HORTICULTURAL CLIPPINGS.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 315, 10 November 1888, Page 6

HORTICULTURAL CLIPPINGS.

Milder in Ooosebkkries. — An American writer says : — Thcie are reasons for hoping thai we have a lomedy for the gooseberry mildew in sulphide of potash, sometimes called "liver of sulphur."' Last season a row of the Industry gooseberry mildewed so badly that the ciop wns> almost' a complete failure. This year half of this row has been sprayed with a solution of sulphide of potash at the rate of half an ounce to a gallon after every rain, commencing as soon as the leaves begin to form. The result is that the sprayed part of the row is free from mildew and the plants are making a vigorous growth. On the other poition they are badly infested and are much stunted. Two rows of the bed of seedlings above mentioned w ere also sprayed with the same solution. These two row-* present a very diiiesent appearance fiom the otheis, the plants in them lu'ung a more vigorous appearance and deeper green foliage.

Scraping Tree Bark. — This is an excellent, practice if ifc be nofc overdone, for harsh scraping in the ppiing io unnatural and often injurious-. Obviously ifc is, well, atter the fceveiity of winter is past, to give the treet a good robbing, and thuo remove the rough bark and moss which &cr\esnsa harbour for injects. But scraping down (o the quick and e\po-i'i^ tofchecold winds of ea: i\ f-piit:g inu=i! leMill; in injury. A moderately „t) ong v. ash ot pot.ish natrr or fcoa;> Pud.-, will at,•■i^tin cleaning the Irunl: and iai-re brandies and in giving a bright jrieen and healthy appc.irance to fche bark, but. under genctous cul'uro ifns will seldom be found r.ecc^.-uy. The practice of s;niu2: a lica\y wa-h of caustic lime does not meet with the approval of cur most advanced orchardistt.

DISUJVAATAOES 01 KOOT GllAf-TINO. —We feel hii ic there is much truth in the following lemurks ot a horticultural wiitcr :—: — ''The roots of roob-grafced trees aie usually poor, and disposed to grow in one direction, giving: the tree poor tupport. The union between root and graft is t'ften poor, giving ripe to an abnormal thickening, many weak sprouts, and finally the death ot the tree. Root grafting can bo done cheaply in winter, while buddinocannot, and for this reason is oUen lesorted to. Budded trees on needling stocks have naturally disposed roots, and the bud is brought in contact with its conesponding growth — the stem — hence the union is a natural one." Tho trouble is that in this c ,untry, owing to the woolly aphis pest on apples, we aie obliged to root-graft to obtain bliyht-proof stocks for that fruit. However, we think that oven in 2s 1 ew Zealand it may be a mistake to rely too exchisivoly upon rool-giafted Northern Spy and Majctin stock*. With con&tantwatchfulnefes and care \\ hile the trees arc youu/^, the vvoolly blight may be kept down very much, if not quite repressed, in moderate sized oicliards.

Dwarf Peaks. — What ad vantage is there in planting Dwari Pears instead of standards and which do we advise ? In answer, dwarfs begin to bear soonest, and ate more within reach for gathering the fruit, can be more easily sprayed with poison to kill insects, occupy less p pace allowing more trees to the acre, and the fruit is less liable to be blown off from the low heads. The early bearing is commonly regarded as the lead ing advantage, but a few standards like the Bartlefct, will bear early if a proper selection is made. The drawbacks are, shorter lives, as wo have seen standards 200 years old, but dwarfs rarely over 30 or 40 years. Dwarfs require careful selection, as there are but few sorts which succeed well propagated in this way, among which Augoul3me is best, and nearly as good are Louise Bonne of Jersey, Dicl, Boussock, and a few others. In some localities dwarfs have entirely failed ; they should not therefore be planted to any extent, untii a trial has been made, in any region. They require good cu'tiyation and enriching, and enough pruning to give -vigorous shoots at least half a foot long. It some places they prove very profitable.— Country Gentleman.

Solution to Preserve Butter. — MrG. G. Stead has supplied the Ghrislchurch Prei s with the following new method of preserving butter :— " Pierre Grosfils, of Verviers, Belgium, has discovered a means to prevent butter from losing ibs savour, so that it maybe exported to countries where the climate does not permit of its manufacture. To 98 parts of water he adds two of lactic acid and .0002 parts of salicylic acid. This mixture preserves the butter for an indefinite time. If more than two parts of lactic acid is used the butter acquires a bitter taste, and is difficult to sell. In this case it is sufficient to wash it with water, or, better still, with warm milk, to which a little carbonate of soda has been added to prevent the condensing 1 of the casein. The washing also destroys the taste of the salicylic acid. The solution does not alter, and will serve a long time."