Amateur Gardener

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 247, 21 November 1914, Page 5

Amateur Gardener

Continue to plant out ,cauliflower ami cabbage. The cool of the evening is the best time for this work. If the plants are carefully-lifted from the seed-bed and are well watered in they will have a much greater chance to succeed than when planted during the heat of the clay. Advantage should be taken of showery weather, but it is not always advisable to wait for these conditions. A little seed may now be sown to keep up a succession. Peas should be sown at rather shorter intervals now, as the pods form aud mature much quicker during hot dry weather. The same remark applies to French beans. Runner beans should be staked early, fts they make headway much faster when they can start their climbing tendency tfuriug infancy. Where stakes are not obtainable they may be grown on the dwarf'ng system. "When this plan is adopted the runners should have the points pinched off when they are.about a foot high; this will cause the lower bods to develop farther runners, which must be again Stopped, as necessary, to develop a branching habits Lettuce, turnip, radish, and such like {slants of quick growth should be ittfe w& often. H the soil is dry it will be good practice to give it a' good soaking with clear water, allowing a sufficient time to elapse for the excess of moisture to ilraiii away before sowing the seeds. "With this treatment the crop will be finer and last longer. Where young onions are ap-.» predated a little seed should be sown at fortnightly intervals. Frost effects are still very apparent amongst the rosles) thdngli buds may to all ordinary appearance have escaped damage, it is very noticeable if development lias been checked when the buds start to open. Green quartered flowers, and short petals are the result of this check, and it is well to pick off these buds as soon as it is seen that they are malformed, as> if left, they waste the energy of the plant to no purpose. The flowering period of sweet peas will be much extended if the flower spikes are picked when, or before, they are fully developed; the plants should be gone over twice a week, ajad all fully opened flowers should be gathered. Another good plan to lengthen the season is to cut a portion of the plants back about half their height while.they still have vigour to respond to the -operation by vigorous growth. Where it is necessary to restrict the growth of Banksian roses, or where the plants are getting thin or straggly, now is the time ta rectify or to restrict, as the plants, if healthy, will quickly respond with wood that will have sufficient time to mature into' flowering shoots for next season. ROUftD THE GARDEN. A rather novel and pleasant scent drew my attention to a shrub that previously was only regarded as an acquisition to shrubs :th.a|^^^ or &istiric^TOS^' y oT' : follage' or wood. The plant is Eleagntis attgustif Olitfs; it is a semi-evergreen ? ~.witfe-''"-fran, d w leave* #£; on the upper' surface, arid Jaibl)Sst ;white underneath. The bark is vcrj£ dark

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brown, and on the one-year-old wood it is of a glossy surface. The twiggy laterals that bear small, yellow, very sweetly-scented flowers , are greyishwhite/ and slightly drooping when in flower. The exceedingly sweet perfume at this season makes the plant doubly valuable. Several species of the genus Eleagnus have very ornamental berries, so it will be interesting to watch the development of this plant. A noticeable plant in flower now is Fremontia californica, quite one of the finest of the Mallow family. The flowers* are large, of a deep golden-yellow colour, and borne the whole length of the branches in bunches of three or four which open successively. If it were only a little more amenable to cultivation it would be a most valuable garden plant. It forms a low evergreen tree with smallish mallow-like leaves of soft greyish-green-, but its impatience to cultivation and propagation makes it a rare plant. The brilliant flowers of the rose Bardou Job will be secured over a longer period if the exhausted trusses are cut off before the hips begin to swell. It is very ready to form seed-pods, and if a few of these are left to mature, the flowering will be largely curtailed. Obviously this remark applies to other continuous flowering roses and plants too.

That well-known sweet-scented plant, Diosma ericoides, which the Japanese call "Breath of Heaven," is now placedin the genus Adenandra. Its mention here is to introduce a co-species, A. Hniflora, a very desirable low-growing shrub. The flowers are much larger than those of the first-mentioned species, being over an inch in diameter. The buds are red, while the expanded flower is White with a red marking at the base of the petal. It has a most persistent flowering habit, being rarely without some flowers open. The foliage is small, dark green, and the stems reddish. The crushed leaves have a strong odour of parsley. What a fine object is a well-grown and well-flowered plant of the rose Gruss au Teplitz, a plant trained on a trellis or arch so as to display its rich crimson flowers to the best advantage would always arrest attention. Another rose with quite as awkward a name, Billiard et Barre, is also a rose of distinction when occupying a similar position. It is not of quite as accommodating growth as the first-named variety, but with a littlo perseverance it will cover a good space With its golden-yellow flowers. It is, quite as persistent as Bardou Job in producing rose hips. The plant I have in view is framed on the trellis by two other good garden plants. On the right are the rich crimson spikes of Lathyrus splendens—California's Glory—while on the left twines a climber of the knotweed family, Polygonum baldschuanicum, which has great clusters of small, creamy-white flowers tinted pink, looking like seafoam with sunset light upon it. A good yellow rose that makes a fine garden bush is R. havrrisonii. It be-

longs to the Scotch rose grojjp R. spinossima, and is probably a hybrid. The flowers are of medium size, clear yellow and sweet-scented. The Scotch rose previously mentioned is very useful for dry places, as it always keeps a respectable appearance even if it docs not respect the integrity of neighbouring plants, encroaching upon them by underground stolons. The double variety makes the most compact plant and is not so ready to ■ intrude upon its neighbours. A very good alternative tree to the oaks and other forest denizens which are often planted in small gardens is Styrax japonica, now in flower. It is a small tree that should be-trained to a clear stem, so that the flowers which hang from the underside of the branches can be seen better. The white bellshaped flowers, with their cluster of golden stamens, are very beautiful when seen from below, and the scent is verv sweet, too. The most brilliant spot in the garden at present is formed by a mass of Oriental Poppies. There is no other garden flower that can vie with them in brilliancy. There is getting to be quite a. number of diverse shades of colour, the result of seed selection, but it is doubtful if any are improvements on the type for garden use. ?The perennial delphiniums are now throwing up their Stately spikes, which will require making secure against wind breakage.! The stakes for Support should not be longer than sufficient to reach to the base of the flower spike, so as not to rear its uglyness amongst the flowers. Where the clumps are large, some stout twiggy branches stuck firmly in the ground close in to the so that the leaves will practically hide them, will be found very useful in windy places. Who is there who is not fond of that lowly but Sweet flower, the Lily of the Valley? And who would not desire to prolong its season? This can be accomplished by growing Fortin 's variety. It is a large form of the type, and comes into flower jnst as the older variety is passing out. It is not of quite as graceful habit, as the flowers are larger and more massive, while the stems are much stronger and stiff, but withal it is a desirable plant to have. What a stately plant the fox glove is when seen in mass with woodland setting! Tinder deciduous trees in rich, moist soil, the spikes Will reach a goodly height, and in the. shady twilight they love they farm noble plants indeed. A FLOWER SHOW. At a meeting of those interested in flowers, and in the relief of distress, held at Tai Tapu, it was decided to hold a flower show on December 7, the proceeds to be given to the fund for the relief of the poor in Britain and Belgium. A strong committee was formed and a schedule adopted, considerable enthusiasm being evident. This meiws has been largely adopted in the Home Country with great success for the same purpose, and there is no doubt about it having a successful issue in this instance.