April 2020 – Page 10 – Sub-Tropical Fruit Club of Qld Inc.

Phytophthora Control by Gus Gorissen

Phosphonic Acid Injection for Phytophthora and other root diseases was compiled by Ted Newton from a talk given to the Sub-Tropical Fruit Club of Qld by Gus Gorissen of Chemjet Tree Injectors. website: http://www.chemjet.com.au

History of the Chemjet tree injector

The company Chemjet started in the early 1980s. We had an avocado farm in Caboolture. A tree would be green one day, and yellow the next. The DPI confirmed that there was phytophthora on our place. Phytophthora is a fungus soil disease spread by feet – humans, birds, anything – and it’s all over the world. Overuse of pesticides in the past killed good bacteria along with the bad, so now the only way to control phytophthora is to treat it with fungicide. Our challenge was to get the fungicide into the tree. There were trees with no leaves left, so spraying was not an option. So the DPI suggested that we could inject it into the tree. We drilled a hole in a tree that we had been ready to take out and put in some fungicide using veterinary injectors. It worked; in three to four weeks the tree had new life and in six months was fully restored. However, with five thousand trees, injection using veterinary injectors had practical limitations. This led to the development of our first prototype injector, with a spring-loaded plunger. Over the years it developed into the little machine we sell now all over the world. It is a simple gadget and it lasts forever. It is also environmentally sound as each injection uses only 20ml of fungicide. With spraying, it’s proven that just ten percent of the fungicide is effective and the rest is wasted. The leaves do not absorb fungicide that is applied by spraying as effectively as they do when it is delivered by systemic injection.

Facts about phytophthora

Phytophthora stops the feather roots taking up moisture and nutrients. It is often thought that the tree needs nitrogen or something else. Often it doesn’t need anything; all it needs is a healthy root system. If you have a healthy root system, you can do with half of the nutrients that you have applied. The tree will look after itself, and the fruit will tell you if other nutrients are needed. Prevention of phytophthora is the key. Phytophthora affects tree health and when a tree is sick, every disease it gets hits hard. It will affect the size and numbers of your fruit. If you wait until you get that yellow colour on your leaf, you’re too late because you will lose your crop. If you have just one or two trees in your orchard with phytophthora, then it is in your place and you will spread the disease as you walk between healthy and infected plants. It is better to prevent it by injecting your trees at least once a year and you can be sure that you will keep your crop for that year. Often it is lack of water that has transferred the fungus through the soil. There is a way of measuring phytophthora in your root system. One way is to take all the dirt under the tree away, and cover the area with newspapers. Under the newspaper you will find new growth. The roots should be pure white. As soon as they show brown, that’s phytophthora. Phytophthora is in every agricultural crop. They spray for it, in potatoes, strawberries, and many others.

Other types of injectors

There are some other injecting machines around. Some have developed a system where the fungicide is shot in under high pressure. When you shoot it in under pressure, you can imagine what happens; you blow a hole in the tree. Just as when you get a splinter in your finger, nature responds by sealing it off, so fungicide fired into a tree under high pressure does not get taken up and is wasted. It won’t go anywhere, because the cells identify it as a foreign object and close it off and leave it there. Don’t be fooled by the idea that if you pump the fungicide in quickly and seal the hole to stop it running out, that it will be taken up over time. That is not the case. The fungicide has to be fed into the tree’s system under low pressure, 35 psi, otherwise capillaries can be damaged.

The fungicide

The fungicide is phosphonic acid, commonly known simply as phosphorous acid. Sometimes it is referred to as phosphonate. It is important to distinguish it from phosphoric acid which is a different chemical with a range of commercial uses such as rust and scale removal, and in dentistry. In diluted form it is an additive (E338) in carbonated beverages to give them a distinctive cola flavour. To be certain you get the right one, it is recommended that you buy a recognised brand of the fungicide from a retailer of gardening or agricultural products, ensuring that the label on the product specifies its use for the treatment of fungal root diseases in plants. When you read the labels of the various fungicides, bear in mind that all those manufacturers are aiming for volume use. Very small portions of their labels, if any, will provide guidelines on injecting, as they all want you to either spray the chemical or trench it. That is not necessary at all.

Injecting trees using the Chemjet tree injector

We can inject trees from as little as 50 cm (2 inches) diameter. On a young small tree less than 50 cm (2 inches) diameter, you may brush diluted fungicide on to the stem where it has a green surface and it will be absorbed. You may do this until the tree gets to a size when you can start injecting. The fungicide should be diluted according to the instructions on the label, but usually the ratio is about 25% fungicide to 75% water. When you inject a tree, you drill a hole, making a wound that takes time to heal. Not every tree is the same; one tree will be able to take up fungicide fairly quickly while another is unable to do that as fast. In a young healthy tree, you need only one injector, because it will spread around and cover the whole tree. Stay away from the branches of young trees. If you drill a hole in a small branch, you may weaken the tree and it may snap. More injectors are needed on larger trees. Step out the canopy diameter of the tree, and the rule-of-thumb is that for every metre of canopy diameter, you put in 20ml of fungicide. Each injector holds 20ml of fungicide so this will determine the number of injectors you will need for that tree.

Drilling the holes

Always drill injection holes into fresh wood; if the sawdust is dark, you are drilling into old wood. The wood (the sawdust) should be white on the inside. If you drill into old wood, there may be a cavity inside and the fungicide will not be taken up. When you don’t drill deep enough, you don’t have enough space in front of your nozzle. You need surface area around the hole for the fungicide to penetrate the wood. Capillary action is better as you drill deeper. Also, it is better to drill at a downward angle. If you go in horizontally, you are likely to reach the core wood, whereas if you drill at an angle, you will stay in the sap wood. It is the sap wood that takes up the fungicide. You don’t have to do anything with the hole; being small, it heals itself.

How fungicide injection works

The fungicide goes into the sap flow and the leaves of the tree, photosynthesises with sunlight, then goes back through the sap and settles into the root system. There is where it stops the phytophthora going into the feather roots. It goes up, comes down, and will cover that particular area where you have injected. With growth rings, the phosphonate will not spread laterally; it will go up vertically. Then it comes down and it settles in that particular root system on that particular side of the tree. In the end it’s a matter of judgement. Particularly in drought conditions, the more roots you can create the more chance the tree will survive. Using the canopy ‘rule-of-thumb’ described earlier, you divide that around the trunk. You don’t have to put it all into the trunk. You can put it into the branches coming from the main trunk. However, if you drill into too small a limb, it burns because it overdoses. For example, a limb of 100cm (4 inch) diameter or less could be too small. Sometimes, in 24 hours the tip of the leaves will turn brown. It means that you might have overdone it a little bit, but it is an indication that the fungicide is at least in there. That’s good; the leaf will fall off and quickly re-grow and the tree will be protected for the next 12 months. The uptake on the side of a tree away from the sun may be a lot slower than on the side facing the sun. Therefore individual injectors are needed because you have to cover 360 degrees around the tree to cover the whole root system. Stay away from a tree when it is flowering. Also water it well when flowering. It will develop the growth cells at that particular time. If you don’t water, it won’t have the growth cells when it gets water later on, and it will split.

Treating already sick trees

You need to inject sick trees at least twice a year to get them back to where they should be, and then you may be able to get away with once a year after that once the tree is fully restored. There is a way of measuring fungicide present in the soil, but it is a very technical process and you would need to ask for professional help. For small growers, that might be too costly. The simplest way is to inject once a year for healthy trees, and twice a year for the sick trees.

Using avocadoes as an example

With avocadoes, first you have your fruit-set. After your fruit-set, you get your new shoots coming out. As soon as the young red leaves turn into green, then your root system starts developing. That is the time you start injecting because all the new roots will develop from that month on, and you want them protected. That is your first flush. Your next flush – the summer flush – will be in January, so if you have sick avocado trees you will give them another injection then. If you don’t see much improvement, inject them again before winter time. The good thing about injecting is that provided the injector containing the fungicide doesn’t fall out, which it won’t if you put it in properly, then once it is empty the fungicide is in the tree and no other place. If you spray it on, you have to wonder how much of it will be taken up, and you have no idea. When you do it with this injector, it’s guaranteed to be in the tree. It also pays to keep up with developments from DPI. They will let you know latest information, for example, they are currently researching a theory that just one injection eight weeks before flowering will protect avocadoes from phytophthora for the whole year. However this research has not yet been finalised.

Further information

Comprehensive information on the Chemjet injector and its uses may also be found on the company’s website at www.chemjet.com.au A product brochure in PDF format may also be downloaded from this site.

Members’ questions

Member: Can you inject anything other than phosphonate?

Answer: Yes. Companies have developed a systemic insecticide – Dimethoate – you may already be spraying it in your orchard. That is for borers and similar pests. However because it is systemic, you have to be careful that there is no residue coming in to your fruit because you injected at the wrong time. But in the off-season, particularly with citrus where you have problems with borers, by all means, inject it.

Member: What about a Neem extract? That should be perfect for it.

Answer: Exactly. In America they did very successful trials of it.

Member: Does this systemic fungicide find its way into the fruit?

Answer: No – it won’t go into the fruit; it affects the roots, and therefore the health of the tree. That will improve the fruit.

Member: When is the best time to inject?

Answer: The best time is in the morning before the day heats up. You also put all the injectors in at once, because the holes ‘communicate’ with each other.

Member: The barrel of the device has a graduated scale for measuring the phosphonate. Do you always use 20ml?

Answer: Yes, always 20 ml. The scale is there because in the early days we used to use coal tar to dwarf the tree, to stop it growing too fast. That was an ICI product, and the DPI in Nambour discovered that with 10ml injected each year, you could dwarf them and slow down all the energy going into growth. However ICI never registered it for injecting; they said you have to pour it or drip it on.

Member: How can you tell if a tree has phytophthora?

Answer: You can see the yellow nerves in the leaf – that’s an indication.

Member: Have you experienced phytophthora in trees other than avocadoes such as mangoes?

Answer: Yes. We do mangoes, citrus, chestnuts and ornamentals – they all suffer from phytophthora. It is often said that they are blown over by wind. They do that because they have no roots left. The only state in Australia that recognises die-back is Western Australia and they do something about it. We suffer it everywhere. The Sydney Harbour Trust did a full study of it because of gum trees that fell over. If you have an unhealthy tree, borers and other insects have a feast. They affect the whole growth cycle of a tree. The roots are not expanding. Years ago I know we had roots on trees that went looking for water. Nowadays they say that if there is no water the roots don’t go looking for it, but they used to. They would go under asphalt, under anywhere to find water. But if they haven’t got that root system, they can’t do it.

Member: So how long does the phosphonate take to go in?

Answer: Temperature is a factor. If the temperature is low, there is no respiration in the tree; respiration is the amount of water that is flowing up and evaporating through the leaves, and that’s what it’s dependent on. If there is not much evaporation, then there is very slow uptake. The tree is just saving its energy for other times of the day, when it will be growing. It can take anything from 25 minutes to 2 hours.

Member: There are a lot of beneficial fungi. What happens to those when the phosphonate goes down to the root system?

Answer: You are only putting in a minute amount compared to spraying or trenching. Your soil fungi actually do need phosphorous in small amounts, so this may actually help them.

Member: If we use injectors, does that mean we can grow avocadoes in flat, poorly drained country, because we are able to combat the phytophthora?

Answer: Possibly! Actually the avocado tree was originally a swamp tree. It came out of the Guatemalan rain forest.

To inhibit the spread of Phytophthora the following should be adhered to:

Sanitation of tools and machinery – tools must have all traces of soil washed off then be regularly drenched in a solution of disinfectant. (A solution of one per cent bleach is sufficient for disinfecting machinery.) When planting several plants, disinfect tools in a portable container of disinfectant before and after planting each one.

Boots and tyres – soil clinging to boots and tyres is a common vector in transporting Phytophthora. To limit the spread of this fungus, ensure all soil is scrubbed clean and the surface is disinfected (using a one per cent solution of bleach, or a 70 per cent solution of methylated spirit. Using disinfectant according to the manufacturer’s directions is also suitable.)

Infected vegetation – Phytophthora can persist for many years in the dead organic tissue of any trees it has infected. Infected vegetation must be disposed of carefully. Never woodchip any vegetation suspected of being infected by Phytophthora. Prevention and limitation of the spread of Phytophthora is the most effective means of control (Royal Botanic Gardens Trust 2007).

Sheryl: Many Thanks to Ken & Muriel Webb for hosting this field trip at their place.

Terminology explained:

Phosphonic acid: Phosphonic acid is one of two forms of an organic compound commonly known as “phosphorous acid”. See the explanation below under “Phosphorous Acid”.

Phosphoric acid: Phosphoric acid is a mineral (inorganic) acid having the chemical formula H₃PO₄. It has a range of industrial uses including: rust removal; a food additive in processed beverages such as cola drinks; an etching solution used in dentistry and orthodontics to roughen the surfaces of teeth where dental appliances or fillings will be placed; electrolyte in some fuel cells; an industrial-strength cleanser, and a pH adjuster in cosmetics and skin-care products and in hydroponics. It is not to be used as a fungicide.

Phosphorous Acid: Phosphorous acid is a compound generally described by the formula H₂PO₃, although it is an organic compound that exists in equilibrium and reacts as if its molecule has more than one structure. One form is called phosphorous acid, and the other phosphonic acid. As an aqueous solution, the acid is trunk-injected or foliar-sprayed to control a variety of microbial plant diseases such as phytophthora, dieback/root rot, and downy mildew. It is also used to prepare phosphite salts used for similar applications. Phosphorous acid and its salts are more toxic than phosphoric acid and should be handled with caution.

Pest Notes

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Animal repellent for possums, rabbits and hares from the TreeCropper Magazine in NZ: Recommended by Eric Appleton from Appletons Tree Nursery.

Mix 5 eggs, 600ml water and 150ml acrylic paint. Spray it on your plants – very good for seedlings

Anti-Possum Fence www.treecrops.org.nz/resrch/apple/cotago05.html
In a recent edition of the excellent West Australian publication Quandong Magazine Vol 32 No. 1, it has information from New Zealand on how the Coastal Otago Branch of the New Zealand Tree Crop Association control their possum problem in their conservation apple orchard at Volco Park north of Dunedin. The entire area was fenced first before plantings went in and since then “hot wires” were added to exclude grazing stock. The photo shows fence posts about 3 mtrs apart and the key to this type of fence is that the lower part attached to the fence is rigid and the top part which extends above the fence posts about 2 mtrs is quite floppy with an overhang away from the orchard. Nearby vegetation is cleared well back. Tall posts are attached at every 6th fence post to attach the upper part of the wire.

Ants Wrap the trunk with duct tape – sticky side to the outside. (Make sure to go around just once and don’t overlap so the trunk can continue to grow.) On top of the tape you use a sticky resin. There is a product called Tanglefoot. It is a natural very stick resin. The ants will not cross that. You have to reapply every 3-6 months, depending on conditions. You would not want pesticide or diesel to contact the trunk as it could damage the tree. Even the Tanglefoot can damage the trunk if you put it straight on. You can also spray the ants with diluted dishwashing soap. That kills them. Some ants don’t like cinnamon and won’t cross a line of cinnamon. Ref: Oscar, Hawaii

Ants Todd in Guatemala has been using several different techniques due to the resources that they have on hand: 1. Use an old 2 litre plastic soda bottle as a collar. Cutting the top and bottom off, make a vertical cut to put around the tree. Bury the collar a few inches in the ground. The ants can’t climb the plastic. 2. The manure from another nest spread around your nest will make them leave. (Similar to all the male dogs peeing on the same post!) 3. If there is a lot of water, domestic or rain water, flood their home. I dug a 6 inch ditch to canal to rain run off to flood their home/nest. After 3 days they abandoned their nest. 4. The old timers say to put a banana plant on their nest. They don’t like the humidity of the banana roots.

Bryan Brunner says that they have lots of biting ants in Puerto Rico and every country person knows that if you wear rubber (plastic?) boots, the ants won’t climb up them to bite you!!!

Luc in Mexico uses a black plastic bag and ties one end around the base of the tree to protect and folds the whole thing down – has been working successfully for the past 6 months to stop ants climbing up.

Ants: Collect citrus bugs, put them into a jug of hot water then pour the brew down ant mounds or where you don’t want ants!

Ants: Put small piles of corn meal around. They take it back to the nest and eat it but can’t digest it so it kills them.

Ant Deterent mixture:

500 gms polanta – cook like porridge; 1 cup golden syrup, mix with Fipronil or other ant deterrent like Crawly Cruncher and put around trunk of tree when fruit is on the tree. Put out once a month. Fipronil is very effective against insect pests, and may be used in doses of less than 0.5 grams of active ingredient per hectare. At these low concentrations it is not harmful to reptiles, birds or mammals (including humans). Fipronil does not dissolve in water so there is no danger of it threatening water supply.

Diatomaceous earth is also said to act like a barrier if sprinkled around ant mounds. To ants it’s like crossing small pieces of glass and will encourage them to relocate mounds to a safer location.

In terms of a broadcast bait for ants, you can make you own by mixing 1 cup of sugar, 4 teaspoons of boric acid and 24 ounces of water in a glass jar. Close the jar tightly and shake the mixture thoroughly until all the crystals dissolve. Pour 1 cup of this mixture into a smaller jar filled partially with cotton balls. Screw the lid back on, seal around the lid with weatherproof tape and punch a few small holes in the centre of the lid.

General all-rounder for controlling pests: 1 dsp molasses, 1 tsp detergent, 500ml water

If you double the concentration of the molasses, you can use it as a possum repellent on your roses says Annette McFarlane …wonder if it works on fruit trees. The double concentration also works with nematodes.

Grubs on Cabbages – Try growing Wong Bok instead and sprinkle with a light dusting of fine salt when the heart first forms. Repeat every 2-4 weeks. Too much salt will burn the plant.

Insects love yellow so protect your citrus with netting, bag your fruit and hang fly traps in your trees.
Get a large 20 litre yellow bucket (white works too) fill it with 9 litres of water and they will fly into it. The versatile duct tape can also be used to get rid of white flys. Just staple the NON sticky side to a piece of Gyprock or similar material by opening up a stapler to a 180 degree angle and stapling it into the board. You can also use yellow sticky paper, whitefly/aphid traps. I use duct tape. Tape the duct tape sticky side up. You can accomplish this with a stapler into the wall. Masking tape also works with white flys, or try garlic/oliveoil/red pepper (red hot sauce works too) Spiders are also natures sticky tape so get them to do your dirty work for you. Tom Waters – www.

Possums One of the ladies I met at the ABC Gardening Expo said that her mother had great success using garlic which she had segmented then threaded onto fishing wire and this had deterred possums from jumping onto the roof of their caravan.

Another new member brought along to the last meeting plastic spikes she had bought from Bunnings and apparently they had worked fairly well when she had wrapped a couple of them around her pawpaw tree.

Powdery Mildew Prior to spraying, the plant should have been watered for 2 days!

Mix 1 full teaspoon of baking soda, 1 tablespoon of mineral oil, half a teaspoon of dishwashing soap or insecticidal soap, 4 litres of water.

Milk Spray Recipe for Mildew: 12 cups full cream milk to 1 cup water. You could add 1tsp bi-carb also to it.

Steel wool can be loosely placed around the circumference of tree trunks to help prevent ants from walking up into the tree’s canopy.

Sterilize your tools: Dip them in 1 part household bleach : 5 parts tap water. Then dip immediately into 1 part vinegar, 5 parts water and ¼ part salad oil.

Stink Bugs in Citrus: Soap sprays or Pest Oil will treat nymph-stage stink bugs in winter. Dissolve 10gm of soap flakes in one litre of warm water but do not spray on hot days or foliage may burn. However, by the time stink bugs turn orange or bronze, they are hard to kill. Knock them into a bucket of hot water or use an old vacuum cleaner to such them up. Wear eye protection as they squirt caustic fluid.

White Ants: One cup of Phenyl in a bucket of water and pour over infected tree.

White Louse Scale Only use Lime Sulphur on deciduous trees when they are dormant and when there are no leaves on the tree.

Perilla

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The perilla genus has at least 6 species that have been used by man. Their area of origin in Asia extends from India to Japan. Perilla is an aromatic, fast growing annual 50cm to 150cm tall, resembling Coleus in appearance, and large leafed basils, to which it is related. Two lipped flowers can be white, pink or lavender-purple, forming in leaf axils and terminal spikes. The plant has a very bushy canopy of opposite leaves forming on square stems. Leaves are ovate to 15cm long, and the margins are soft toothed and may be indented and frilly. The herb is a traditional oriental flavouring, particularly in Japanese cuisine, where it is used as readily as we use parsley. The leaves are highly aromatic and really cannot be compared to the smell of any other herb. The flavour is slightly sweet and spicy with a note of mint. Perilla’s aroma and flavour take a while to be appreciated. Leaves are eaten raw, cooked, salted and pickled, or used as a garnish. Young green leaves, particularly of green perilla are essential for sushi. Purple perilla leaves give a vivid colour and flavour to the traditional Japanese sweets and umebashi pickled plums. Perilla is also used in pickled ginger, Chinese/Japanese artichokes (which are an attractive gourmet root vegetable, see pages 84, 269) and raw fish dishes like sashimi. Leaves are cooked in tempura batter and used to flavour bean curds. Perilla seeds may be sprouted, like alfalfa, added to any dish or used as a garnish. Flowers make a dainty, edible, decoration on a dish. One of the components of the volatile oil extracted from perilla, perilla-aldehyde, can be made into a sweetener, said to be 2000 times sweeter than sugar, with very low kilojoules. This sweetener has been used as a substitute for maple sugar or licorice in processed foods, and is utilized in processed foods and tobacco. However, an antioxime of perillaaldehyde, is considered too toxic for food use, although, it is used in minute amounts in flavouring sauces, toothpaste and confectionery. Analysis of perilla’s anti-microbial properties has been documented to have over one thousand times the strength of synthetic food preservatives. Perilla is grown as an oil seed crop from Japan to northern India. The oil comprises up to 51% of the seed’s weight. The oil is used for culinary purposes, similar to linseed oil, and also has industrial application in paint, printing, and paper manufacture. The natural red pigment called shisonin is used in food processing as a colourant.

Sheryl: I recently visited Melbourne and observed this plant growing in my friend’s garden and brought back some seed so hopefully I can share it with you if I am successful in propagating it. It was growing exceptionally well (weed said my husband!) My friend and I both love Japanese cuisine particularly Sushi so do go looking for it. Nice photos at: http://www.plantnames.unimelb.edu.au/Sorting/Perilla_Gallery.html

Wikipedia says: Perilla is a genus of an annual herb that is a member of the mint family, Lamiaceae. In mild climates the plant reseeds itself. The most common species is Perilla frutescens var. japonica or shiso which is mainly grown in India and East Asia. There are both green-leafed and purple-leafed varieties which are generally recognized as separate species by botanists. The leaves resemble stinging nettle leaves, being slightly rounder in shape. It is also widely known as the Beefsteak plant. In North America, it is increasingly commonly called by its Japanese name, shiso, in addition to being generally referred to as perilla. Its essential oils provide for a strong taste whose intensity might be compared to that of mint or fennel. It is considered rich in minerals and vitamins, has anti-inflammatory properties and is thought to help preserve and sterilize other foods. In Nepal and parts of India, it is called silam. Its seeds are ground with chilli and tomatoes to make a savoury dip/side dish. In North America one of the purple varieties is sometimes known as Purple Mint, Chinese Basil or Wild Coleus (although it is not a mint, basil or coleus).

Chemistry

The essential oil extracted from the leaves of perilla by steam distillation consists of a variety of chemical compounds, which may vary depending on species. The most abundant, comprising about 50–60% of the oil, is perillaldehyde which is most responsible for the aroma and taste of perilla. Other terpenes such as limonene, caryophyllene, and farnesene are common as well. Of the known chemotypes of perilla, PA (main component: perillaldehyd) is the only one used for culinary purposes. Other chemotypes are PK (perilla ketone), EK (elsholzia ketone), PL (perillene), PP (phenylpropanoids: myristicin, dillapiole, elemicin), C (citral) and a type rich in rosefuran.

Perilla oil is obtained by pressing the seeds of perilla, which contain 35 to 45 percent oil. In parts of Asia, perilla oil is used as an edible oil that is valued more for its medicinal benefit than its flavor. Perilla oil is a very rich source of the omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid. As a drying oil similar to tung oil or linseed oil, perilla oil has been used for paints, varnishes, linoleum, printing ink, lacquers, and for protective waterproof coatings on cloth. Perilla oil can also be used for fuel.

The oxime of perillaldehyde (perillartin) is used as an artificial sweetener in Japan as it is about 2000 times sweeter than sucrose. References: Refer wikipedia on the web

NB: Perilla ketone is toxic to some animals. When cattle and horses consume purple mint (of the PK chemotype) while grazing in fields in which it grows, the perilla ketone causes pulmonary edema leading to a condition sometimes called perilla mint toxicosis.

Pepino

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In July, John issued the challenge “I want a really BIG pepino patch this summer”, and so I got to work. We’d had few straggly pepino plants around, but they weren’t given any special treatment, were semi-shaded, and had only produced a few small fruits, which were promptly eaten up by magpies.

I decided to do some research about growing conditions, and found that the pepino (Solanum muricatum) is native to temperate climates, originating in the Andean regions of Colombia, Peru and Chile. Surprisingly, the plant is not known in the wild, only in cultivation, so no-one really knows its origins. It is grown commercially in New Zealand, Chile and Western Australia. Fortunately the pepino is a hardy plant and can grow at altitudes ranging from near sea level to 3500m, although it does best in a warm, relatively frost-free climate. This seemed to suit our conditions – our vegetable patch is at the highest point of our 5 acres, and hardly gets touched by frost. In any case, it seems that they will survive a short period of low temperature of 27 to 28° F, but may lose leaves.

I forked over a patch in full sun about 3 x 2 metres and worked in some well rotted compost and just a few handfuls of Organic Extra. Our garden is all organic, and this is the standard treatment for my vegetables. I didn’t overdo the fertiliser, as I wanted to avoid too much vegetative growth. The patch was then left fallow while I propagated the plants.

With its woody stems and fibrous roots, the Pepino is very simple to propagate vegetatively from cuttings. I just ripped up some pieces – some of which had roots and some not – treated them with rooting hormones, potted them in some good free-draining mix, and placed them in our shade house. In a few weeks they were flourishing – each piece had grown to a strong plant with vigorous root growth.

I planted out 10 plants into the patch in late August, so they would have plenty of time to grow and ripen during the warm summer months. I gave them a spacing of about 40cm, and mulched well to suppress weed growth. The whole vegetable garden gets watered frequently by overhead sprinkling, and over the next few weeks the pepinos responded with rapid growth. Apparently they are sensitive to moisture stress, as their root systems are quite shallow.

The plants started flowering well but seemed slow to set any fruit. Back to the Internet! – where I found that they will not set fruit until the night temperatures are above 65° F. Before long the fruits were forming, alas, just as the first few ripened, John was headed off to the USA for 2 weeks on a business trip. He managed to try the first one, but over the next fortnight they just kept rolling in, and all the neighbours benefited! Most of the fruits were very large, as big as a good sized orange, and sweet and juicy. Luckily there were still plenty when John returned, and he went straight off to “his” Pepino patch and filled a large bucket or two.

We have had virtually no problem with pests and diseases. Occasionally a creature (probably a rat) has a go at a fruit – usually the ripest. Apparently pepinos can be affected by many of the diseases and pests that affect tomatoes, such as bacterial spot, anthracnose and phytophthora, spider mite, cut worm, fruit fly and leaf miner, but we have not had any trouble with these.

Despite the possibility of pest attack, we avoid the temptation to pick the pepinos greener, because the best flavour is when they are fully sun-ripened, when they compare favourably with a cantaloupe or honey dew melon. John grabs the fruits straight from the plant as a thirst quencher, and can be spotted in the garden with juice dribbling down his chin, but I think they are nice chilled and eaten like a melon.

Our pepino patch has been a great success, and I recommend that everyone grows at least a few plants. To top it all off, yesterday I noticed pepinos in the supermarkets selling for $2 each – and not as big as ours! I guess that means we’ve produced a couple of hundred dollars’ worth already!

Peach Trees – Girdling using cable ties for sweeter, larger fruit

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“Girdling is normally done by using a knife to cut away a strip of the tree’s bark,” Taylor said. “The sugars that are produced by the tree can’t flow below the strip. But this damages the tree and increases the likelihood of insect and disease damage, too.” Taylor says some growers believe the traditional girdling method shortens the life of the tree. For the past three years, Taylor has used cable ties to girdle peach trees on test plots in middle Georgia, where 95 percent of the state’s peach crop grows. She straps the cable tie to the tree in the winter. In the spring, when the tree grows its peaches, the cable ties restrict the flow of sugars but don’t permanently damage the tree. “You remove the girdle after harvest, and the tree recovers,” she said. “And you can do it again the next winter.” Peach trees create sugars by photosynthesis and move them down into the roots for storage. Girdling holds the sugars in the upper part of the tree, Taylor said, moving them up the tree and into the fruit instead.

Larger, sweeter peaches

The increase in sugar draws more water into the fruit. The result is a sweeter, larger peach.
“At the end of the fruiting season, we remove the girdle and allow the sugars to flow back to the roots,” she said. Girdling peach trees with cable ties results in earlier peaches, too, she said. “Earlier peaches translate into increased profits for the growers,” Taylor said. “They’ll be able to harvest three to five days earlier than they normally would. And the earlier you can get a crop to market, the greater the return.” Taylor said one large grower adopted the new girdling method last season and had a 5 percent increase in his highest-quality fruit category. “We’ve made a lot of progress for middle and late-season peach varieties, but we don’t have the technique really optimized for our earlier-season varieties,” she said. Growers as far away as New Jersey and California have shown interest in the cable tie girdling method. “We had a grower in South Carolina try it on about 200 acres with very good results,” she said. Taylor believes the method can be applied easily to fruit crops like apples and plums with similar results. It’s available now, but growers haven’t widely adopted it yet. Georgians may have to wait a year to pick fresh Georgia strawberries and blueberries, but if figs suit your fancy, it’s prime picking time.

Kathy is a Researcher from the University of Georgia

Pawpaw/Papaya Grafting

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If you have papaw/papaya seedlings with 1-2 cms stem diameter, use the V top grafting. However, with large tops up to 20 cms in diameter, you use a W graft,cut 99% of the leaves, you must fasten at 2-3 places with a plastic zipper strip, spray with various fungi-bactericides, double cover with opaque plastic bags to maintain humidity. Try and match the diameter of the crown to the rootstock. For the huge crowns you need a strong sharp long knife or a very thin blade hand saw. You should draw the cutting lines with similar complementary angles so that the 2 parts will fit into each other. The photo is from Ariel’s tree in Israel.

Paul Williams from California tried this W graft of a Sunrise Solo bisexual papaw weighing five kg of apex on a male rootstock. The apex was taken from an 8 years old, 5 metres tall papaw and was grafted on a 13 cm in diameter male rootstock. The graft was conducted on July 2005 and since then the apex grew by one metre.

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Sub-Tropical Fruit Club of Qld. Inc Newsletter December 2006 – January 2007

Papaya Seed Australia

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This article is by Garry Grant 18 Vaughan Rd, Darts Creek, Qld 4695 (07) 4975 1317 Fax: (07) 4975 1397 Email: ggrant10(at)bigpond.com Darts Creek is between Gladstone and Rockhampton, Qld. Garry sold his pawpaw seed business and details of where you can purchase seed is at the end of the article. Garry now sells organic certified Pawpaw Leaf: http://organicpawpawleaf.com.au/

Papaya Seed Australia sell organic seed to produce both red and yellow fleshed papaya. The farm is certified organic, Australian Certified Organic No 4508A. Both bisexual (hermaphrodite) and dioecious seed is offered. Bisexual seed produces both bisexual (67%) and female (33%) trees. Dioecious seed produces female (50%) and male (50%) trees. Hybrid numbers are prefixed by B (bisexual) and D (dioecious) as well as Y (yellow fleshed) and R (red fleshed). For example hybrid YD1B indicates yellow fleshed dioecious hybrid 1B. New crosses are being trialled continuously and will be added to this site when found to be commercially viable.

The Reds

RB1 is a bisexual pink fleshed hybrid. The fruit is elongate shaped and sweet flavoured. RD1 is a dioecious red fleshed hybrid. The fruit is roundish, slightly ribbed with deep red flesh colour. It is very pleasant eating. RD2 is a dioecious red fleshed hybrid. This is a very fast growing plant and will start picking 9 months after planting out as seedlings. The fruit is roundish and slightly ribbed, with deep red flesh colour. It is extremely good eating. RD3 is a dioecious red fleshed hybrid. The fruit is roundish and slightly ribbed, with deep red flesh colour. The fruit is similar to RD2 although a little larger. It is extremely good eating. RD4 is a dioecious red fleshed hybrid. This is also a very fast growing hybrid and will start picking 8 months after planting out as seedlings. The fruit is oblong with a small teat, and firm pink- red flesh with a mild musk flavour. RD5 is a dioecious red fleshed hybrid. The fruit is oblong, slightly ribbed with pink/red flesh colour and a small teat. It is similar in size and shape to hybrid RD1. It is very sweet and superb eating.

Sunrise Solo is a pink fleshed bisexual inbreed. It is the most commonly grown papaya worldwide. The fruit is small, pear shaped with a very sweet musk flavour.

The Yellows

Hybrid YD1B The most widely grown of all the hybrids in Australia, fruit is oblong, is very clean, flesh is firm, and is a medium yielding tree. Hybrid YD6 This hybrid produces oblong fruit, is clean skinned, and very high yielding. Hybrid YD11B produces oblong shaped fruit. It is very clean skinned, especially over the colder winter months, and consistently sweet tasting, although it is the lowest yielding of the yellow fleshed hybrids. Best planting time is autumn to produce low fruiting trees. Hybrid YD13 This hybrid produces globular fruit. It is clean skinned and the largest yielding of all the yellow fleshed hybrids. Hybrid YD14 produces oblong fruit. It is very clean skinned and a medium yielding tree with a mild frangipani flavour. Hybrid YD29 This hybrid produces round fruit. It suffers to varying degrees from winter spot in the colder months, is consistently sweet tasting, and is a high yielding tree. It is a low bearing tree irrespective of planting time.

Hybrid YD59 This hybrid produces round fruit. It suffers to varying degrees from winter spot in the colder months, is the sweetest tasting of all the yellow fleshed hybrids, and is a high yielding tree. Initial fruit are large. This hybrid bears fruit from a very low level.

About Hybrids

Hybrids are the result of crossing 2 “fixed” (stable) parent lines. Hybrids are more vigorous than their parents, produce more fruit and are less susceptible to disease. All papaya are affected by climatic changes but when grown under stable conditions hybrids are very consistent in fruit shape and size. Hybrid seed for sale here is only the first cross of the parent lines, producing F1 hybrids. Hybrids cannot be successfully grown from seed collected from F1 fruit and will be inconsistent in shape, size and yield. Bisexual papaya are affected by a condition known as carpellody or “cat-facing” and is caused by the fusing of the ovary and stamens during adverse weather conditions. This fruit is deformed and unmarketable. Carpellody is one of the reasons bisexual varieties are not normally grown in sub-tropical areas.

How much seed will I need?

With dioecious varieties growers generally plant 4 seedlings to the site, thinning sites to 1 male site to 10 female sites. Planting density varies between growers but on average is 750 sites to the acre, or 1850 to the hectare. The amount of seed required is 50 grams per acre or 125 grams per hectare. With bisexual varieties growers generally plant 2 or 3 seedlings to the site, thinning to 1 bisexual tree per site. Some growers market the female fruit of the bisexual, although the flesh is not as thick. Seed required is 40 grams per acre or 100 grams per hectare.

Guarantee

Germination is tested before dispatch and we guarantee a minimum germination rate of 50%. If lower rates occur seed will be replaced to meet the minimum germination rate, or we will refund all or part of the purchase price. The seed is guaranteed for 50 days after purchase date, after which no refund will be made or additional seed sent.

Ordering Seed can be delivered anywhere in the world.

Phil Slocombe, PO Box 791, Malanda Qld 4885

Ph: 0456 368 245 Email: pwgs@ozemail.com.au

http://www.papaya-seeds.com.au

Organic Garden Recipes found on the internet

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Give these a try and let us know the results

To start controlling the fly you will need to adopt good housekeeping of fallen damaged fruit (including from neighbours yards), this must be destroyed – don’t compost it or bury it in the garden as this will only aid the development of the fly. I have been freezing damaged fruits, but generally a good method is to put the fruit into a black plastic garbage bag or the like and leave it in the full sun for a day or 2 to cook the fruit thus killing the fly larva. Here is a recipe to use in your fruit fly traps: 1 litre of water, 2 cups of urine, 3 teaspoons vanilla essence, 1 teaspoon vegemite, 1 cup sugar

Mix ingredients together – pour about 1 or 2 cups of ingredient into each trap, place traps in and around fruit trees etc. Renew the solution each 10 days.

MORE FRUIT FLY TRAP RECIPES

Use mixes of either of the following or all of the following – the more the merrier:

vegemite and water – 1 teaspoon per cup of water – 1.5 to 2 cups per bottle depending on bottle size … or
honey and water – 1 tablespoon per cup of water (then do as above), … or you can combine these 2 … or
mix 1 tsp vanilla essence,1 tblsp ammonia (bleach) & 1 cup water… or
1 cup of water, 2 cups of cider vinegar, 2 tablespoons of molasses

place in trap bottles and replace every 2 weeks….. or

you could buy from your local produce agency a fruit fly wick or 2 or 3 traps can be made from 2 and 1.25 ltr clear plastic drink bottles.

WEED KILLER

Mix in a container 1 gallon white vinegar (3.78 ltr), 1 cup table salt, and 1 tablespoon dishwashing liquid together and spray on weeds. To mix, remove approximately 2 cups of vinegar from the container, pour in the salt and dishwashing liquid, then return the 2 cups of vinegar to the container. Close the lid and shake to mix. Transfer to a spray bottle (after shaking to mix the ingredients) as needed. It works as well, if not better, than chemicals, but is much cheaper. Be careful, it will kill whatever you spray it on! If you purchase vinegar, 10% acidity is ok, 20% acid would be better, and spraying it on the weeds in the heat of the full sun, you will have an effective weed killer.

Native Limes – Family Rutaceae

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Australian Native Foods – Plant Profiles Citrus – Family Rutaceae

Common Names & Species:

• Desert Lime (Citrus glauca), Finger Lime (Citrus australasica) and Round Lime (Citrus australis)

• ‘Rainforest Pearl’ PBR Finger lime – a selection of Citrus australasica var. sanguinea

• ‘Australian Blood Lime’ PBR – (hybrid of Australian finger lime and Rangpur lime, Citrus australasica var. sanguinea X Citrus x limonia)

• ‘Australian Sunrise Lime’ PBR lime (hybrid) (Citrus australasica X [Fortunella sp. x Citrus reticulata ‘Calamondin’])

• ‘Australian Outback Lime’ PBR, selection of Citrus glauca.

Desert Lime

Finger Lime

Native To:

• Desert Lime – Queensland and New South Wales, west of a line running from Rockhampton to Dubbo, with some isolated occurrences in central South Australia

• Finger Lime – rainforests in southern Qld and northern NSW

• Round Lime – rainforest margins of southeast Qld, from Brisbane northwards

• ‘Australian Blood’ PBR lime is a hybrid produced by open pollination, from a cross between an Ellendale Mandarin (a mandarin and orange hybrid) and a seedling form of the Australian Finger lime (Citrus australasica var. sanguinea)

• ‘Australian Sunrise’ PBR lime is a hybrid from an open pollinated seedling selected from a Faustrimedin, which is a hybrid of the finger lime with the calamondin; itself a hybrid between the cumquat and a variety of the mandarin group (Citrus reticulata). Habit:

• Desert Lime: tree to 2 – 4 m, bearing small green to yellow coloured fruit

• Finger Lime: tree to 10 m, bearing oblong green to yellow fruit

• Round Lime: tree 3 – 10 m, with rough skinned, green to yellow fruit

• ‘Rainforest Pearl’ finger lime: open, upright small tree to 3 m, bearing yellow-green fruit with red pulp at maturity

• Blood Lime: tree to 2 – 2.5 m, with small, red-fleshed fruit

• Sunrise Lime: tree to 2 – 4 m, bearing small yellow pear shaped fruit

Tom Ling is looking for Australian native citrus, namely, Kakadu Lime, Maiden’s Australian Wild Lime, New Guinea Wild Lime, and other Sydney Hybrids. Contact the club.

Desert Lime will not survive in Brisbane due to too humid weather.

Native Hibiscus

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Native Hibiscus Hibiscus heterphyllus Malvaceae Native Australian Bushtucker

Other names: Native Sorrel

An evergreen upright open pyramidal shrub to 6m, with pink, yellow or white maroon-centred flowers with crispy berry-rhubarb flavour. Leaves are dark green and often tri-lobed. Plant in sun to semi-shade, in a slightly acid, well-drained soil. Tolerates wet and dry conditions but is moderately frost sensitive. Water well and fertilise only during flowering. Tip pruning aids bushiness and seems to encourage flowering. The main flowering period is summer to autumn. The calyx is sour, acidic, fibrous and crisp in texture and can be eaten raw or cooked in sauces and preserves. Petals are used in jams, jellies, fruit stews, sauces and as a garnish. The young shoots, leaves and roots are also edible. Small prickles on the stem, leaf stalks and the underside of leaf-blades make the plant harsh to touch and can cause skin irritation. The fibres of the wood can be used for weaving. Native Rosella attracts birds.

Champagne Cocktail: Place a whole Wild Rosella Flower in the bottom of a champagne flute. Fill slowly with your favourite Champagne for a unique, spectacular and delicious special occasion experience! Bubbles stream off and open up the flower, while the drink changes from bright pink at the bottom to light pink at the top. Enjoy your champagne and eat your flower – it has a sweet raspberry flavour! You could add a little drop of rosella syrup if you’d like to sweeten it.

Authored by:

Sourced from:

STFC Newsletter April – May 2006