Pratical Gardening

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 77, 31 March 1928, Page 6 (Supplement)

Pratical Gardening

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Correspondents will greatly oblige oj oDMrnsg Lbs following ralea in sendlna questions for publication In these columnar— I —Letters should be in not later than Tuesday to tM answered the same weekaddressed to Garden Editor, "Star" Office, Auckland. possible Wflte 0D ° De Bide 0t 1116 paper- and ttake all communications as concise as „„ 3-F.owers. etc. sent for naming must be sent separately, and, it possible, ?r«n=w IP a or wooden box—cardboard boxes are very liable to be broken la transit and the contents damaged 4—Th» full name and address ol the sender must always be sent, but a nom de Plume or nitia) may be givoo for publication

TO CORRESPONDENTS. INTERESTED (Remuera') sends three Apples for Identification. — (1) Adam's Pearmain; (2) Horn; (3) Kennerley's May. G.W. (Northcote) sent a specimen for identification ?—lt is Macatlamia ternifolia, "The Queensland Nut." The kernal is of a very nice flavour, somewhat similar to the Filbert. OLD JACK (Devonport) asks: When Is the proper time to transplant Rhubarb? This should be done at once or left till about August. If it is the Winter Rhubarb, the best time to move it is in the late spring, when the plants have finished their growth. H.W.F. (Richmond) Writes: I have one or two very gond climbing Roses about three years old. This year the stems have been covered with a white fungus. What can I do with it? —Spray with lime sulphur solution, one part to fifty parts water. It would require another spraying about August. NIKAU (Onehunga) asks: Is the Chatham Island Nikah Palm Rhopalostylis Baueri related to the Nikau Palm, Areca sapida? Also can you inform me to what family the Palm they call the Norfolk Island Palm (not Araucaria) belongs?—Rhopalostylis Baueri and Rhopalostylis sapida are identical with Areca Bauer and A. sapida, both belonging to one genera. The former name is now recognised by the authorities as the correct one, although, probably due to use and ease they are more often known as Areca. I cannot help you as regards what is known as the Norfolk Island Palm. Usually this is applied to the Araucaria, but is also applied to the Mertya Sinclairii. It is exceedingly difficult to deal with so-called common names because the same name is often applied to very widely different plants. OPTIMIST (Ponsonby) writes: I have never had satisfactory results with Stocks. This year I am trying again. The beds have been welL dug and manured. I have put in the seedlings, they are watered morning and evening, and are kept covered during the hottest part of the day. Will they need spraying later? I have also a lot of Verbena. Will they jiieed spraying later on?—I do not know why your Stocks have gone off, whether due to insects or other pests. According to your treatment the plants should do all right. One thing you would be well advised to do is to scatter some White Island product on the soil around and between the plants but not on the plants, and hoe It in. This will act as a soil fumigant and clean up insects, etc. Another application in a month or six weeks could be given. Re spraying, let me know how your plants get on, and if any appear sick or stop growing write again describing the trouble, and maybe I shall be able to advise you. The same applies to the Verbenas. QRAPE VINE (Onehunga) intends erecting a vinery about fifteen feet long with wires for training, running from front to back along the roof and about a foot apart. He wishes to know: (1) The nhmber of plants necessary so that good size fruit may be procured? (2) Whether the method of training is correct? (3) How far from the walls should the vines be planted? (4) Could Tomatoes be grown in the same house without affecting the vines in any way?;—(1) You would require four vines, each vine to have two rods taken from it, which would mean that there is eighteen inches between each rod. The size of fruit will depend on the treatment you give your vines in regard to manure, disbudding and thinning. (2) The vines will only be planted along the front or north side of the house, and the wires for training must be placed so as to suit the vine rods. (3) The vines can be planted outside and the stems taken in through the front of the house. The outside border allows of giving the vines more liberal treatment than when planted inside the house. (4) For the flr«t year or so you could grow a few. Tomatoes, but afterwards you would tod that the two crops do not so together.

MAUNGANUI (Tauranga) sends a leaf of Paliu lor examination and also kindly name Nerine?—The cause of the Palm leaf going brown at ends Is due to some trouble at the root. Most probably the plant has been allowed to get dry. A month after a Palm has been allowed to get dry the leaves will show the effects. It will also happen when a plant is sodden with water, but in the specimen sent I should say it is due to the plant getting very dry a few weeks ago. The Nerine is N. sarniensis corusca.

P. R. H. (Mount Albert) writes: I have one of the New Guinea Beans, which measures three feet eight inches long. If you like you can have a photograph taken of it. —The New Guinea Butter Bean, as it is called, is really a variety of Gourd or Pumpkin. It is somewhat of the texture of vegetable Marrow, and cooked in a similar manner is very good. The present hot, dry season seems to have suited it admirably. To grow it properly it is essential that the plant be allowed to climb over a trellis or similar support. Good soil, abundance of moisture, and protection from cold winds seem to be its chief requirements. VERBENA (Arch Hill), writes: Could you tell me the best way to prune a scented Verbena. I have one about Ave years old and have cut the current season's wood back each year about Easter time. It is now a nice bushy shape and I wondered if I could leave it unpruned and would leaves shoot out on the same branches, or would they grow from new wood —You could leave the pruning, but the result would be that new branches would form on last season's stioots and the bush would get out of shape. I think I would prune it, but not so heavily, only cut it about half-way back. ONION (Whakatane), writes: About a week ago I sowed a bod of Onion seed. A couple of nights afterwards it rained heavily. It has been tine since, but the rain made the ground very hard on the surface. The seeds have swollen, but have not germinated. (1) Would the rain have any effect or delay the germination? (.*■) How long should Onion seed take to germinate at this season?—(l) The rain should do no harm ; very wet weather is inclined to spoil the germination of union seed, but one shower or so would nelp rather than hinder germination. (2) fourteen to twenty-one days, but with old seed twice this time could be allowed before giving up hope. S.P.J. (Point Chevalier) asks: (1) Do £™ eS ' Iceland Poppies, Stocks, Sweet niii/S Antirrhinums, Cinerarias, Delphinium, Nemesia, Verbenas like a shady or sunny position? (2) Do you soak Anemone bulbs before planting? (6) How to make seed boxes? (4) How to sow seeds and what depth? (5) Do oZ n Z et aoil before and how often do you water them when sown ?— i A ° tl " hl n u m, :Delphinium, Anemones, Iceland Poppies, Stocks, Sweet Williams Nemesias require a sunny position. Cinerarias will do in a semi-shady position, but also do well in full sun (2) " « unnecessary, although in drv seasons or with imported corms, that are usually two seasons old, it gives the bulbs a start, but for general use It is _ necessary. 3 ) Seed boxes should be made four to six inches deep, eighteen inches long and about a foot wide Of course any size can be made, but if too are very heavy to handle. Bore plenty of holes in the bottom for drainage and underneath nail on two strlDS of wood, so as to allow the water to run away freely (4) There is no general rule as to the depth of sowing seeds but do not sow any seeds deeper than necessary to keep them in a moist atmosphere. In a sandy soil and during dry weather deeper sowing can be done advantage- . ously without harm. The only rule is to cover the seeds with a layer of sandy soil, about equal to their own bulk. Very small seeds are best not covered at all, but after sowing Bhould be heavily shaded until they germinate, when a ligMer shading must be given. (5) It is a good plan to water the soil before sowing the seeds, but this does not apply when sowing seeds outside when the soil

is atur&Uy dfrWP.

J. H. (Grey Lynn), writes: My Peach tree was covered with curly leaf; will It kill it in time If I put copper nails In the branches? —I cannot give any definite assurance that driving copper nails into the trunk and brandies of a Peach tree will cure curly leaf. Many folks seem to believe in it, and, they,, or at least some, inust have good reasons for their belief. The best cure for curly leaf Is to spray during late winter with strong Bordeaux or lime sulphur solution. IRIS (Devonport), w-rites: I have raised from seed Iris slberica, Pumila, Kaempferl, which are now about nine inches high. Should I transplant them to their permanent positions now or in the 6pring?—lf your ground is in good order and you have a good position where the seedlings can be tended properly, I Bhould advise you to transplant them now. They will make a lot of growth during winter and should be well on to the flowering stage- by next spring. If you do not place them in their permanent quarters now you should make up a bed and transplant them, allowing about four: inches between each plant. A.B.C. (Morningsiide), writes: When Is the correct time to cut down a Peach and Nectarine tree. Should they be cut down level to the ground. Neither has fruKed for two years and each has a lot of wood. I have Deen advised to cut them down to Improve them?— The best time to cut them down is during winter, about July or August is a good time. Cut them down to about two feet from the ground. Cutting down will not make them fruit and I think you wovld do better to prune them, and If Aey do not fruit next season cut them out and plant new trees. It will be several years before they fruit If you cut them down. E.H. (Ellerslie), writes: I have a flve-year-old Fig tree. It bears a first crop of figs but they fall ofT and no more follow. Is there any treatment, or shall I cut It out? —The Fig is fertilised by a small fly peculiar to that tree and you would probably Introduce the Insect to your tree by procuring a brantfh of a fruiting tree with ripe fruit on It and hanging It In the branches of your tree. Once Introduced to a tree the small "flies" will remain, as the Fig Is forming small green fruit for the new crop wh«n on« crop la ripening, and once the fruit ripens the flies leave and seek new quarters in the new green fruits that are developing. D.A.C. (Tamaki), asks re growing' Passion Fruit. (1) What kind of soil is best for the vines? (2) Whart manure? (3) Is the large variety the best? (4) At what stage should they be transplanted ? (5) Do they require cutting back every spring? (C) Will they stand any degree of froet?—(l) Will grow in almost any soil that is well drained, but do best In a deep, moist, rich loam. (2) Superphosphate with about an ounce of sulphate of potash once a year, and one ounce nitrate of soda in spring and another similar quantity about six weeks later, the first nitrate to be given when growth commences. The quantities given are for each fruiting vine, and less or even no manure may be necessary when first planted; heavily cropping vines may need more. (3) The begt variety is the ordinary purple-coloured Passiflora edulis. If you can obtain a large fruiting variety of this It would be all right. The Granidilla or large Passion Fruit cannot be recommended. (4) As 6oon as large enough to handle. They are not good plants to transplant. Some of the long current season's growth should be cut back to about a Toot from the main stem to prevent the plants becoming a tangled mass. (6) They will only stand a few degrees of frost and, as a commercial venture, can only be considered a sub-tropical fruit and would not be a great success in very cold districts.

BULBS TO PLANT NOW. Plant Lilium candidum in sun or semi-shade, six inchcs deep and about eight inches apart. Add cow manure a few inches below the bulbs. Guernsey Lilies, or the Nerines, as they should be called, can Ijo planted now. Plant three inchei deep in rich, sandy soil. Sternbergie lutea and the variety Major can be planted in a border of rich, light soil. Plant five inches deep and three inches apart. It flowers in a few weeks and is often known as Autumn Crocus. Frecsias should be planted in rich, light soil. Plant two inches deep and three inches apart. Some of the newer hybrids, especially the lavender coloured varieties, are well worth planting. Meadow Saffrons or Colehieum Autumnale, the true Autumn Crocus, should be planted now. Planted three inches deep and six inches apart in a shady position they are very nice. Amaryllis Belladonna, well known and fairly common, should be lifted and planted now. The white Variety and also the larger flower variety Major ire well worth planting. Brunvigea Josephinae is very similar, but ia a much larger and more vigorous plant, and the flower heads are much larger. Most of the autumn flowering bulbs bloom before making foliage, and should be planted either just before or immediately after flowering. Much more use of the autumn flowering bulbs shou'd be made than is done, as the Auckland climate seems to suit them particularly CACTI.

There are two groups of plants close] \ allied in the popular mind and often spoken of indiscriminately as Cacti. There are true Cacti on the one hand and succulent plants on the other. The former grows as a well-defined natural order of plants; the latter group is composed of widely diverse individuals that have one thing in common, namely, fleshy, succulent foliage or stems. It is with the first-named class of plants we propose to briefly deal. Cacti are for the most part natives of the arid regions of North and South America, their fleshy stems well charged with moisture enabling them to withstand long periods of drought, while the keenly penetrative spines with which the majority are plentifully clothed serve as a protection against the ravages of thirsty animals. The plants vary much in stature; what are known as "Thimble Cacti" are only an inch or two tall. Very many do not exceed one foot, while others form veritable giants, comparable only to trees for size. A few, again, are tall and slender, and are treated as climbers. Generally speaking, the flowers are showy and of good size, but many of the smaller kinds have small and feeble coloured blossoms; in a few cases these are followed, by showy berries. With the exception of genus Percskia, which is very uncactuslike in appearance, Cacti are practically leaf- j less. Sometimes on the young growths (as in Opuntia) small, thick, fleshy leaves are borne, but these quickly fall, and would appear to be of little value to the plant. The juice of Cacti is watery, and serves as an easy method of distinguishing them from the Euphorbias, some of which closely resemble Cacti in appearance. The juice of the latter is milky. Taking them all round, the Cacti are easy of culture if their special requirements are given attention • j e 7 n °t need a large body of soil, drainage should be perfect, the water supply ample though not excessive during the growing season, while at other times, and especially during Winter, 'ifctlo or none is reqtrred, just

sufficient to avoid excessive shrivelling, and above all abundance of light and sun. A free circulation of air is necessary, and a damp, close atmosphere should be avoided. About Auckland and further north most varieties are quite hardy. Where frost occurs it is necessary to grow them in pots, or protect thein in winter, but during the summer they do well out of doors in a sunny position. Repotting is not often necessary, and should be done from November to February. Good fibrous loam should form half the compost, the remainder consisting of coarse sand, broken brick and old mortar in equal quantities. Larger pots are not always necessary, a removal of some of tiie old soil and dead roots, if any, will allow of the specimen being returned to a similar-sized pot. Water sparingly after potting, but supply moisture by a daily syringing and by a little moist heat, if available. The most popular Cacti are undoubtedly Phyllocactus, Cereus, Epiphyllum and Opuntia. The former is common, and has flat, leaflike stems, and bears its large showy blossoms in various red and violet shades. It is easily grown, and prefers a richer soil than other kinds, and is freely propagated by creaking off one of the flat stems from its joint and treating as a cutting. The Cereus are a variable group, but C. flagelliformis is one of the oldest and most popular. It is familiarly called the Ratstail Cactus, from its long trailing stems being very similar in appearance to a rat's tail. The flowers are rosy. Propagation is easily effected by cutting a stem into sections and laying on sandy soil, when roots will be emitted and growth buds formed in the course of a few weeks. This species makes a pretty hanging plant. C. grandiflorus is the night-flowering Cactus, whose showy white blossoms open after sunset and close before daybreak. C. giganteus is the giant among Cacti, reaching 50ft to sGft in its native haunts. Epiphyllum truneatum prefers a warm house, but can be successfully grown in a window. On its own roots it makes a hanging plant; grafted on a Pereskia stem it makeg a non-hanging standard. It is the leaf-flowering Cactus, the stem 3

being made up of a large number of leaf-like segments one or two inches long, at the ends of which the rosyviolet flowers appear. Portions broken off at the joints grow freely. Opuntiaa are the Indian Fig Cacti, one of which (O. fleus indico) bears edible fig-shaped fruits. The plants are made up of flatjointed stems, in some cases plentifully clothed with spines, in others nearly naked. O. rafinssqui is a hardy popular kind with large yellow flowers. O. senelis is the Old Man's Cactus, so called from its covering of white hairs.

SOWING SWEET PEAB IN POTS Under certain conditions it is an advantage to sow Sweet Peas in pots in the autumn. Anything from the small paper pots to ordinary five-inch pots can be used, putting one or more seeds in each pot according to the size of the pot. Some seeds are very hard and can hare the outer skin chipped with a file to enable them to germinate more readily.

; ill the pots with a light rich soil, press it firm, and water it. When the surplus water has soaked away the seeds should be dibbled in a few inches apart. The best place for the pots is a cold frame that can be freely ventilated, or a shelf in the greenhouse". The seedlings should be grown as hardy as possible, the chief value of sowing in pots is protection from wet and insects. WHEN TRENCHING IS NOT POSSIBLE. It is not always possible to do everything just as it should be done, and often there is not the time to trench the ground for a particular crop, although it would be beneficial. One way of getting lt ' d . one , more quickly, although not so efficiently, is by digging out one spit and then breaking up the subsoil with a

drag, fork or heaw lioe. Thin In .i sn „ soils S h *°f d ° f ..' lcalin " with shallow soils, and if continued for a few years it would increase the depth of soil

TURNIP TOPS. This is a good time to sow Turnips to produce a supply of tops for early spring use. Sow very thinly, in shallow drills one foot apart, and when the seedlings are half an inch deep, thin out to 3in apart, and stir the surface of the bed frequently during dry weather. This crop often comes in extremely useful. It requires very little looking after, and only occupies the ground for a short period, as directly the tops are cut the remainder will do good dug in. Although the sowing is solely for spring greens, if the winter is very mild a few Turnips may be obtained for flavouring purposes. They are generally very sweet if small. The mpst suitable varieties for this sowing are "Orange Jelly*' and "All the Year Round." They are both x'ery hardy and will stand the winter well. There is often a shortage of green stuff in the early spring, and these come in as a good stop-gap until other greens are ready.

BLANCHING LEEKS. To have fine, well-balanced Leeks suitable for exhibition, it is necessary to 2ive them attention at once. As a rule when blanching commences, something must be done to cause the stems u> lengthen, as they have a natural tendency to spread their leaves at this season, and become very thick, with no length to speak of. In order to moderate this, those in trenches should T>c earthed gradually, similar to celery. It is a good plan to bandage them with brown paper prior to surrounding tliem with soil; this not only excludes from ♦he stem, hut it induces upward growth When applying the bandages, room must be left for the stem to expand. Those on the level can be blanched very successfully by using bandages only. They can be blanched a foot above the surface, the roots being planted deeply in the ground. The blanching of the stems does not in any way interfere with the growth of the plant, but as the Leek is a x'ery gross feeder it should be supplied with liquid manure every ten days after the plant becomes established, until it is almost ready use. Guano is very useful applied at the rate of one ounce in every gallon of water.

TURF FOR PLOTTING PURPOSES. A stack of good friable soil is a valuable addition to the garden and will be found exceedingly useful few pots and also for topdressing any special plants. The present is a good time to get it stacked and it will be ready for use next spring. The turves should be taV' n off

about four inches thick and all rouU of perennial weeds or couch grass should be avoided as far as possible. The turves should be stacked grass doxvnwards, and each layer of turf should have a layer of manure on it. A few handful of salt should also be scattered on the soil; it acts as an insecticide. The best shape to build the stack is conical so as to throw off as much of the winter rains as possible. OLD WALLS AND PLANTS. It is not unusual in the British Isles to see splendid plants of antirrhinums, wallflowers, red valerian, growing upon okl walls and rocks where they have possibly existed for half a centurv. These are really rock and wall plants, and when growing there they keep up a succession by sowing themselves, so that the colony never dies out. THE BELLADONNA LILT. The easiest way of growing the Belladonna Lily is to select a warm position at the foot of a wall or fence facing north, digging it at least two spits deep, and manuring it, putting the manure in the bottom. Plant tne bulbs within a foot of the wall, and so that their crowns will be three inches under the soil. Mulch with manure after the bulbs appear. Keep down weeds and no other treatment will bo required for inanv years. LIFTING GLADIOLI. Gladioli corms that have not already been lifted should be attended to a't once. Spread them out on the floor of a shed for a day or two to dry. Any dry earth may then be shaken from the corms, the leaves should be cut off and the corms stored in paper bacr S till planting time. Gladioli deteriorate if , the corms are left in the ground season after season.