Here And There In The Flower Garden

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29269, 29 July 1960, Page 9

Here And There In The Flower Garden

Push on with alterations or renovations to paths or wood furniture of the garden. While pruning climbers on trellises it is as well to take the opportunity to inspect the latter which may be found to need strengthening to give the plant more support. Rock edgings, too, may be the better for lifting to enable you to remove twitch roots which are hard to keep from infesting border plants. The latter, also, have a habit of overgrowing the available space, and need a good trimming of the spreading shoots, or the division of the roots of the plant itself. Border bulbs, too, need attention. These will be showing through the ground now, and should have the surface soil lightly stirred and covered with half an inch of sawdust. All kinds of roses can be planted—dwarfs about three feet apart, climbers one at each fence post, nine to 10 feet apart. With standards in the row. two dwarfs between each will give an effective display, but there should be at least three feet between each bush, dwarf or standard. Established roses should now be pruned. Cut out some of the old, thorny stems as the more vigorous, clean stems will produce the best flowers. Hydrangeas can now be pruned of all dead flowers and thinned of spare growths. With old bushes, a third of the shoots can be cut out just above the ground. Others can be cut off just above fat buds indicating the flower heads for next summer. Bare patches are caused by grass grubs. Dust the lawn with either arsenate of lead or a proprietary insecticide. If the bare patches are extensive it may be easier to topdress with fine soil on which lawn seed may be sown; but where the patches are not too large it is possible to borrow a healthy square of turf from some other, less conspicuous part of the lawn to replace the bare area. When this is done the place where the turf has been lifted can be filled with fine soil sown with fescue.