Advice On Watering

Auckland Star, Volume LXX, Issue 17, 21 January 1939, Page 14 (Supplement)

Advice On Watering

ON the value' of watering the dahlia growers differ greatly, most favouring the conditions under which they are working. If they have a supply of water they use it, but if the water supply runs out they still grow dahlias. The dahlia is accommodating! Although, if properly used, a supply of water is an asset in growing them, it is by no means vital. Where water is in short supply remember that mulching with manure leafsoil and good cultivation will give equallj' good results. Some contend that a moderate supply is needed, others that the plants will take almost any quantity. The best advice is to give suflicienfc to build up a strong plant, hut to avoid anything that will * produce a soft sappy plant. It is not possible to sav how mueli' water should be given; plants growing in a sandy soil will take ever so much more than those in a heavy soil. Where a mulching is applied the loss of moisture by evaporation cannot possibly be as great as where the soil surface is allowed to remain unbroken and quite exposed. Situation, too, should also be taken into consideration. An exposed position will be harder on the plants than a bed that is somewhat sheltered. Wind blown areas are always more diflieult to keep moist than places where the contour of the land, or the location of the buildings, provides a natural windbreak. All the same, it should not take one long to get a fairly safe idea of how and when to water dahlias. A

little observation, added to a fair amount of very common sense, will do move than many pages of advice. Try and water only when the plants need moisture. When you do water, souk every dahlia thoroughly. Squirting the foliage and splashing* the main steins is of very littlo use. other- than for removing the dust. Take the. nozzle oil' the hose and lay tlie end within a few inches of the shoots, so that the water soaks down ahout t lie roots. Surface waterings onlv bring the roots too near the top. The better plan is to set the plants the tjisk of keeping their roots well down in the eool soil, by watering with a liberal hand when you water at all. Jn good soil the roots travel very quickly, and cover a lot of ground; for this reason be very careful and not disturb the ground where dahlias are grow"jug; • keep the surface broken if you wish by light hoeings to within a foot •of the* stems, but don't fork or dig deeply. In dry weather, especially while* the plants are in full bloom, and during the latter part of February and the early: part of March, dahlias will pay for "any attention you give them. jt is in * the earlier stages of the growth that one should be very carcfiil about over-waterings. Too much forcing produces • sappy growths that are soft, and: do not carry the best of flowers. A medium-sized plant, with sturdy steins ami healthy foliage, will always carry better flowers than stock which has been forced by overfeeding. Moist conditions invariably work toward leaf growth: tlio flowers seem to coine best when the plants are just a littlo dry. The more the plants grow tlio less they flower.