WORK FOR THE WEEK

Evening Post, Volume CVI, Issue 126, 24 November 1923, Page 17

WORK FOR THE WEEK

IN THE KITCHEN GARDEN.

(By "Practical.")

While the ground remains dry and the weather. fine, lose no opportunity of using the Dutch' hoe. The weeds are very busy and hardly seem to be through the ground before they are in flower, and in a day or two will be seeding. -„ : Continue to thin such crops as car ■ rots, parsnips, turnips, and onions—it is much better to have them too thin than too thick. Stake peas and French beans, and see that provision is made for some poles for runner beans. These last should be growing strongly now, and to be successful must have something to climb on. They may still be sown, in fact, any time up till January., The most ' satisfactory method of growing them where sufficient space is available is to trench the ground two or three feet deep, thoroughly manuring with stable manure, for preference, or garden refuse. ; Where this is not practicable dig the ground deeply, using as much manure or rubbish as is available. As soon as the ground is ready take out a trench about four inches deep with a spade, and sow .the seed about three inches deep in the bottom of this trench. The seed should be sown twelve inches apart, but may be sown at half, that distance if there is any doubt as to germination, and when they come up the surplus ones can be're-! •noved. The shallow trench will gradually fill up, but in the meantime wili help very much in watering and, in summer, runner beans require plenty of water. If they are sown in double rows two feet apart, the easiest way of staking is to place poles (which should be at least six feet out of the ground) on the outside of each bean, crossing them at-the top, and securely tyin'7lth twine or. flax. If a thin pole can be fastened along the top of the sticks it will make the whole much more rigid md less likely to be blown over.. Run ncr beans are perennial, and, once sown, •■■■ill last three or four years.. New Zealand.spinach should be sown now. Soak the seed in hot water for a..' ew. hours ..before .sowing. . A.dry sunny position suits them best,, and when the plants,are. up, thin them oiit. to three or four -feet apart, as they are great..growers. , ■ .. • . „ , • Silver beet can be planted now m good soil and. if well .watered after planting, will soon come away. They should be planted eighteen inches apart'in drills and the ground : kept cultivated.between them.' -In parts where the ground* very,light,or.sandy, and cabbage can not be .crown because.of the fly. silver beet will fill the gap admirably— a very few plants supplying igreen-vegetable fOl a fair T sized. family. . : . Leeks may .be sown now, but no delay should .take place: .Seed should- be ■sown very thinly .to save transplanting fciJi the,plants are ready, to' be moved into their... permanent quarters. ■ If th<s plaptsb come up too thickly thin- out and dibble ,in . until ready to plant Plants ready grown can be obtained from the' seedamen and would; save the bother of seeds. ■ : Any good garden soil suits them,:, but they do best in light, sandy loam which has , been enriched with well-rotted manure. ■ They are sometimes grown in trenches, the same as celery, but a. simpler method, and quite satisfactory for ordinary gardens, is to make holes with the dibble about nine inches apart. Into the holes, which should be eight inches deep, drop the plant and do not attempt to close the hole or push the soil in. If the weather is dry give a good watering. Before planting, the ends of the leaves should'be. cut off. Once they start to grow they should have copious supplies of liquid manure—always remembering to water thoroughly with plain water first. • .-•-..

Lettuces should be sown every month. As they do not transplant very easily in hot, dry weather, the best plan is: to sow very-thinly in drills, and thin out I to six or eight inches apart. It is a good plan,to bow or plant between the potato drills, or rows of peas where the ground has been manured for the ether crops, which also afford the young lettuces some protection from the sun and wand. . -.'■ • ■ IN THE FLOWER GARDEN; Continue to stake and tie securely all ta, growing perennials, such as delphiniums, ; chrysanthemums, dahlias, etc., and thin' out superfluous growths In the case of old stools of chrysanthemums which were not divided quite satisfactory results may be ; obtained by cutting out all but four of the strongest Rhoots. Those, left should'be as evenly spaced .as possible, and a neat stake driven firmly into the ground for each. If the old stools are allowed to remain with all the growths an abundance of miserable flowers will result which will be neither useful nor ornamental. Have all stakes as neat and inconspicuous" as possible—great slabs of boards all over a garden are very unsightly. Keep a sharp look out for green fly, especially on roses, and spray with kerosene emulsion. Climbing and rambler roses require attention, the long growths being kept tied neatly back. This is a good time to sow aquilegia seed. Few plants are more charming for garden decoration with their pretty foliage and diverse colour range. B°sides their beauty in the garden the flowers last well when picked. The seed can be sown in. the open ground this month. If they are lightly covered with fine soil and a few pieces of light scrub placed over them to keep off the glaring sun, they will soon germinate. As soon as they are'large enough to.handle they should be pricked out into a prepared bed about four inches apart. If they are kept watered they should be large enough to' plant out in the autumn, and will bloom next spring. . The.lbng-spurred variety (Mrs; Scott Elliott strain) is far superior to the old-fashioned "Granny Bonnets." Seed is obtainable at any of the seed shops. ' , Freesias, iris, tritonias, and such small bulbs, become a.nuisance if allow- [ ed to seed about the garden and on the paths.' To avoid this, cut off and burn all seed.pods before they ripen. Continue to fill in all vacant places in the flower borders with annuals, and any surplus plants may be put in the odd corners of. the. vegetable garden where they will help to supply the needs for house decoration without depleting the blooms in the flower borders. .

Lawns should be kept cut and the edges trimmed and, in the case of newlylaid lawns,- where the grass is quite young, it is better-not to gather up the cuttings—they, soon disappear and help to supply humus to the young plants. . VALUE OF LIME. The following article on the value of, hme as a fertiliser is taken from a recent number of the "New Zealand Journal of Agriculture" :—"Besides being a plant food, lime helps mbet soils by improvine their physical condition—the structure of the grains. Clayey soil is made more open.and sandy soil closer. Lime gweete"«, *• , ipil— corr«cU acidity—thereby I »ldltt« *• "«!• prginiMnt cYU«d b.* [IKU. It LbtiiU* potMh tku&y,in tli

•oil, and it* relation'to "potaslf*is"'s'uch that authorities state that it is useless to apply potash to soil deficient in lime. •Ine disease of crucifers (cabbage," etc.), known' as club^root, has never." bern known to occur in the first place where a sufficiency of lime was present, the disease being promoted by an acid state of soil. Lime is obtainable in : two forms—burnt lime and ground limestone, known as carbonate lime. Burnt lime: is also known as roche-lime and 'quicklimej, It comes from the kiln ia: lumps, which break down to a very fine; powder when water is taken up. Quicklime on to air gradually takes "lip moisture from the: atmosphere and breaks up; it is then known as air-slak-ed lime. It is in this form that it is useful for killing slugs and other garden pests. The caustic properties of quicklime cause it to burn up humus in tlie soil, therefore-it-should not be-used on land poor in humus! It is the best form for use ; on swamp lands and other soils where a good deal of humus is present, also for clay Boils.' Air-slaked lime is, all things considered, the best form of lime for. garden purposes, Avhei-e success will certainly not be met with unless a. good supply, of humus, is maintained. Moderate dressings'~bf,"saj,"Hal£ a ton per acre- (aboiit; a quarteroound per square yard) annually .will on.ordinary soil be better, than heavier dressings at longer intervals, except in places where there is a special- need for -lime, where amounts up to,, two. tons•■ per acre (about one pound per square yard) may at first be. necessary, 'or more in the case of swamp land- and soils quita without lime." .. .' L '. . .' . '

To find out whether the soil is deficient in lime, put a small quantity, of finely ? powdered - soil into an - eartheuware or glass receptacle, and pour-.over it some muriatic, acid—spirits of salts. If the soil fizzes vigorously there---is plenty of lime present, but if.the fizzing is very weak or entirely absent then the ground requires liming. . . •■■.