Garden Notes CONTROL OF PESTS IS IN GARDENERS’ HANDS

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28447, 29 November 1957, Page 20

Garden Notes CONTROL OF PESTS IS IN GARDENERS’ HANDS

(Specially written for " The Press "]

[By

T. D. LENNIE,

AJ1.R.1.H., N.Z.]

Friday, November 29, 1957 A constant source of complaint by home gardeners is the spread and prevalence of garden pests. Most of them forget to blame themselves for the fact that the pests are so evident. These garden pests are part of Nature’s scheme of things, assisted all too often by neglect to take counter measures until too late.

Nature ordains that one thing shall prey on another and even mankind is not exempt. In the garden, preventive steps can be taken sufficient to destroy the cycle and this is where the careful gardener scores. He sprays in the winter to destroy the dormant spores and follows it in spring and summer to reach the survivors. He attacks the summer pests such as mildew, codlin moth or white butterfly on first sight and prevents their onslaught. Some gardens are free of slugs and woodlice. Why? Because of • garden hygiene”—that is, leaving no untidy litter about for them to breed in, plus the use of insect powders where they appear. These pests breed in clumps of border shrubs such as poker plant, rush leaved iris or strong litter and when found can be destroyed* by dusting lime, poisoned bran or hortnap. A really effective check to these pests is cultivation of the soil and timely action on their first appearance. FLOWER GARDEN Undoubtedly an important job at present is consideration of what to do to aid or maintain a good display on the borders. In most cases these borders will be partly filled with shrubs and perennials leaving only spaces or edgings to be dealt with. Things are then easy, but where much planting is possible the claims of perennials should be recognised. Here the claims of gladiolus, chrysanthemum and dahlias cannot be disputed and all these can be planted now in full confidence. No wonder the dahlia is so popular, as no other plant is so good for summer and autumn display. Provided soil and position are right, little attention other than staking and disbudding is needed throughout its long season.

While the large decorative section is strikingly effective, it is not so useful for cutting as are the smaller type, cactus miniatures and pompons, all of which lend themselves for vase work.

All these are back-row plants leaving front spaces for lesser plants or annuals, and here we can choose between so many sorts, including agathea, ally sum, asters, salpiglossis, petunias, salvia, French and African marigolds, zinnias, helichrysum, cinerarias, sweet William, etc.

With the decline in growth of spring bulbs and the removal of foliage, a maximum of space will now be available for filling in bedding plants. Whatever you choose, see that they fit the position in height and spread. With most of them, about 12 inches between plants will be right if planting in formal rows. Where spaerf is limited or broken with shrubs or border perennials, clumps of three to five plants, six to eight inches apart, will give a good effect.

It is a pity to allow tall-growing spikes of delphinium, aquilegia. poppy and paeony to be broken by high winds. Better lo put in two or three stakes to each clump and bind with strong twine. Lilies are showing up well, and should have the soil loosened about them. Watch for browning leaves on auratum, candidum and tigrinium, due to lily disease. Spraying with colloidal sulphur would be helpful in the early stages.

Should the disease badly discolour the leaves and prevent buds from developing, the bulb should be lifted and destroyed, as it will die anyway. Adjacent bulbs in the clump should be put through an aretan bath when dormant.

Flowering brooms will benefit from a good trimming of overlong shoots probably full of seed pods. Left alone, these plants get top heavy and bare at the bottom. Roses are doing well but should be watched for aphis and mildew. These are the two main blights of the otherwise healthy rose and should be met forthwith by spraying.

Although it is an advantage to have a greenhouse for raising choice flower seeds, many good things can be easily raised outside in a cool, shady, fine soil. Good supplies for next summer may be got by sowing now Iceland poppy, pansy, polyanthus, hollyhock. Brompton stock, delphiniums. etc. By March they should be strong enough to plant out in flowering places. Gerberas, or as they used to be called the South African Jamieson daisy can also be planted. This gorgeous daisy will thrive here in any good, warm, well-drained soil and thrives on plenty of sun heat. It is a deep rooting plant and the roots should not be spread out near the surface.

If any lawn sowing has to be done, it should be seen to at once so that seed may germinate before really hot weather comes to us. Lawn or path weeds should be destroyed by spraying a hormone liquid. VEGETABLE GARDEN

With early peas well established, keep up the supply by sowing maincrops, such as Onward. Greenfeast or Aiderman. These are tall growers and must later be staked, but the large wellfilled pods they bear, make this class most desirable. They cannot be sown after December. Even the early dwarf peas will give much better results when tied up with sticks and twine. To let these peas straggle about on the ground means a shorter and poorer crop. Early sown root crops should now be thinned. This also means hand weeding the rows. Do not waste the thinnings, onions, especially, as these will make quite useful bulbs to supplement the supply. Seeds of winter greens should be sown without delay. Most people appreciate savoys, sprouts and broccoli in the winter, and these should be planted out not later than January, so that November sowing of the seed is imperative.

Tomato and potato planting should not be delayed, and see Jhat both are provided with food

by spreading manure or fertiliser.

Salad crops are important and should be assured by sowing lettuce, cress, mustard, radish, turnip and parsley. As these mature rapidly only small lots should be sown with a repetition before Christmas. Main vegetables can still be sown particularly sweet corn, cucumber, pumpkin, vegetable marrow, dwarf and runner beans, red and silver beet, carrots, parsnip and spinach. Carrot aphis does not appear to be bad this season, but watch for small white spots on the foliage. It is particularly urgent before thinning to spray with nicotine, Temul, or Lindane to kill the pest. Even the soapy water left after washing has some virtue for the purpose, used undiluted. The asparagus bed should be given the weekly watering, using loz nitrate of soda in a gallon of water. FRUIT GARDEN

In dry weather most fruiting trees will benefit from a good watering as the fruit content is built up on moisture. Thinning of apples should also be done early leaving not more than three fruits to a cluster on smaller apples like Cox’s Orange, and one on big sorts like Peasgoods or Wolseley. A second or third spraying with arsenate and Bordeaux should be given. These are best applied separately at two dessertspoon fulls to a gallon of water. If applied together then the powder supply would have to be doubled or strength would be halved. Le’aves on peach and nectarine trees showing red blotches of leaf curl should be picked off, and the trees sprayed with lime sulphur. This is also needed for die-back, brown rot and shot-hole fungus. These crops also promise well this season and the simple task suggested is well worth doing even if the neighbour neglects his part in this connexion. Pruning of vine should also be done. It will be found making strong side shoots or laterals which can be shortened or cut away entirely. Where flower clusters are showing, cut off at two eyes past the bunch. A spray of Bordeaux should also be given. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS “Garden Lover,” Rakaia—There are several methods to control opossum attacks on plants. Trapping would be the most effective and get a return value as well, or you could spray weekly using lime sulphur, summer oil, D.D.T. 50, etc. These are deterrants with nasty taste with a poison element. “J. 5. Hawarden—You are right in allowing six dessertspoons full of each powder to the three gallons of water. For convenience both lots of powder could be "put in to the three gallons and allowed time to dissolve. Otherwise the water could be halved and each receive the six dessertspoon fulls, “Poor Leaves,” Geraldine—Rose is suffering from die-back disease rather partial to polyanthus type which grow small crowded shoots. Remedy is to cut it well back cleaning out all rubbish and give two or three weekly sprays with Colloidal sulphur.