THE GARDEN.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXIX, Issue 80, 2 April 1908, Page 7

THE GARDEN.

(BT HOHTUS.I [Horttis is willing to answer questions Correspondents must give their real names aud addresses, though, not foe pu&acation.] TO CORRESPONDENTS. Vinery Border. — TrepoL — Seeing that a properly-drained and prepared border is necessary, you will do well to drain the ■whole of the border from C to D, and. your plan of attaching brick walls to the two ends would be difficult to improve npon. If you do not do this we fail to conceive what yonr alternative plan la, in face of the adversely sloping ground. F^i,^ lanure - — H - p - — It is a valuable fertiliser for crops in general if scattered somewuat thinly over the surface of the ground and dug in, or it might be well Intermixed with three parts of light soil let lie in a heap for a few weeks, and be given as a thin surface dressing to strawberries, hoed into the surface ground between young crops in general. It should oniy be applied when the crops are grow- , ing strongly. ' HINTS. Spring flowering plants, apart from bulbous ones, are greatly appreciated by dwellers m towns, affording as they do illustrations of the country beyond, and the return of the most beautiful season of the year. Plants transplanted from more favourable situations into town gardens for spring blooming, to succeed should be procured and properly planted during a mild period within the next week or two, so that they are in their new quarters by the time they commence their more active spring growth. Hence intending planters should seek for and plant these, and not wait till they are offered in sale fey itinerant vendors, when it is too late. Dig and break the ground up freshly and deeply for them, and plant each somewhat firmly. Freezias, comparatively a new genua of bulbous plants from the Cape, deserve far more attention- from amateurs than they have yet received, whether for window or greenhouse culture. They have narrow, flag-like leaves, and produce spikes of bloom of singular habit. The blooms push forth from one side only near the apices of the spikes, the latter turning downwards at its point so as to display the blooms at a higher elevation and upright. The colours vary between white, creamy white, and primrose, with a shade of yellow. Good bulbs planted now ti»t or eight in each six-inch pot, buried under ashes or fibre, soon commence to grow, and when a couple of inches high, should be removed to greenhouse or sunny window. The flowers are fragrant, last \sell when cut, in water. The natural time of blooming is August, but by forcing they may be bloomed from. June onwards, il successional batches are potted and grown on. Small cheap bulbs are to, be avoided, as they are incapable of blooming. It is desirable to remark, however, that the bulbs, properly ripened, unlike some other bulbs, can be repotted, grown and flowered year by year. TEe manuring, digging, or trenching of vegetable grounds cannot be proceeded with and finished too early. This is weji understood and acted upon by experts. The majority of the growers, perforce, cannot so promptly attend to the matter, hence there is such a large amount of unkempt ground awaiting to be manured and turned up. The importance of doing this at once cannot be too strongty insisted upon. Manures should be got on to the ground, whether for immediate use or not. if from force of circumstances any have to put up with green manure, or such as is come straight from the stable, it will be well to lay it in a heap, to heat and turn it over once at least, to heat again, as by this means it will become in better order for mixing with the ground, be more ready as root food when roots enter it, and, what is of greater importance than may appear, will have the weed seeds it originally contained destroyed, because, bear m mind, stable manures contain the latter in great variety, emanating from the hay which is used, whether in its original form or as chaff. Once the manure is upon the ground and prepared for the dressings, it will be ready for wheeling where wanted. Meantime, some part may receive its dressing, and a beginning be made in burying it, in view not alone . of exposing the ground roughly to the elements, but also geting work which lias to be done, whether now or later, as forward as possible. Some growers unused to this work put it off until some contemplated " field day " arrives, whereas they would find the tax upon their strength less severe and have better results by beginning betimes and doing a little at a time. Whether digging" or trenching is resorted to, turn the ground up as light as possible, and do not, in the way.of chopping' and levelling, touch it with the tool after it is turned over. PAECXNIA. Hardy Perennial.—There are two di3tinet sections of the above under cultivation here, the tree paeonia and the herbaceous paeonia, both of which arii exceedingly ornamental with their manycoloured liowers, the herbaceous varieties especially presenting many gay col-' curs; some of their liowers in favourad sicuations and soil attain a very larga size. The soil in which they delight is a deep, rich, moist one, which should: be, trenched and well-manured before the plants are put out. They begin to come into flower here early in November, and last for some time. The propagation of the herbaceous varieties is effected by division of the CBOwns of the old plant. Whenever such is to b<3 divided, the crowns of the old plant should be exposed; then the exact part to be taken should be cut clean with a spade, leaving the part not required undisturbed in the ground. This cutting of tile roots should nob be practised often, as it has a weakening effect on the old plant. Two or three cfowns with the roots attached will be sufficient to lift at a time from each plant. These can be planted out in another place, either in single crowns or just as it -was lifted. Here it will perhaps from three to four years before they , will form a very large clump of roots. Every year, whilst digging over the borders, each plant should have a liberal supply of well-rotted manure placed about its roots, but on no account should the roots be interfered with, unless they are to lift for propagation purposes. The herbaceous variety of the paeonia succeeds much better in the South of New Zealand' than it does towards the North; the climate is much better adapted for its culture with success. The tree paeony is a sub-shrubbery plant, and attains a considerable height of about from three to four feet. This plant is deciduous in the winter. Early in spring it begins to push into active growth; first its foliage. expands . and the flowers soon make their appearance. The flowers begin to open as early "as the end of August, and continue flowering through September and October. This variety, like the herbaceous one, likes deep, rich, moist soil well manured, in which it will flourish and give very large flowers, some of them attaining a diameter of about eight inches. The I tree varieties are very, easily propagat-1

Ed, either by layers or by sub-division oi the old plants. The latter mode mfl. perhaps be the quickest and handiest method, as each, old plant throws up a number of oSskoots every - season. When these are to be taken off, the plants should be taken up in Slay and, the shoots taken off; replant at once. The young shoots can at once Tbe plantel where they are to grow, as the first year after being planted they will make considerable growth. Under ordinary circumstances the young , plants should flower the second year after being planted. The tree paeony does not seem to suffer so much by interference with, the roots as the . herbaceous varieties. I have lifted large plants in May. taken shoots off, replanted , , and the following spring the plant gave mc splendid flowers. It also seems to suit our climate much better than the herbaceous varies ties. [The above articles appeared in part of yesterday's issue.]