GARDEN NOTES.

Press, Volume LIII, Issue 9603, 18 December 1896, Page 2

GARDEN NOTES.

» — " Weekly Press and Referee." KITCHEN GARDEN. During the month of December the work of the kitchen garden includes the sowing of Broad Beans for late crop, Peas, French Beans and Runners. The usual successional sowings of Spinach, Radish, Lettuce and small siladings must also be attended to. A sowing of Endive may be made, the seed being scattered thinly in drills about twelve inches apart. When large enough to handle, keep the plants at about the same distance apart. Attend to young plantations of Asparagus by careful weeding, and the bed may then be top-dressed and mulched with some short strawy litter. Among the fruit trees the work of disbudding and thinnign shoots can be carried on as opportunity permits. It is a work which is best done when carried on by degrees. Vigorous trees will of course be found to require most attention. Standard trees do not require much summer pruning after the tree is formed. It is, however, important to keep the head of the tree open, thus admitting sunlight to ripen and colour the fruit and mature the wood. Young trees require more attention in selecting and securing tJie young shoots necessary for the formation of well-balanced foundations. The natural inclination of a young tree is to make wood, and the pruner must exercise judgment in determining the shoots to be cut away and thoae he must leave. Among the small fruit bushes Raspberries must have the suckers removed, with the exception of three to five which will produce the next year's crop, these may be tied to a stake. Gooseberries and Currants should have enough growth removed to enable the sun to shine freely into the bush.

Marrows and Cucumbers which are growing freely require attention to pinching, training out, pegging down and weeding. The growths should not be allowed to become crowded. Tomatoes in the open may be trained to stout stakes, one to each plant, the plants being trained upright, cordon fashion, only one stem being allowed to a plant. An abundance of side lateral growths will thus be obtained, which fruit more freely than sucker stems from the base of the plant; if the weather be dry, mulching around the plant will be found advantageous.