GARDENING FOR THE WEEK

Evening Star, Issue 16263, 4 November 1916, Page 10

GARDENING FOR THE WEEK

Our contributor, a well-known gardener, will be glad 1o answer questions, which must be received not later than Tuesday of each week. —The Vegetable Garden.— The Asparagus Bed.—lt is well to remind my readers of the importance oi' careful and regular cutting of this crop. No matter if the heads are required or not, they should,be all cut as they mature Until the time 'of discontinuing cutting altogether. should be taken not to damage the crowns when cutting. This is easily done, and may happen unless thereis a good thickness of fioil over them. It is also unwise to allow the .sticks to become too long before cutting, a.s the older they get the more stringy they become. Six"inches ie quite long enough. After cutting has been carried on for a few weeks it will be decidedly beneficial to the crop to administer » dressing of common agricultural wilt, at tho rate of lilb to the square yard. This should cany the crop eight through the season. Celery.—-The old and careless way of preparing the trenches an 4 planting is a mistake. To obtain the best results tha trenches should bo prepared some weeks before planting takes place. Trenches 12in in-width and 15iu in depth, with 4in of manure dug in, should do very well. ~% Plants should bo from 6in to 9in apa.it. '"lf the trenches are prepared now they should lie in tine condition for planting ' by tho time they are ready to go out. Keep all young growing crops well hoed and f.reo from weeds; also attend to thinning before they get too large. Delay ir. this work is detrimental to a successful crop. Cucumbers Out of Doors.— Tho ridge „ cucumber is much hardier than tlie frame variety. It is in this district a very uncertain crop, yet in warm, sunny, and well sheltered situations it is a very prolilic cropper. Though not so elegant nor perhaps quite so good in flavor as the other variety, it ifi very fine when cut fresh, from one's own bed. To be successful ■with, this crop it is necessary to secure a load or two of good stable manure, made into ridges, and about two buckets of good loam for each plant, which should be 2ft apart. Tho seeds may be sown where they are to fruit, providing they can. get protection. With small bottomless boxes, with glass placed over them, they will soon como away under this condition, and by the end of the month should be strong enough to stand constant exposure, after which they should be able to take care of them. pelves, except for occasional waterings. —The Rose Garden.— Disbudding.—lu my previous notes I explained tho removal of young surplus growth, ■which is one form of disbudding, bub the removal of surplus flower buds in another, and the one ,w« must now consider. .Many amateurs would appear to imagine that when their roses are pruned " they require no further attention, but this is not tho ease nor the way that fine blooms are obtained. There are some kinds which throw up only one bud on each shoot. When this is the case no di* budding is required. It is when clusters ' are found that attention is required. To obtain the best blooms one bud oidy muht be left, and that the centre or crown bud, except where it is deformed through attacks of insects or other causes. If this happens remove this bud, and toko the next best nearest the top, and remove the rest. It may be that a greater quantity of bloom is desired, irrespective of size or finality of flower. Where this is the case, liien, of course, more buds must bo left. .In any case, it is a decided mistake tc allow the whole cluster on each shoot tc form. There should never be left more than three on each shoot, or the flowers w ill be of very inferior quality. The best time for the disbudding is as soon a3 they can be conveniently removed with the tiriger awl thumb. If the surplus growth has not been removed, the sooner this is done the better, as removing a lot of big shoots or foliago at one time disorganises tho flow of sap, and causes in many instances coarse, miehanely, and sometimes green-centred buds or flowers. —The Vinery.— Vines are growing at a great pace just iio.w, ard some of the early houses will be having the bunches in flower very shortly ;• therefore strict attention--must l>e paid to stopping and tying out shoots. To se- ' cine a good set of fruit keep the vinery warm and moist, and give each vine a v : goroit9 shfke occasionally. This .'ibeysles the pollen and capsule. Pome varieties set their fruit quite freely enough, but there are others that require strict attention to secure a sufficient set of fruit to form a representative buncli. A moist, warm atmosphere is essential to a successlul set of fru't. Avoid coid draughts during this cold, windy period. Do nut open tho bottom vents unless on a. verv warm - day. —Answers.— "J.F. M." writes: "I am forwarding leaf in connection with tho little yellow flower previously stub you for naming. Could you inform me if Uomneya coulter! roquires. any special treatment or heat to raise tho plants from seed, as hitherto I ■have been unable to succeed in raising them?"—Tlio liltlo yellow- flower previously forwarded was very withered or drooping, consequently I was not sure of its name; but it is Narcissus Bulbocodium oorbularia, or the hoop petticoat narcissus—a very pretty little narcissus suitable for flumps in a rockery or lu-ar the edging of paths. It is too small for mixing among narcissus of the general kinds. Yon do not Bay now you sowed your Itomneya seeds. If the seeds were fresh they Biionld nob require, special culture. Try sowing the seeds in shallow boxes 3iin depth, Jin of broken crocks for drainage. Over this'put a little cliopped-up ii">.-«, then fill to within Jin of tlio top ■ with good loam (three parts), very old manure (one part), and clean Kind' (mm part)—<all well mixed. Sow the seeds on thK then cover with \'\n or so of the fine mixture. Avater gently, and place a square of glass on tho top of tho box to retain, tlfc> moisture. J*lace the box in a cold frame or a shady part of a greenhouse. They -are also cultivated by short-root cuttiiiirß in small pots. '' .Maidenhair " asks : " Could yon please tell me what to do to prevent maidenhair ferns from getting brown marks on them? t -My plants are now starting into growth, ' and I would like to know what to do to prevent this."-—The atmosphere of the r house is possibly too hot and dry for maidenhair ferns, and too sunny. A bench covered with tin or something of ■■the kind, with a coating of coarse sand or

gTAvol on top to set tho pots upon, is beat, as it may then, be syringed to keep if, moist. The: paths .-also' should bo frequently damped.. It all tends to keep the atmosphere t moist. Tho fronds or heads of these ferns.should not bo syringed. The south or shady side of a house is best for maidenhair. ferns. Otherwise tho glass must.be freely shaded. Common turps and white lead made very thin (the consistency of milk) make, an excellent shading. Do not use peat for maidenhair. Try good turf loam two parts, one of leaf mould (if you can get it, if not, one part of two-year-old hot-bed manure), and one part clean, white, sharp sand, all well mixed. Give them plenty of drain-age—one-third of the depth of the pot is not too much. Just as the young fronds are beginning to show up is a good timo to repot them. " J..H.3s r ." writes : "My carnation leaves seem affected with some dark spots. Could you tell me if it is very harmful, and tho best way of dealing with tho post?"—Tho carnation leaves forwarded aro rather badly affected with carnation rust, a form of fungoid disease, and very injurious to carnations. Dr A. R. Waddell, in his lecturo on fungoid pests, says formaldehyde, one tablespoon to a gallon of water, is tho best formula for vfun- | goid diseases, especially black spot on roses. I have not tried it on carnations for rust, hut I should strongly recommend it, as I have tried it on other plants, such as roses-, tomatoes, vines, etc., and found it very satisfactory. Sorry this noto was j overlooked in my previous replies to quesI tions. ' H.C.