A FIGHT FOR THE APPLE F

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 144, 13 March 1920, Page 7

A FIGHT FOR THE APPLE F

DR. TILLYARD'S WORIT

ST.-GEORGE AND THE WOOLLY APHIS M

1 Dr. li. .T. Till yard, M.A., B.Sc., V.Z.S., iJ.\E.S.;vof.-,the. jivdney/tfyivoisi'th nun' to bwomt!. ,o|. tjje,. -Ca jvijirun In'stifnle at Nelsou', iv'as' , 'ligain'"in M'ellingf<ii> Ibis week. When hero previously Dr. Tilly,trd: spoke oiij' tho 'dcteirtrafetl trout of New Zealand, and suggested ways and means He was imported' by tlie New' ZeTtiaiid Government to investigate that subject, • and ,hisi.renoi'.t has •goiie -fco-..th6' Minister. "Summed up," said- Dr.'.Tillyard to. a Dominion*.rSnr«s6uWive, : -'"it' means too •manvtfront.. fcoo' Kttle"food'. -'.vWhat must bv .done is. t0... and.,.encourage its neural "food!"'' Dr Tillyard has been offered.' and has accepted the position of brad of the. biolosicfil branch-of, the, Gawthron aiid-it'to take up that'a'p'jxmit'ineirt nn • A-oril. 1.. and. in,|o,rdOT...to.,dq.so-.ho.vis potf oil his wav to Sydney by 'th'o iianiikit. Dr. Tillvard's services have been bor-rov.'ed-.fronr. the:-institiito-b,y-tb.e Government for six months. and; lie".vill pro'('eed" t.i Eniil'aiid aronce't'o the Dominion at the Imperial-Conference of Unioipoloiiists. which is to open in London mi .Tuno 1. Whilst at TTomo he will '.d(i .bjlsiiiis-j for; the' 1 Ctothfon-'.lnstitute, jinmel.y.,. jn j:he.(lLrcctiQn..of securing rare books for tlie library, and apparatus for tl'ff.-JaW.Ttorv. .-.jvHe. ; will urn via Ameiic.i, in order to attend tho TVinPacißc Scientific Conference at Honolulu 'which 'Kis'lMn 'convened' by Profew., Gn;goi;y, ot-tlie Bishop,. Museum, tn (Lfcr.uss'the scientific exploration of tho Tnei3cr'?-:IIe-Will 'feturii-ajfifflt- September or Octobor, nnd iako up his residence at Nelson before the end of the ..vear.- -r '■■■• .--.-n , Wuilst in the' South' 'Island, in siddi--tlor- to.fjoing: into the.-trout-question, Dr. Ti!).y?r.(t did a, good deal of entomological inv'est : ffation, 'visited the biological station of Ihe Canferbury...'.College, ran up to Lake Wokatipu, took in the glories of Arthur's Pass, and incidentally discovered several insedls altogether new to f-cicxice,.., He, .lectured ~at. Clyistchurch, DiinediiiJ and' Nelson to large' and in"terßsted ? rre-V •

"When in Nalson I had i fiootl look round, the orchards," Dr. Tillyard said, "and T was imicli impressed, not aloris .with, the notential' valim of' llie'.-industry , tp,. New Zealand, ..hut, .with .thi* serious looses that were being sustained by' the depredations 'Coiiimiltcd-.iiiiDir.'.'tliß apples by,the woolly aphis and other pests. .To. extent this pest—the_ aphishas been kept jrtown by spraying.' but ivitli tho steep Tiso in i-lie price of the .chemicals' usedViri. thpvniulciiig)' of tho aiilutioa4i.en)|!lovcd,'it LsWcomiftg-.a very costly tiling to spray. To-day it costs .65 an acre In spray an orchard, and "fiv?"spfayn»BS~ a" yMr "Wans W'dtfllSy ,of .£25 per annum. Jf Uip rise in Ibo prico of ,the necessary chemicals continues, it . \vili;-iiot. paS'i to spray.- and comes' •'atom I'' itf-will' W'BerioiKS- What must be .done as soon .as..possible is to find the inntnrali 'eiteniios flf'the aphis and oth?r pests and kpep them under scientific- con-trol,-to. be bred and sent out. .to ; any orelwrdist attacked. . TlWy' Have found 'the liatnrol enemy "<(f --Mali-y ;: -W these pests. in America, and so have cloan oHiards. '. ' ' '•" ■" '

"A great' deal of loss has, occurred tlii's season "iii stone friiit r thrSiigh brown ; rotr'a-.fungoid disease -for,- which'. : ttierc is 110 known cure. It will iio doubt Jjb stlie duty .of Miss Curtis, who ,has been appointed 'mycologist to "the -institute, to investigate that pest. .Returning to apple pests, .'having, found, out, tho natural eneniv to the woolly aphis 'the thins would be to breed resistant stocks. .In Oregait and' C3]ifoi'iiia;-yqu.,raU:..not find the aphis, for "they •hav.e .kjlled it and then planted resistant stock's.' If a dirty, neglected orchard is found in a ''district by an inspector there are no hog pardons—it is 'Down with those trees and burn thftnrpbnrn those hedges.)' It means ,a jf(jne_cjil -clijan-tjuliso that' a fresh 6tai't"")ii!fy" lie' raadr.~'"Wliy,""'ivcl3on dis-trict--has hawthorn hedges everywhere, and hawthorn is the natural food for the 'pear-slug.:-■■■K you: get tlujm oIF the trees, tliey repair to the liearost haw-. ' thorn'.•hedge, and wait there /quite content until tho pears come along again. Oh, hedges are ■ fifst-class • shelters.-for -many awful pests. .And really all that is.' 'required'.is' a -dittls, kiiqjfledgo and .thorough...organisation. It will cost a lot of money perhaps to get things in order, but isn't it worth'it? If in ten .years-I can say that-1 .hn,ye demised tho district of (lie woolly aphis I will .-consider that »I l|ave mare than ear*«d my money." •