GARDENING FOR THE WEEK

Evening Star, Issue 16779, 6 July 1918, Page 10

GARDENING FOR THE WEEK

'<<</■ runtrihtiior, a iccU-I: now n •j'trrh'nrr, ivill //■■■ ijlod io /in-iirtr qui:ftir>nx. which must h'!~receivtd n»t later than Tuesday "j each week. THE YLYEKT. Assuming that itie vines have shed their .eaves—and they should be in that condition before pruning—the first thing to :h> is to cut all ties and carefully lower the canes to the grouna. Before going on to prune provide yourself with a small saw, a pair of sharp primers, and a sharp knife, the siw to remove any duid hard side arms., the .-.ecaieurs to do the pruning, and a keen knife to finish oil lhe cuts clean. This is important, for if cuts rue iini.de with bad tools, leaving ragged or hruise-l cuts, the probabilities are that when the Sap begins to flow rapidly in spring they will bleed. I have seen bleeding so severo that ii represented a drop per second, 'i hat, is serious, and a great waste of energy.

In pruning vine--, commence at the base and work upward. Make each cut fairly close up to the iirst plump eye next to the old wood on the spur. The sharp blade fhouid etiter immediately behind the eye. Give it a. slightly sloping or downward cut, as it were, to go with the hang of the wood. To give- an upward cut and against the grain" would in. ail probability cause a lagged cut, and if you looked carefully into it you would see lots of minute cracks running across the cut v. here the kuhe had passed through. It is such cuts as these that cause bleeding in :juing. Prune, then, to the first plump eve thai is [jointing outward. It someum-.s happens that the tirst hud is pointing downward from the under part of the shoot, or it may be a. bud pointing directly inward from a curved shoot. Jn such ca=es you have to take the next eye —une that is pointing in the right, direction. When growth starts in spring, these undesirable shoots, "which will form from the inner eyes, must be rubbed away. Never leave more than one good eye, except in such cases as above described. If two or three buds were left, and such pruning carried on for a few years, the .spurs would become so long that if the vines were planted at the ordiiuuy distance apart there would not be sutfilient room for the foliage to expand, hence a waste of valuable .-pace to lhe detriment < i ihe vines, or at least the crop. In the case of vines newly planted, the pruning must be different. "Tne tirst \ear alter planting prune back the young wood to about three eyes from the oM Wood. When they break in spring, and have made oiu to I2in of growth, pinch out the points of the two side shoot? and allow the centre | to grow straight ahead to form the j leading cane. Train if straight up the wire as far as it will grow, and at next year's pruning cut it back to about 3ft if it has made good growth and less if weak. Cut close back io a plump eye. so that the top bud may grow straight" away to continue the cane production, anil so on until the desired height is attained. The -•■econa and third years' growth will in all I probability bo much stronger than the first, | -..-herefore a greater length of cane may I e ] left. But do not leave too much at'anv one season, for if you do the canes never put on the vigor of growth as when they are fairly-hard cut back, neither will the fruit be so good in quality. When all pruning is completed, go over the canes and remove and loose. iC.oi bark. In eases of old lanes, v. hen tl.e bark is very old and ragged, it inav be necessary to scrape around" each snui\ be- I .-ides removing by hand Vno obi bark, j This should he done with mi old blunt ' pocket knife. When all pruning and clean- j ing is complete, rake or sweep up and | burn all clippings, and if there are ether I plants in the vinery remove them, shut un the vinery, and fumigate it with burning ! sulphur. On no account leave live plants j in, or they will certainly be destroyed This fumigating is a good precaution ' against mildew or other pests that may be I lurking about the vines. * j THE GREEN HOUSE. I It wili be advisable to be on guard ! against severe frost. Those who have , cinerarias, pelargoniums, zonal seraniums, ! and such like plants, should Hot allow ' them to get frosted. Small unhealed green I houses cannot resist severe frosts. Upon , all such occasions care should be taken to j cover up the plants with sheets of brown , paper, and keep them on until the frost ■ is out of the house. If for any reason the plants were not covered up mid the frost j has got in, cover them up at once before I the sun reaches thorn, as it is the sun—■ the sudden change from the frozen statu- | to that of warmth and light-—that ruptures j the tissues of the plants, causing death if I the frost is severe. Keep them dark and | covered until the frost is quite out of the j house. "Water should be given with care, j and should not be given them unless really required. Avoid slopping the water about \ the. plants or upon the floors. Keep the i air dry.and buoyant at this season of the I year. " The plants will do better and less 1 i-aiping wiT occur. .

ANSWERS. " EoaJyn " writes: "I am forwarding •airiDles of six varieties of apples, would like you to state if they are fansamples."—No. 1 is Cleopatra—a good sample when quite ripe ; No. 2, Scarlet Nonpareil—undar-sized, but good quality ; No. 3, Docherty—not quite true sample. #ut fair; No. 4, Allington Pippin—fair Ssmplo, good apple; No. 5, Reinette du

Canada —rather green, not showing true character; No. 6, Jonathan —nice sample and good quality, flavor very good. "C.C." asks "the proper time to sow, also the depth and kind of soil for lucerne alfalfa, lucerne tree, acacia (false), mignonette, freesias, and sunflower. —The best time for sowing the above seeds is about the .middle to"" the end of August. Lucerne (alfalfa) is perfectly hardy, and will come up in any fairly yood soil. Sow sufficiently deep to cover the seeds properly, say, half an inch. Lucerne (tree variety! "is another quite hardy plant here, and may be sown in drills or small 1 beds and transplanted when la-ge enough Ito line out. Any good soil will suit it, I an-d iin to Ain covering will do. Acacia false (Hobiira) is another perfectly hardy plant, .and will grow and thrive almost anywhere. Sow in small seed beds outside. Any goxl soil will suit. Trans phnt from the seed bed the following season. Sow mignonette late in Angus' or in September in rich loam either in drills or clumps. Smooth the surface. Put the seeds not too -deep, only just covering them. Sunflowers are best sowi where they have to flower. It should be well at the back of a large border or in some light and open space. Plant singly in good rich soil. lin deep. Free shis may be sown in spring or autumn [t is a good plan to sow at both seasons It gives a longer season of flowering. Sow thinly in pots or shallow boxes in lie, 1 - ioaru, cl-cl manure, and sand. Keep th soil moist. Put the pots under glass. Th next season after they have ripened dov. they may he planted nut into a stmuy border in rich soil. j "'S. F,. P." —There are two distinct kinds j of artichokes, the tdobe. which resemble.- > a huge thistle head, this part is used a-- !

a vegetable, and the Jerusalem artichoke j which, is the one I think you refer to. 1 This artichoke will grow anywiiete: bur : to do it- satisfactorily the ground shouV be trenched tlco\i and the soil rich. Ouot give fresh manure if the ground 1;c not been before planting time, hit' old ami well-rotted or artificial manun Artichokes may lie planted from the eivc of May to the'end of August. Plant th sels ill u'onrh'-s bin deep. 12in apart, and 2ft 6in from row to ;:i\y. iToe and keer

the ground clean. When the tops are well through draw a little earth up to the stems and they will take care of themselves. Dig the tubers as required, but if it is desired to lift them they must be pitted in sand or thev will shrivel and spoil. ' H.C.