Practical Gardening

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32885, 7 April 1972, Page 11

Practical Gardening

By

M. LUSTY

April the time for autumn tasks

With the gradual departure of summer and the onset of autumn there is a greater variation between day and night temperatures, and the hours of sunshine gradually decrease. The pattern of change becomes noticeable in plants as growth slows, crops ripen and mature and leaves are shed. However, although the seasons follow the same sequence everywhere and plants generally follow a particular habit (their ways cannot be greatly altered) environments differ vastly not only from area to area, locality to locality but even between neighbouring sections. Soils and microclimates are the major influencing factors. One has only to take a trip round town to realise just how variable conditions are. Frost-tender plants grow happily on the hills, but it is difficult to find similar plants on the flat. These factors all, go to illustrate that our gardening activities—whether it be seed sowing, the utilisation of a particular plant in the landscape or perhaps the , harvesting of a fruit or vegetable—can only be governed by generalisations which may , be fairly sweeping at times. The actual decisions—when, j what and how—are personal i ones which can only be made | on the site and references I can only provide guidance. 1 Vegetable section 1 The arrival of autumn, and winter, later, soon transforms the vegetable garden 1 into a rather lifeless and almost forgotten area, especi- I ally when compared with activities of the preceding sea- 1 son. Cabbage and cauliflower' intended for spring use can 1 still be set out but no time 1 should be lost in doing so. ‘ Enfield Market and Flower' of Spring are still the most ' popular varieties for this purpose, and to this can be j added Winter Pride which has given good results in many places. Only the most sturdy plants with a good ' root system should be used, and care should be taken to J avoid planting those which do not possess a growing ' point—these will never form a head and are aptly called "blind plants.” Pest control of all winter! greens, by which we refer chiefly to members of the ! brassica family, should still ' be maintained. Diamond black * moth caterpillar and those of ’ the white butterfly can soon riddle these plants with holes ! not to mention the spoilage J created by the accumulation ' of their excreta, and when ! these pests are joined by aphides there is little chance of the cabbage or cauliflower ' surviving. Spray with lindane for long-term control of longstanding crops and use malathion and carbaryl for aphides ! and caterpillars respectively for those vegetables which ' are not far off maturity. 1 Keep a watchful eye on ' the celery—good quality, sue- , culent large sticks can only be obtained by keeping it growing freely without check , from competition from weeds, the lack of moisture j or the prevalence of leaf spot 1 disease. Plants can be given ' a boost if needed by sprink- 1 ling a little nitrogenous fertiliser down the rows—nitrate of soda is a most suitable and quick acting material in this instance. Regular harvesting Tomatoes in close contact with the ground become susceptible to slug damage and rotting at this stage of the year. Tomato worm can also spoil much fruit and allow for secondary troubles to occur. Regular picking over is advisable and this is worth doing daily, as fruit will ripen quite satisfactorily when taken off the plant. Potatoes left in the ground and subjected to prolonged wet spells very often develop secondary growths and some even begin to sprout. Once the tops have completely died down the whole crop can be dug and if carefully handled, bagged and stored in a dark, cool place they will keep perfectly until required. This will also give an opportunity of cleaning the ground which they have vacated and perhaps sowing a green manure crop in it. Kumeras can be left in the ground for a little longer as they are one of the few crops which improve in flavour if left until fully mature. As they can be severely affected by frost they should be dug

• before the really cold weaf ther arrives. r Cucurbits are also very 1 susceptible to frost damage > and usually cannot be expected to make much further growth from now on. Not all > are good for long-term stor- ■ age but some varieties such 1 as Crown and Buttercup , pumpkins will hold into ' spring. It pays to cut them . from the vines and leave them to cure on the ground I for a week or two before bringing them in. Early removal of asparagus fem—the name given to the long, plumy foliage which develops after cutting ceases —is never advocated as the foliage manufactures food which is stored by the plant’s roots for use in producing next year’s crop. Once foliage has turned yellow this process virtually ceases and only then is the time to cut it down to ground level. Berry-bearing tops should be very carefully removed to avoid dispersing unwanted seed, not only over the existing bed but elsewhere as well. Not all plants bear berries as asparagus is a monoecious plant which simply means that male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. It has been found that male plants (those which do not carry berries on their foliage) iroduce a better spear; the fastidious gardener may therefore consider it worth while to remove all female plants and attempt to replace them with male ones. Saving seeds A source of doubt about existing rhubarb often occurs when it is seen to sprout flower heads. This is a perfectly natural development and need not cause worry. All that is necessary is break off the offending stem as soon as it appears. Now is a good time to give these plants a thorough clean up and add a compost mulch about them. Winter-bearing varieties will benefit from an application of a complete fertiliser at the rate of up to 6ozs a plant. April is the month favoured for a first sowing of broad beans which are thus enabled to make a good start before the onset of less favourable weather. A common practice amongst many vegetable growers is to allow some of I their plants to go to seed so ; that some can be saved for ' next year’s sowing. Although i this is perfectly feasible with ; a few crops, considerable i variability must be expected i with results from such seed i particularly with some such i as brassicas and cucurbits 1 which are inclined to ready i cross pollination. To get seed ’ which yields end products 1 true to type requires the ob- > servance of certain precau- 1 tions such as covering the 1 flower heads with a polythene 1 bag. It is not for fun that l commercial seed growers isolate the various crops from one another to ensure absolute conformity of type. Sowings for the month are somewhat restricted though it will be possible to be more ambitious in favourable areas. Generally, sowings of broad beans, onions and radishes can be recommended. Plantings can include spring cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, lettuce and silver beet. Fruit section One often finds that certain basic misconceptions are fairly general in the field of gardening. In this respect the general tendency to leave fruiting subjects entirely alone, to fend for themselves without any cultural attention is very common. Very often this neglect is coupled with the selection of unsuitable varieties and siting in positions which even under reasonable care are not conducive to quality and quantity production. I .Briefly three points to I dwell on at this stage are: . (1) the need to supply moisI hire and or a mulch once the fruit is forming, particularly in dry seasons; (2) the neces- . sity of keeping adequate con- . trol of pests and diseases by [ means of satisfactory cover , sprays; (3) the urgency of ad- . ditional hygiene which in- > eludes the removal of all . weeds in the vicinity of the r plants and disposal of all i fallen, diseased mummified > fruits. All such recommendations should be continued > even after all the fruit has i been harvested. 5 Bordeaux mixture or lime f sulphur depending on the s kind of fruiting subject and I even its locality, plus ling dane, is a very desirable post

■ harvest spray control for many problems on most top, ' bush and vine fruits. April is a good month to prepare and plant the straw- ' berry bed, the early planting giving the plants a good chance to become fully established before winter and thus enables them to make an early start in spring. Talisman, Red Gauntlet and Cambridge favourite have been the main varieties grown over the last few years and these have continued to prove satisfactory and quite popular. Newer varieties such as Shasta and Tioga are also finding more favour and are readily available. Ornamental section Every effort should be made to get bulbs planted without delay to avoid a later and shorter flowering period next season. Remember, the results will bear the testimony not only of the attention given to the planting but also of the quality of the stock involved. In other words, if you want the best it can only be obtained by utilising the best and avoiding anything of inferior quality. Dahlias are still providing good displays and these can be maintained until the frost blackens the foliage. Again, selectivity when lifting will ensure a better show next year — plants which have shown severe signs of virus infection, mottling and curling of the leaves are best discarded as there is not a cure for this problem. Late flowering chysanthemums will require a little attention. Earwigs may be troublesome—they have a tendency to eat the petals. Disbudding can still be done. It is surprising how these flowers will continue to appear late in the season. Stakes and ties should be checked and adjusted; and in the likelihood of frost polythene bags will protect vulnerable blooms. Hedge pests Hedges and shrubs which are regularly trimmed should be attended to without delay so that they have an opportunity to recover before winter. As caterpillars such as leaf roller and tent, have been particularly active in and on many such plants it would also pay to give all of them a thorough spraying after they have been cut. In- , spection may also reveal scales which do not advertise their presence as readily as other pests until they have built up their numbers to , considerable proportions and then the damage has been done. Lindane is a good multi-purpose insecticide for use against caterpillars in hedge plants and white oil should be used to control scale insects. , Newly-sown lawns should . not be cut until a good sward at least one inch and a half, high, has covered the area and then only a light cut with blades set higher than normally. To avoid damage to the young grasses which take a few months to gain a firm anchor hold in the soil the mower should be thoroughly checked to make quite sure that it is functioning to its maximum efficiency and that above all the blades are sharp. Before the initial mowing the new lawn should be rolled to depress any blade-damaging stones and to smooth out any odd lumps of soil. Very many perennials and biennials can be sown now for spring and summer flowering. The range includes alyssum, campanula, dianthus. freesias, godetia, lupins, mimulus, nigella, stocks and violas.