In the Garden

Evening Post, Volume CXIII, Issue 30, 5 February 1927, Page 27

In the Garden

|.;;,.' By "PRACTICAL"

VEGETABLE-CROPS I

SulptyiNG MOISTURE

■ ■'■'<*;V. ■'■ ;:-. '.'"' '" ■'. ■-. ' OVERGOMJ^G''SEASONAL

fRQ'DBLES

"Clviousj'^Xlje trouble *itli your: carnations is wnaf-is Jmown as "purple spot" most likely. Itr.usually makes its appearance in the winter months,- ■'•spreading rapidly, and sometimes kills:.the ■-whole plant, besides infecting other plants, «nlcsa the diseased leaves are removed and; turht. The best treatment is to iako oft and' burn nil-affected leaves and to dust the plants.frequently with lime. Spraying witli, a-solution of permanganate of potnstt occasionally is; a good general cleanser Il>e cause 'or- ths trouble .is obscure. Your trouble may..be-rust, which first appears as srey blisters on.-, the leaves aid stems -which when mature;.; bui-iit :and spread n a red-dish-brown, powder ;which -coualsts of spores. As a preventive, tha plants should be sprayed with Bordeaur,mixture.,; This is not a cure, but will prevent-.--.the trouble from spreading. American::; growers : largely, use common salt for rust Spray, with a solution of loz of salt- to S pii'.ts of waier ■'■ " •'- ' . Bush Marrows.—All,the .gourds of marrows and pumpkins are-apt-to drop their fruit be-" fore being matured unless artiilclally fertilised. The pollen from the male flower should be shaken. oyer,..the..pistir of the female flower. The fßmalc-,!:-ao l wcr-,:may.. ,bij, known- -by the embryo, fruit at tho base. If the plants are healthy,- I know of no other reason for the

The; : continued dry-sjgeli makes gardening' a somewhat difficult business, especially as the heat increases.":' It is almost\impossible to; sue'cessfuUyVplant out seedlings or to raise plants from seed So. the open ground. Seed, however, ntay ■be'sb^wn with a fair amount of success prbvided\waiefjs available and the rowa- or beds .arqi shaded in some way. -Leafy brarieheW-laidi over the ground; will largely help; \to conserve the moisture, while mulching is.invaluable. ; 'It "should .be. borne in mind when sowing;, seed that the. ground must be kept moist, not -merely. Jhat'the seed may germinate but also that the seedlings jh the early stages may have an' opportunity of? getting „their roots' well down where there is mcristiire to sustain the pl^nt. At "this ime'of :year it is frequently noticed .that., seeds which are successfully'-germinatcid -Vare * killed off by^rought/^.p:he: fine-; fibrous roots are so/near &c "surface "that-they get scorched up, which vproves. fatal unless the. gr,qund:iskep't. as nearly unifbrmlymoist as possible. ..-:> - -■"" ..: "Watering wjll>Eave to be resorted to" if vegetable crops are,to be successful. The most important branch is the various salMings which are in such;:demand: during hot weather. These mus^be.'sup-'' plied with abundant nibisfee'^ther^se' they are bound to -become tough:: arid flabby,.^ Overheadi.watering in.the feVen- : ings will do much>tQ obtain ttiV desired effect,, but cannot ,take. the .place, of a good watering at the roots, which, should ;bo done at least twice a week during;'.fhot,,:,diy:;Bp.el.ls.:::i4;mong, allvegetable cross, the,'constant .use of the Butch;■■'hoe will ' do vmuch, W.'keep' the' surface;3.oose: and ffiable/'tliereby checking evaporation.' After- watering,-it is specially necessary to follow up by stirring th^ surface. vThis constant hoeing is not'ojoly useful in saying, moisture, it also-keeps" tfdwir*e;ed's "Ofhich: rot the crops of light/:aMair as well as moisture), and aerates the soil.. The roots of plants require air'just as much as theit-foliage. --.. ■' .:.■■■.. TOMATOES AND POTATOES. . Tomatoe3 Require constant attention.' The plants must be kept' attached to their stalks and all side growth^ (laterals) should be rubbed out as so 911 as they appear. Blight is not so.liable to occur during dry weatnef, but "itis better to. Be prepared.fqr.it> and to; keep the plants immune as far as possible by regular spraying. .. The removing, of. laterals' (besides throwing all" the vig-1 our into the main stem) allows the free circulation of air and sunlight, and the plants will be much^Wssr liable to get blight under such conditions. Keep the soil loose round the plants'and supply water from the.tini'e the fruit;appears.-' After the fifOi:.'buttct;o^\fMt'ii^?i:^rmed the tips,,6ftthe 1 plantsmay b¥-re-moved. ■i^./S ',;■-,>'' .• French .sind butter beans and peasshould be kept supplied withriixqisture as otherwise : the':pods are -unable ■;■ to come to perfection., It-is also very"iecessary to iee'p'lthese crops ; closely,pick-.] ed, as ii allowed .to" ripen .the Seed $hel plants immediately cease to bear. i:'-'" I . Potatpea'should-be'l^teiaa soon aa: .the tops commence ;tp turn, .yellow,/-If allowed to remain in' the './ground ftie■' tubers will start into grpwth: as; sqpn as rain comes and will be Bpoiltc reryj considerably. "When digging potatoes \ care shoul&be taken to remove .all-tho small tubers as well as the larger as when these are allowed to,: remain, they grow and prove a trouble' among"! future crops.. It is 31ways>;advisable ; to burn the old haulms of potatoes as a preventive to the spread of disease. As soon as the land is vacated by potatoes or any other crop it should be dug over, and, if not immediately required for cropping, should be sown down with a green crop for digging-in-later. Before sowing the green.crop an 1 appli-' cation of superphosphate should be given to encourage as much growth as possible. Green-,'cropping'is one of the most valuable means.of improving and^ maintaining the quality of;';the.\soil.:: After lifting 4he potato crop the tub--ers should be spread out on a floor in a dark,, dry shed- If stored in, sacksthey are liable to .decay, 1 especially if a diseased potato.; gets" put in by. mistake. The disease-spreads a-apid}y and is not noticed es it would be when the potatoes spread out. If the crop is allowed .to remain ii the light the potatoes turn green 1 and are 1 spdiltf for use, so keep them 'dark. ''■'"" : ' Pumpkins and" marrows ' require :to be kept in check. They are rank growers and in small gardens are inclined to take charge ..and overrun other crops. Peg back- the ' growths as required, and when- the-first fruit appears mp the tip of the shoot. This encour-: ages side growths; upen -which most of the fruit will be borne. '

To obtain a supply of parsley for wmter use seed should bo sown now. me seed is slow of germination, from six to eight weeks. Good ground is required, but avoid fresh manure.": SbV toe seed thinly and thin out to sis or Dine inches apart Cover the seed very lightly and dou'f.allow the soil to-urv out. . ■■ '■<■•■■■■ • . "."*■)'

Cabbage aiul; ; others of that -family may be encouraged ...t:o inak'e .: good growth by applications of nitrate,of soda or sulphate ■ of- ammonia given once a month cither after rain br afterwatering the- ground; : the;- solutidii gets over t h e p i ants it ig advisabl to wash if off with clear water aftorwards, lhe nitrate of soda or sulphate ot ammonia-may, if preferred, be applied dry, at-the ratoiof half-an ounce to the square yard and watered in

SILVER-LEAF DISEASE,

"At this season of the year the ear-" dener should watch his fruit trees closely for signs of tho destructive and extremely prevalent, silver-leaf disease More frequently it is the-plums and apples that suffer../.'There will be mo difficulty-'iii detecting an attack "Where it is preesnt, for th« silvery or leadenJiueci foJiagc on diseased branches stands, out in marked contrast to the deep green leaves an healthy parts, xll-

though in a few cases:■•'silvered 1, .branches may recover' without any treatment whatever, an attackis usually followed by fatal- results. First one branch 'silvers', and dies, .'then another and so on until "eventually the whole tree is ruined. It is for.this reason that it is so necessary to see. that 'silvered' parts, however large or small,' .are : cut, out and burned. Diseased branches should be cut back well beyond _the : silvered paTts, until no dark stain is seen, in the wood; for the roots, or mycelium, of the fungus' spread, quickly down the branch and the cutting must be beyond the infected area. Also, it is best to take the diseased branch off ~flus'h with the main branch or stem, so that no snag is left to die back. There is as yet no cure for sil-ver-leaf disease beyond the removal of; .^silvered' parts. There are ..two other important points to .lave in niind when dealing with silver-leaf. ■ (1) The fungus responsible for. the trouble can only spread to other trees from dead wood, the fruiting bb'dies—which produce myriads of spores or 'seeds' and which may b_e leathery, Rracket^sh^ped; projections or flat-erierußtations, both with a characteristic purplish tinge— form only on the bark of dead twigs and branches. (2) These spores or 'seeds' that spread the disease can. gain entry to healthy parts only through wounds or abrasions of one kind or other. The gardener should therefore make a special point, early -in July (January in New Zealand) at the latest, of cutting out every scrap of dead wood in all the friut trees and further of painting over each cut surface and bark -abrasion rwith.. lead• paint : or Stockholm tar,'immediately. .These are precautions always to be taken, silverleaf or no, and--apply to all fruit trees. . . . Apricots, cherries, and peaches are all liable to suffer as well as plums and apples."—arrom. "The New Book of Gfardening."