IN THE GARDEN.

Press, Volume LXV, Issue 19732, 24 September 1929, Page 4

IN THE GARDEN.

tWORK FOR THE WEEK. (sen i«if i warrrm* tea m mn) [By J. T. Su*ciai*.] ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. fj.—ll la »«t advinabl* to plant your main OWO9 of potatoes bofure the middle of itotobar. It yvn plant them then they will b« ready to lift in March, to that you ean lay down your lawn thou. I'otaton ar« tha boat vegetable to plant la ground which h*« been down In grata and which >» again to be put down in (!•*«. Tha beat time to plant violets is aa »oon a* they have flnmhed flowering. If jou are suing to plant them in the aamt po*ition you will have to dig it deeply ind well manure it, and remove all tha twitch that ia troubling yon. T» get your violan to flow.-r in winter cut them oyer about the middle of April, lightly loonen the »urfaco soil, and put on a light top-dressing of tine soil, to which hak been added a little superphoep.iatna and wood a»he»; if a little dry fowl manure, rubbed flue, ,h added, it will b« a help. feaiUnt Reader.—To have rid your mni"Ty tree at maggot* you ahould have •craped all the loose bark off when the **• dormant, and then aprayed with oil emulsion, forcing the wash into all creirteea You can atill scrape rt>e Bar* off and then paint an oil emul- «»■ at the rate of 1 part oil to 15 parta water. VEGETABLES. Celeriac—This stump-rooted vegetable i Is not grown as much as jts merits deserve. It is really a turnip-rooted celery, the root being the part that is used. It i» useful for soups, salads, and flavouring. I'nlike celery, theTe is no fcether making tranches, the plants being grows on the level. Seed ean be sown aow, in the same manner as was recommended for celery a few weeks back. Lettuce—A successional sowing of this should be put in as soon as the earlier batch is fit to thin. Some of the seedlings can be planted out, and these will come in a little later than those left whore they were sown. Care should be taken to water lettuce seedlings assiduously if the weather should prove dry, for h is not always remembered that to allow them—or, indeed, any other salad plant—to suffer from drought will be likely to result in a limp, ill-flavoured sample at the time ef cutting. The essential condition for all successful salad culture is that the plants should grow quickly, and at no time receive a check. This is a large part of the secret of the excellent salad erops grown by the French. Earthing Up—Peas and broad beans sown last April should be earthed up as soon as they are ready. In order to save trouble as the crop matures, it is well to hand weed between tht plants and hoe and rake between the rows before earthing up takes place. Asparagus—ln the ease of asparagus ready for cutting, a word of caution may be needed in order to hinder too ardent consumers from spoiling the sboots which are not yet through the soil. Cutting should be carefully done, and each cut should be made just below the surface soil. Bhoots often come ■p close to one another from the same crown, and it is then caution is needed whea cutting, for If the tips are damaged with the knife the shoots will eeae growing. If not already done, the beds should be given a dressing oi coarse salt; this, however, will impart » bitter flavour If too much is put on. FRUIT. Strawberries —As the plants will won be in full growth, the beds should te mulched with some Jittery material, if this is not already done. This is put ea with a view to forming a elean bed H which the swelling fruit may he. Amateurs who have not good material at their command often put on the wowing from their lawn; this, while affording an «fflelent mo-teh f °* . roots, is not very ratable fruit to lie on, as the mowings aoo® begin to decompose, and, to say tne least, cannot improve the flavour of the fruit. It is much better to spread a little clean straw around each plant. FLOWERS. Rows —Hitherto the roee aphis has caused mnoh trouble, but on plants which have been checked by frost it ia mum to make its appearance before fen*, and it should be attacked before it becomes rampant. Use the thum and the finger to clear an affected •hoot whenever possible, and ment this drastic method of tion by frequent spraving with a ioW~ tion of soft soap and quassia or with one of the approved inseoU- • ides to be obtained trom the seedsman or florist. Geraniums —If a stock of. pl«t« for autumn flowering is they should be raised ,at once lasert the outtino* singly in thumb pots fulea with a sandy compost, and place them on a shelf in the greenhouse, where there is not too much moisture. Bedding Calceolarias—These may be planted in beds in mild situations, roteotion for a week or so can be afforded by inverting a flower-pot oyer at night, and leaving through the da? should bad weather intervene, in course, the pots must be removed on every favourable opportunity. Plants that have stood in tine beds all should be gone over and have all deaa and decaying stems cut off. Snow is a great enemy of these plants, ana readers who reside in districts where the recent f*ll °f >now took place ar® advised to look over their plants aa 1* is possible that considerable damage has been done to calceolarias. Dahlias—Unstartc«d tubers, or roots left in the ground all winter may be planted where thev are to flower, to well-dug and manured sou. about four feet between the plants. Plant with the base of the stem two or threo inchea below the toil, *na du#t afterwards with lime or soot. Remove all the old dead sterns as they are harbours for earwigs. . _ Seedling*—Younc plants in boxes •nd seed-pans should be pricked off before thev become drawn and weakly. If left too long in the seed boxes their constitution is impaired, and they seldom make good plant*, no matter how much trouble is taken with them afterWards. Current Work Cuttings of most greenhouse subjects can be rooted easily aow in sandy soil. A deep box with a sh<»et of glass over the top. will he ""u aid to success. especially in hoiises without heat. Cuttings of bedding geraniums, heliotropes, marguerites, and fuchsias may he freely inserted. Begonia and gloxinia tubers may be started in n temperature of 51 to 60 degree-* Box edgings may now be trimmed with safety; when trimmed earlier, the young shoots that follow trimming are liable to be injured by frost, which gives them a bleached and unsightly appearance for a considerable time afterwards. All other edginns. raoh aa grass, thrift, saxifrairi Pride), daisv, and so on should, if worn out. or gapgy. be rt-laid w'thout delsv. Pmnsies. violas, ten-wee'' "stocks, anil antirrhinums can he olanted out in well-dug soil. Chrvasnthetanms t" orv larue blooms most he #d-tm ample room to >htain the he*t resnHs: where frsm»« »r» to snare the nlsnts mav be •rarurferrwl to them to harden and to pruv t s lanky habit: the sashes can I J" *-d «t»irinir the d*v. hut should ft be put on every n i*ht for ho* tima

to oome, in case of severe frost. Bedding sceraniumi should also be transferred to cold frames and hardening treatment; keep the soil on the dry side for a few weeks.