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Auckland Star, Volume XXVII, Issue 156, 4 July 1896, Page 3 (Supplement)

Hints.

Trees grown on .restricted principles, such as pears on the quince, etc., require immediate pruning. Even though ib has been customary to root-prone certain examples once in three years, instances may occur where, owing to heavy cropping during tho present or p»at years, this may bo undesirable, and will bo better pub off for a year. Trees deficient of young wood for instance, do not need such restriction.

Onion bulbs, still in hand, remaining from last year's crop, ought to be looked over. All that aro sprouting treab in one of two ways. If the sprouts are long, and the bulbs attenuated and exhausted, they may be dibbled oub somewhat deeply and thickly into the open ground. Others that are just commencing to sprout take each singly in bhe hand, and twist the growing parb round, as this will bruiee the shoob and stop its growth. Needless to say, oil symptoms of decay musb be removed from amongst sound bulbs, and the latter must be kepb in bho coolest place under cover.

Freesia. — These pure white thinly covered sweetly-scented flowers that are bo appreciated jasb now are the single freosia. They aro usually grown in pot*, several bulbs in euch pot) thuH : In a cool room whore gas is not much usad a pob of these may be kepb fresh and nice, for v month or longer. The bulbs are remarkably cheap. The culture of them is the easiest. If 10 or 12 of the bulba be placed in a five or six-inch wide pob when it has been aboub three-fourths filled- with light) Boil and the bulbs have been pressed down into ib, only a handful of soil will be needed to cover them. The pots should bo put out of the lighb and air in some cool placo till green points shoob up. After theee appear bloom spikes will soon follow. Ib is nob diffieulb to get thoae and other bulbß bo flower well witaoub using ordinary potting soil to grow them in.

Outdoor Screens.—People are often asking what they can do to screen off a p;irb of their gardens so as to make the enclosed spot more private. Now is the time to set aboub doing such things. If ib be a permanent screen for summer and winter, there is nothing they can make one so quickly with as a hedge of evergreen privet: Bub usually ib is only in summer bhab suburban people uee the lawn and want privacy. Then they try with several schemes and plans, and they mostly find oub that they started too late in the year. Nervy ie the time feogeb euch plants into the places we want them to grow in.

Seed Sowing.—There are many things that any one with a garden may raise from seed, and yob nob many think of growing thab way. I allude to both culinary and decorative plants. As for the flowering and decorative plants it in but a question of time ; they all came from seed, originally. My own carnations, hollyhocks, pansieft, cyclamen, dahlias, bedding* begonias, and nearly every tender or hardy thing I cultivate comes from need. In raising seedlings of hardy plants, a nice, rich, new, light, loamy seed bed oub in the open is the place for them. It should be sheltered by having a glazed light (and moro than one if needful) to place over it. On a larger scale a made-up seed bed should always ha vo protection of some kind—protection from heavy rains and from the keen piercing winds. Seedlings come away badly in poor, sour old garden soil. At least halt the soil for their bed should be new, finely brokenup loam. Some leaf-mould, soob, old lime rubbish and sand will greatly improve such a bed. In cowing nearly all seeds thab are to yield plants to transplant, it ia best to sow them in rows ; and if the quantity of plants actually required is limited, and the bed affords a large surplus, ib will be wise to thin the seedlings oub well as soon as possible. As a rule, transplanting seedlings should be done as soon as the pair of leaves after the seed leaf have opened. A good soaking of waber should have been given the day before, and the little plants should bo lifted carefully with a flab, pointed implement, such as a wood label or a knife. Growing Exhibition Vegetables. The fine vegetables shown at exhibitions, which are so much admired, alwaya create the desire in some amateur, if nob all, to grow eomo like them. It is necessary to make a beginning at once, if they are wanted for npxfe summer. The first and most important element in the culture of these things is the preparation of the soil. Any soil almosb can be ' fixed up' so as bo grow things well in it. If ib bo very heavy clay, a lob of it must be taken oub and burnt in a heap like ballaat, and then be returned bo the site ib came from, mixing with ib a quantity of good loam. A staple of one-tbird clay soil, one third burnt earth, and one-third fresh loam, if dug and forked over three or four times during winter, will be a good substantial loam, (ib for any purpose by spring. Tho burnt earth has a wonderful action on the surrounding soil, causing more porosity, acting as v reservoir for ammonia and other fertilising elements, and giving up carbon as the plants require ib. Should a soil be very lighb and full of aand or gravel, the best mediums to make ib more solid are,fcnrfy soil and long littery stable manure, or thab from the cow yard. The plan in vainer this is bo open a trench and to lay aB much rough turfy and rotten stuff into ib as can be gob, spreading the dung upon thab, and then returning the soil. Bub sometimes tnrf and fresh loem aro difficult to get. In thab caß6 a little musbbe made to go a long way. For big onions, potaboei, celery, oarrote, leeks, and paranipa— all of which the judges like to see fine and large—special soil and special treatment mußb be afforded. To grow large leelis, carrots, or parsnips in poor soil, a little good soil used sandwich fashion, will go a long way. I have grown parsnips thus :— Making a big hole with a crowbar in bhe ordinary soil, after working ib as well and aa freely as it was capable of, and then filling up the hole'with tine compost, made up of sew soil leaf mould and rotbon manure, with a little bone duat, all finely sifted and pub lighbly into the hole. Carrots and parsnips—three seeds of each on each spot «o prepared; afterwards thinning the seedlings and leaving only one, the best, will grew very big so treated. Leeks alao do well in thia way, and the soil below may be made much richer for them than ib needs for carrots or parsnips;