Garden Notes NATIVE PLANTS DESERVE TO BE MORE POPULAR

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28321, 5 July 1957, Page 6

Garden Notes NATIVE PLANTS DESERVE TO BE MORE POPULAR

[Specially written for "The Press”)

IBli

T. D. LENNIE.

N-Z.)

Friday, July 5, 1957 Planting is now the order of tiie day, and just what to plant is often a problem. With roses and fruit trees, general knowledge helps to make the selection easy, but with ornamental and flowering shrubs and trees the position is more difficult because of their great variety. It is further complicated by ignorance of name and height, both important when planting. It is therefore wise to get the nurseryman’s advice, and. after all, it is his business to provide this information.

It would seem as if plants native to New Zealand are not as popular as they deserve to be, for only a few of our shrubs and trees are commonly seen in gardens. Yet there are many distinct and showy things available. For street planting the yellow kowhai and white lacebark are also excellent for planting inside the front fence in conjunction with the more popular flowering fruits. The tall growing pittosporums in green and yellow and the very distinctive grass tree or Panax crassifolium could find a place in any shrubbery in the back row. In front or on narrower borders the newer colours in New Zealand flax (Phormiums), bronze or golden, cannot be excelled, while there is a I splendid array of manukas now on sale.

The discovery of the wild hybrid single red Lo Nichollsi at Belfast 40 years ago has paved the way for many fine pink and red varieties with single or double flowers. These manukas are profuse flowering, nicely tinted foliage and should be largely planted. For colour variation the hardy green and gold variegated broadleaf is splendid; so is the bronzy ironback Dodonea purpurea. With the summer sun shining on it this is a spectacular sight. These by no means exhaust the list of good New Zealand native plants, which would not be com-1 plete without mentioning the' veronicas, which include a fine array of dwarf flowering suitable; for any position. Some of the newer sorts with numerous spikes of pink, purple, or white are full of merit.

Space available and position in the garden determine largely the selection. For front-line positions and background purposes, the many flowering trees and shrubs with an ultimate height of 10 feet or more, the several flowering fruits—apple, peach, prunus and cherry—are unexcelled, while to them can be added the laburnum, forsythia, rowan, tama rix.

caenothus, virburnums, and similar good showy things.

For general shrubbery planting there is no end of good subjects, and to name only a few very briefly I might mention rhododendrons, magnolias, flowering brooms, cotoneaster and berberis for their berries, flowering currants, chiomonthes or winter sweet, proteas, manukas, veronicas, C. cydonias. garryaelliptica, Arbutus unedo and camellias. For the hill gardens where frosts are mild and semi-tropical subjects can be planted there is a further list of good things: Protea Suzanne and verifolius. dryandra. flowering gums and wattles, Hakea laurina. Cape Silver tree, the blue flowering Paulownia.

In addition there are several fine and other half-hardy shrubs such as podylaria. Climbing plants for the fence can be planted. Roses are perhaps first favourite, but there are other good alternatives. Clematis montana (pink), ampelopsis—Cydonia Japonica—Alebia quinata. passiflbras, jasmines and Solanum jasminoides.

Many of the present climbers could do with a clean-up by cutting out much old growth which; often forms a tangle of dead

Hedging should be considered with care, for two aspects present ; themselves—shelter and privacy.) In this garden city, the former is seldom necessary therefore the minor growing Lonicera nitida or the pretty flowered Abelia florebunda is recommended. Where shelter is desirable small leaved privet or escallonia will satisfy, close trimming of all hedge plants is wise if a neat close-set hedge is needed.

In planting roses in rows the standard sorts should be at least sft apart. This will allow of bush or florebundas being planted between and thus give a more continuous display.

Some phase of blight control is now opportune. Roses should be sprayed with lime sulphur before pruning. Daphne and abutilons will benefit from a spray of nirn-

The passengers w’ho stayed in Auckland left for Wellington at 7.50 a.m. today, tine or lindane. VEGETABLE GARDEN With the shortest day past, we can now look ahead and plan for Christmas. That means sprouting potato tubers in shallow boxes for planting by the end of August. Choose an early sort, such as Epic.ure, Robin Adair, Cliffs Kidney, Chippewa, Jersey Bennes or Arran Pilot.

Sprouting greens up the skin and causes formation of eye growths of a hardy nature. A row of longpod beans and early peas can be sown, but be in no hurry with small seeds, unless it be letttuce and cabbage— Golden Acre or Flower of Spring. Carry on making use of all garden wastes in composting. Time spent in turning compost is well spent where the box has been filled for six to eight weeks. It will correct both over-dry or overwet conditions and give air and bacteria a better chance of functioning in the right way. After the turning, accumulate all the compost possible for it will all be w’anted when spring work begins next month.

Prepare for planting rhubarb and asparagus. Both need good supplies of manure dug into the site. For an ordinary small household an asparagus bed 12 feet by 6 feet, holding 18 plants in three row? at 24 inches apart, should be sufficient.

More spacing can be allowed where the ground is available. Where advanced growth of a summer sown green crop has been ; reached it is right to lime this land dig it in. So long as a month or more is possible before sowing or planting, bacterial action on the buried green matter will be accomplished. This is helped by the lime buried in the digging. FRUIT GARDEN The planting of all kinds of fruiting trees may now be done. Naturally most people plant some , fruit trees and the number is ; usually governed by ground availi able. Two or three apples and one each of peach, plum and nectarine should be the minimum, with a I few’ gooseberry, currants and raspberries in the odd spaces Pruning should be an annual winter job from the start, for on the basis of sound pruning rests the future of each tree, with its fruitfulness. Removal of crowded middle branches and the building of a shapely, well balanced tree should satisfy most people. The best fruits are borne on the middle branches, where the sun can reach them. Shading with high trees is unwise. It brings in I blackspot and mildew diseases. Moss or lichen on trees sometimes has the same origin. Red oil is an effective control, with a caustic alkali solution a complete remover. Watch for scale on the old wood of raspberries, loganberries, currants and vine. All these should have an oil spray at 1 in 20.

All kinds of fruiting trees are the better for a lime-sulphur winter spray, but it is imperative in. the case of all stone fruits and walnuts.

The vine should receive a winter oil spray.

A straw’berry bed can be planted with the plants in rows at 15 inches apart. The size of the bed should be governed by a bird protecting framework. ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT “8.M.,” Riccarton.—l agree with you that the preparation of those street trees is short of adequate. :It follows that the trees will be i there for a long time and holes 118 inches by 15 deep do not seem to be large enough for trees that will have a larger spread than these figures indicate. Also it must be realised that the roadways are hard packed, poor soil, and not conducive to the future health and giow’th of the trees. In general it can be said that street trees do not ex- ; hibit the vigour and health of garden planted ones.