.—La /Versailles . is, the old ' typo:of the-large fruiting-variety,! and'it .- appears to me to bo the best. Fay's Prolific, Imperial Chenanceau,. and • Cherry Red are all._gootL' But Bertie's No. 9, Ultrecht..and . American Wonder appear; to be. worthless; White Cnrranfs.-^'Wo : grow ' them. They appear, to bo of no value to commercial growers. , ■■ Gooseberries.—The favourite variety with : : market growers is Farmer's Glory. That is . the most profitable-one. -Broom.Girl is also ..very fiiio.-Crown'Boband AVaxringtoii a.re not. so large,' but have fine flavour and are well worth growing. We havo got ovor.Bo sorts at Weraroa, but those I * have: named ffiareithevbest.^;^ Raspberries.—lf . you grow these; do not. . - plant Cuthbert. But'almost any other variety is ■ good: iThe -writer:,'(ioDsiders: Northumber-: land and Fillbasket are the be3t. Apples.—Jonathan, and -Stunner are the • • two most profitable, sorts, and if I were about to plant on a large scale I should plant ■ ® e arly - all, with ■ these*; two - varieties. But Reinette du Canadais, an-apple always worth growing, because ; it crops every year," never . missing. It is always saleable. 'Stunner and • Jonathan also never- miss - cropping' as ; a .- general Tulei: ; v ; But : varieties do.' Hunro s Favourite is a good.>applo,-but misses in some years, giving no fruit at all. leaxs.—All the beurre's are good. Beurre . Diel is.a popular, keeping sort, but it doesn't bear very_ young. ,Beurre Capiaumont, Louise Bonne of Jersey,, Williams, and Directeur Hardy, are good commercial pears. Fertility '. seems, to - be of rpoor- quality; on : some ■ soils. - .»apanese Hums—lf you are going to grow Japanese plums, choose Wright 7 s Early rather than Burbank. It npens much earher._ :i;X'X'Xr: -x :' X- : X'X ■ : Xx X-V : -English Plums—Begin with Rivers's Early Prolific. : It bears young, bears well, ripens early, and has. good flavour. -Other good :; sorts 'are Denvers's Victoria, Blue Diamond Early, Orleans, Magnum Bonum, and Pond's Seedling., Always grow Giant Prune. It is . splendid fruit, and has a grand flavour . > Peaches.—The earliest -of all is Sneed. It . . is: ripe at ,- Christmas.- . Early:' Alexander and Briggs's Red; May follow.- Other good ones'' 1 are Coolidge's : Favourite; Greenbow, Mamie Ross (one of, the finest);'Wiggins, Hale's ; : Early,;--, High's:.: Early.■■■ Canada, -'Early Grosso Mignonne, Triumph (ripens next to Briggs's) .!■ and Henrietta, a very; fine clingstone, coming "in now. Thc-se aro all early varieties. The writer would; prefer to compare others - later in the season, after our late varieties nave-been-further tested. - : x v {