BETTER CLARKIAS

Evening Star, Issue 22817, 27 November 1937, Page 24

BETTER CLARKIAS

H9W TO GROW THEM Like most plants, clarkias have a weakness. In this case it is an incurable habit of developing a large number of weak basal shoots. You know the habit of the plants. There are anywhere from six to 10 strong shoots. They reach the bud stage before the small side shoots in question appear. Then begins a competition for food and space. These little shoots grow up among the others, causing a good deal of bud blindness and defective colour. Remove them when they are quite small with a pair of sharp scissors, and your pageant will be ever so much, lovelier. If you have closely examined the make up of a clarkia bloom, you will know that there are eight stamens in the centre. Unless you can get these well thrown back, the flowers never look properly open. That is why superphosphate, the great stamen former, must enter into the feeding scheme. Use this fertiliser at fortnightly intervals at loz per square yard. Between each two applications, feed with diluted soot water at one gallon per square yard. Then you will nave clarkias at their very best.—< ‘ Dominion-’