IN THE GARDEN

Dominion, Volume 24, Issue 286, 29 August 1931, Page 24

IN THE GARDEN

Filling Gaps in the' Herbaceous Border

(By

“Kowhai.”)

During.the last two weeks plants in the herbaceous border have made a definite start. Aquilegias, perennial phloxes and perennial poppies are well forward, while doronicums are already, in flower. Perennial lupins, delphiniums, Michaelmas daisies, heleniums, erigerons, perennial salvias, bearded irises, Japanese irises, and all the lovely perennial plants for spring, summer, and autumn are busy pushing up strong growth. In a few weeks’ time the flat bareness of winter will have gone. While everything is just beginning to be on the move we should take the chance to fill up empty spaces. Room must of course be left for dahlias, for we could not do without their wealth of glorious bloom during the autumn months, and it is a safe plan to drive in fairsized marking sticks where we intend to have them. There may even be some of the perennial plants that we wish to turn out, and to move into a less conspicuous part of the garden while there is still time. Having made sure that all vacant spaces have had a liberal supply of decayed garden rubbish or old manure dug into them,"we can set to work to plant. There are many lovely perennial plants to choose from, and most of them have been so improved during the last few years that it is well worth turning out some of the least interesting in our gardens each year to make room for new varieties. In perennial phloxes the colours of the flowers and the size of the heads of bloom have been wonderfully improved. Where the plants are decently nourished they make magnificent heads on strong stems, and the colours are glorious. There are pinks in every shade from shrimp to deep rose, rich salmons, crimson, clear mauve, rich deep purple. The flowers have the added charm of being intensely fragrant, , , , The plants themselves are very hardy, growing in sun or in open shade. They must be well treated, but once planted in good rich soil they need not be lifted for several years, occasional top-dressings of old manure keeping them growing and flowering satisfactorily. Another perennial plant that has been very much improved is the perennial poppy- The colours nowadays include rich crimson, shell pink, old rose and scarlet. There is even a double salmon. The old bricky-red one has been left

far behind, but it is still attractive in a semi-wild part of the garden. Perennial poppies are much hardier than many lieople realise. There is just one thing that must be avoided when planting them and that is an exposed position, for wind catches the large petals of the. flowers and tears them off. Deeply worked, fairly rich soil is necessary for a start. Afterward top-dressing with good’ stuff from the rubbish heap once a year mid occasional doses of some fertiliser during the growing season —bonedust, dried fish manure. Peruvian guano—are all that are necessary. Every third year clumps may be lifted .and broken up, strong pieces being replanted. Perennial poppies grow well either in sun or in shade, but many of the new colours need semishade, for sun is apt to scorch them. Good clumps of gladioli are always nice in a herbaceous border. The slender slightly-curved stems of primulinus gladioli. and the straight massive ones of the large-flowered varieties each have their place. Corms should be planted now as soon ns possible. The soil should he deeply dug and fairly rich, and the corms should be at least four inches deep. Shallow planting is not successful, and the great stems of bloom are more easily blown over when the corms are not well mi-, ehored below ground. Both bearded and Japanese irises are delightful in the herbaceous border. They both like a sunny place, but while bearded irises demand lime, the Japanese cannot endure it. Japanese irises delight in deeply worked soil rich in humus, and an annual top-dressing of animal manure or good stuff from a compost heap. Big clumps are very effective toward the back of the border, for the flower stems run up to as much as three feet. The flowers are lovely, big and flat, and of rich and dainty colours, many of them being delightfully marked. Occasional thorough waterings, and good mulches of decayed leaves or grass are necessary in summer.

Modern delphiniums are so beautiful that they hold us spellbound. The colours are glorious, blue in every shade from the palest to the deepest, clear mauve, anti deep purple. Many are selfs; others have the blues, and mauves, and purples wonderfully intermingled. The flowers are large and well-spaced, single and double, aud the stems massive.

Their one drawback is their height, which excludes them from exposed gardens. Delphiniums like deeply-dug, well-drained soil rich in humus, and a sunny, sheltered place. Gradually into our herbaceous borders we should introduce some of the modern varieties of our favourite flowers. One has only to' see them in flower in th e nurseries to realise the importance of this. The early part of September is a good time to plant, for by then most soils are becoming warmer, and the plants can go ahead without check. Godetias. : For making a brilliant show in summer, godetias cannot be surpassed. The plants are very hardy, growing well in any well-dug soil into which a sprinkling of bonedust has been worked, and they give a profusion of flowers over a long season. If some well-decayed garden rubbish can be dug into the soil, so much the better. A sunny position is necessary. For an exposed garden, a dwarf variety should be chosen. One of the loveliest of the dwarfs is “Double Sweetheart”—with light cream-pink flowers. Another variety is Flamingo, which wheu massed makes, a brilliant show. The flowers are large, and are crimson-scarlet in colour. Two dwarf varieties of compact growth suitable for exposed places, for massing in beds, and for using as edgings, are Crimson Glow and Sunset, with fiery crimson flowers. Seeds of godetias may be sown, in the open ground now, the seedlings being thinned out th four or six inches apart. VEGETABLES Growth is still slow in the vegetable garden, and every chance should be taken of stirring the soil between the rows of vegetables. Seedling''cabbages and cauliflowers may be planted out in wcll-munured ground. Mix a little bonedust with the soil in each hole, and cut off any long tap roots. Begin drawing the earth toward early potatoes as soon as the tops show above ground. Sow the following seeds where necessary : — i Red Beet.—'Sow in drills, 15 inches apart,, and in ground that was richly manured for a previous crop of greens. Onions.—Sow in drills. 12 inches apart, in well-enriched firm soil. Radish. —Sow broadcast in rich, firm ground. Carrots. —Sow thinly in drills 12 inches apart. Peas.—Sow in drills from two to three feet apart in well-trenched and manured ground. Parsnips.—Sow in ground that was well-manui'ed for a previous crop, in finely-worked soil. Sprinkle a little bonedust in the drills.