Gardeners’ Queries

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30045, 1 February 1963, Page 6

Gardeners’ Queries

Could you advise me as M the best lasaure te use oa regal HUest Last year I used Mood and bone and ttos year a large percentace have had no Bowen. Those tint dM Bower had

only one bloom to a stem.— MW. (Merlvale). I flunk your regal lilies want Utting and the bulb clusters require dividing up. Utt carefully so as not to damage the roots and after dividing replant immediately into fresh ground. This should result tn improvement although it may not be immediate. Blood and bone should be a suitable manure to use on lilies. Last autumn I sowed sone Pukekohe tone-keeper onion seed. These terminated and did well until tote sprtac, when all of them ran to seed. What went wrongT— L.EJ). (Leinster road). Your sowing time for this particular variety of onion was correct Running to seed of onions is not uncommon and may be due to the influence of weatlier conditions and/or to poor strain of seed. A large weeping elm in my garden is sending np large quantities of shoots in many parts of the garden. If eut oS at ground level the shoots grow again more strongly than ever. Is there any way of stopping them? —“Elm” (Christchurch). This trouble has arisen out of the use of the English elm as a rootstock. The English elm is notorious for its suckering habit and It Is usual to use the Scottish elm as rootstock as this does not sucker. There is no way in which you can stop the suckering without removing the tree. It is no use just cutting down the tree for this will only increase the trouble. Take a girdle of bark, at least two inches in width, from around the main trunk of the tree. Paint the cut surface with a preparation of 2.4.5. T and oil. This will completely kill the tree, including the underground portions, but it will take some time.

*. tore some nasterttams wtiteh 1 sowed tn Nevem&ar’Ss?%3"£E ia".4-&srfe ß s •tevdgly and ere producing masses and masses of new growth until there is a WWST--JSS!

You do not say in what position your garden nasturtiums are growing or anything about the soil, r suspect that they have been planted in too rich a soli, This would result in very vigorous and succulent growth with few if any flowers produced. Nasturtiums should be, sown in the poorest and driest soil possible in full sun to produce the best display of flowers.

Please find encloeed three specimens: (1) Two or three of my dahlias have leaves with these markings. Could yen tell me what Is cousins this trouble and if it wfli spread? (2) This dahlia has blackened buds and distorted ftilage. I wondered if drought conditions might be responsible? (3) Could you tell me what is causing this trouble with the tomato leaves? They have not been sprayed.

(1) The marking on the leaves are caused by the virus disease, spotted wilt. It is spread by insects and there is every chance that the disease will spread. Quite a wide range of plants can be attacked by this disease besides dahlias so it would be advisable to dig up the affected plants and bum them.

(2) I cannot be sure what is causing the trouble but it does seem possible that the dahlia has received the drift of some weedkiller.

(3) It seems likely that the tomato is being affected with spotted wilt disease also. You do not give us any details about the trouble and this makes it difficult to be really certain.