Practical Gardening

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 114, 15 May 1926, Page 24

Practical Gardening

as low as 15 per cent, but in the -warm j climate of North Auckland it is prob-j ably greater. In any case the seed is bo abundant and is carried bo readilytin damp weather especially), on the hoofs and leg-hairs of animals that a very heavy annual distribution of the seed must inevitably take place. It is probable too, that after passing through animals (or birds, it may be) the germination capacity is intensified. The writer knows of one dairy farmer in County, whose pastures consist chiefly of rye, who had such a dread of paspalum taking possession of his paddocks that wherever it appeared he dug it out ac carefully as if he were eradicating gorse or blackberry. This went on for come time, until at last he was compelled to allow matters to take their course. From the localities on the farm in which pospalum appeared it would seem that the seed must have been carried by birds. The writer has seen guinea fowls in this locality strip the paspalum seed with great gusto, and it is more than likely that pheasants— and perhaps quail—feed on it as well. Paspalum is in New Zealand to stay. Properly treated it throws abundant and succulent feed. It will rapidly become sod-bound. The problem is the proper treatment to give ■ it. To correct the "binding," many New Zealand farmers disc it, havin? the discs not too heavily set. A good tearing about with very sharp tine harrows, weighted down if need be to make them rip into the roots, is also effective.

by Dianthus

Gorreepondente will p-eatlT oblige br observing the tollowijif rele« 1» •endlßi questions for publication in these eolnnins :— «^jJL —L ? shoD 'd be in not later '.hen TuesdaT to be answered the sajne week— taaregsed to Garden Editor. - Star " Office. Auckland. POSSib7e Wrlte ° n ° ac Side ° f the paper ' and make aU eommnnlcatloM as c° nelse ** Pacini? , ''''": etc - 6ent for naming must be sent separately, and. if P°|£ bl £ tnSfSr I r? J ln or w °°<s" bos—cardboard bores are very liable to be troten ia tracsu ana the contents damaged. d , plnmr"Jr h f a]l , name and address of the sender mnet always be sent, but » ° om Plume or imu&l may be jiven for publication.

TO CORRESPONDENTS. ATALOSS (Glen Eden) writes:--'*l was advised to procure some iron filings, and dig them in round my Roses. I can only procure iron nlinss mixed with a large percentage of rusty tin tacks Is there any harm in the tin tacks, and is there any value in the filings?"— There is a certain value in the iron filings, Roses requiring a certain amount of iron in their food Iron filings are a method of supDivine this nec-d. The tin tacks will do no harm except to stick In your fingers. By the way. are they not properly "tinned' - tacks, and made of iron with a coat of tin. The usual method of supplying iron to Rnses Iβ by applying one ounce of iron sulphate to the square yard. This latter is readily soluble, and has to be supplied every season. Iron filings, on the other hand, last for years. ASOMCAL (Avondale) asfcs : "Why. no matter what colours one gets in Chrysanthemums, in a year or two they turn ordinary yellow. Is there any remedy? 12) Is "it" necessary to dig up and store Daffodils, Gladioli, and Dahlia bulbs?"— (1) I never heard of Chrysanthemums reverting to a yellow colour: as a matter of fact our modern Chrysanthemums ar* not all derived from the "common yellow" as you term it. The fact is that the yellow is hardy, outgrowing and smothering the rest. My advice to you is to dig the whole lot out and burn them. Procure a dozen new ones, and you will find that they will retain their colours. <2i Gladioli "bulbs should be lifted annually, i Dahlias should, be lifted, Etored. and divided each spring before, replanting Daffodils Btiould be lilted every three or four yeears. EEMCEBA writes: "I am anxious to increase my stock of Gladioli bulbs, and understand that this can be done by propagating the small bulbils lifted. Can you tell mc the best time to plant them, is any special treatment necessary, and are they likely to bloom the first year? The bulbils are about the size of a partridge pea, some smaller, some larger."—There i-s no special treatment. Plant the small bulbils : in fact you might rather say sow them, something like you would peas. The best way is to make a shallow drill, about an inch deep, and sow the bulbils about an ; Inch apart. I Ehonld advise yon to sow them now. Plnated In good soil, and i kept growing, some will bloom the first | rear. I do not know of any plant under I the nameiof Gom plana. HUDSON (Remuera) asks: Does frost i Injure Onion plants? Do they require! manure or any treatment to "ensure a; good crop for spring planting?— You i will get no frosts about Auckland that I will injure young Onion plants. A ! little manure should be given when the j eeed is sown, also a little during winter! to keep the plants growing. Weeding' and hoeing are the chief requirements of the plants during winter and until lifted in spring. "GUM (Hokianga) sends an Apple for identification ?—Rhodes' Orange. EOSA (Pokekohe) writes :*(1) I require a i variety of Climbing Rose to (to with Iriib Filename* (2) It Goldmine the

b . est .. N . ectari ne?—(l) Lemon Pillar should da (2) Goldmine, if not the best Nectarine in everybody's opinion is very good, and is hard to beat. r "~ B H -. (E^?,?) Ssks how t0 treat tr <* seeds.—Mill give an article on the subject nest week. J.W.B. (Blockhouse Bay) asks several question re Tomato growing under gla»s .' —The subject is too large for this column, so will deal with the subject 'n en article next week. ASHES rN>wtoa) writes: I am thinking of spreading ashes, from a bakehouse over my garden. The ashes are chie'fiv wood, but thf-re is a small amount of a vl? h? - The , a?hes caQ be used with advantage, so long as they are used within reason. Too many wood ashes makes the soil pasty. WA J'? UT (Hamil ton) 'writes: I have a Walnut tree which has a lichen growing °-7 r J 1 " *.- Can - TOU advlse m « bow to get rid of this lirhnn:—Spraying with limpsulphur solution one part, water ten parts, during winter, whilst the tree is dormant, will clear off the lichen. BE . E JAY (Papatoetoe) writes: I want a evr-rjrreen ornamental shelter tre'-s.-—Rhododendrons. Acacia, Arbutus Azara. Berberis, Callistemon. Coprosma vanegnra, Diosma, Dombeya. Viburnum Meboldi:. Laurus nobilis, Panax arboreum, Olea elicilolia. C.W. (Devonport) asks: If Strawberry p.ants should be lifted, separated and replanted each year?— The commercial method ig to replant with new plants yearly. If an old bed is clean and Fhowa promise it is occasionally left for the second year, as it provides E ome early fruit, but throughout Auckland annual planting is practised, and certainly gives the best results

J.W. (St. Heller's) says he has had In pots the Euciarist Lily for the past three years and tie plain has never produced blooms. He desires some particulars as to now they should be treated.—The Eucharist Lily is a small genus of tropical evergreen bnlbs. They mast be grown ander glass, and a temperature of 65 deg to I'J deg., rising to SO deg. in tie summer is required, and except for a few weeks in autumn an abundance of water is necessary. The soil should consist of twoparts rich loam to one of leaf mould, witn the addition of charcoal to keep it open. Rather large pots are best, to allow the roots to ramify freely; half a dozen strong halbs in a 10-inch pot will be suitable. The drainage mnst be good at lea>t two inches of broken potsherds or scoria In ?ach pot. Once established the hulas should not be disrnrbed. top-dress-ing the plants annually, re-potting only when the bulbs are overcrowded Weai liquid manure may be given with advautaje after the flower-scapes appear Dnrin s winter iess water, and the temperature a fex degrees lower than that recommended for the growing period, will be necessary, always, however, avoiding total drying off. When favourable conditions prevail old-established plants will bear two crops of flowers in the course ot a year. Heavy ebade throughout the

B.J.E. (Greenhithe) sends a ipecimen of a native climber for identification, and says: It Iβ growing over high Tl-tree, and 1» said to be the native Passion fruit—lt is Passlfiora tetrandra, the native Passion froit It Is endemic to this country, ana is the only representative of this catnrai order amongst our native plants. It is found in isolated places in both North ana South Islands. It is a tali climoer. having greenish flowers, and the fruits are nearly globose and of an orange colour. It w worthy of a place In onr gardens, for when "in fruit it is very ornamental. LAYERING SHKUBS. Many hardy and half hardy shrubs of such plants as Magnolias, Azaleas and Rhododendrous. and which are with difficulty increased from cuttings, may be propogated rea-dily by layering. Branches that are near the ground should be selected for the purpose and of the ten