GARDENING NOTES.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 23 December 1927, Page 7

GARDENING NOTES.

(Bv Waratah)

MULCHINGMulching consists in covering the ground above the roots of trees and Diants with suitable moisture-conserv-ing material, in order to afford protection against the hot rays of the sun, and to prevent the 'evaporation of moisture from the soil, thereby saving much labour in applying water. .Fruit trees, loses, sweet peas, dahlias, culinary ueas and beans in particular are benefited by it. It is also useful in certain cases as a means of providing additional nourishment for the soil. Decayed animal manure is undoubtedly the best material to ure, hut feaf-mould, grass cuttings, weeds, or coconut fibre refuse are all excellent for the purpose. \ layer of any of these materials should be spread round the trees or plants as far as the branches extend; it should not be allowed to come into contact with the stems. In the flower garden ih» material used should b(2 covered with enough soil to hide any unsightliness. WINTER VEGETABLES. To be complete, a garden should .supi:.’v vegetables all the year round, but through inexperience, or want of foresight,' many people fill the garden in the spring with vegetables that _ will come in and be over before the winter. Tbev have more than they require in the summer months and in the winter have to purchase vegetables when they are scarce and dear. Savoy cabbage, winter cabbage, broccoli and Brussels ~ prouts ans all useful winter vegetables, and should be planted in December or the earlv part of January. They should be planted at least two feet apart each way on any vacant piece of land that has not just recently carried ia, crop of cabbages, cauliflowers or turnips. In cases where no vacant ground is available they should bo planted between the rows of potatoes, peas and beans. It is not necessary to dig the ground, nrovided it was prepared for .a previous crop. If the soil has not been manured fa rsome time, fork it over and add lozs of equal parts superphosphate and blood and bone per square yard- Tread the soil firm before planting, as all', these vegetables need .solid ground. Loose, soft soil encourages a vigorous - r.uy growth. What is required is a firm, .short-jointed growth to carry the nlant through the winter, and this can onlv he obtained bv a mass of fibrous roots, the result of planting in firm ground. ONIONS RUNNING TO SEED. Transplanted onions, especially those sewn in autumn, have a tendency to run to seed. This running to seed, or “boltiim” as it- is often called, may be caused by a check when transplanting, ()■• bv a prolonged dry spell after trailsukinting. If these seed heads be cinched off when auite small, the bulb will continue to swell and become a reasonable size. On the other hand, it fcViev are allowed to grow large before removal they exhaust the plant. PEGGING' DOWN PLANTS.

All flowering plants of recumbent habit, such as petunias, verbenas, phiox Drummondi, ivy-leaved geraniums, etc., should have the shoots pegged down as -oti a« they are long enuogh. The pegs should be made of strong wire bent over at the top to form a. hook, and should be about six inches long. If the shoots be pegged down close to a joint they will take root and the. plants gain .additional nourishment. The plants, when pegged down, look much neater, and will not be damaged by boisterous winds. BEET.

'I 1 he turnip-rooted beet is a. vegetable which, should be .extensively sown ail th ixnigh the summer. To have beet ay its best it must be, grown quickly and used while young. If the roots be allowed to stay in the ground until the fibres heroins hard the, beets are not worth eating. The seeds may be sown until the end of January, and should be sown in drills two inches deep ana twelve inches apart. Tlun out the teediinrrg to six inches apart. When the „ oi r is drv give the. drill a thorough soaking an hour or so before sowing the seeds. __ brompton stocks.

'Liie Brompton stock has im mouse spikes ot flowers which are equally as . lagraut und possess, a*- good a range ji colours as the ten-week stock- Hu* much stronger in growth than the other varieties of stocks, and its flower.ll season is a long one. The plants are best treated as biennials. Prom now until the end of January is a good Kine to sow the seeds, which may be •sown in boxes or in a. seed bed on a sunn yopen site. Sow the seeds thinly, and as soon as the plants can be comfortably handled transplant them nine inches apart into a nursery bed until tin autumn, by which time they shook be stocky little plants that can be it Led with a good ball of soil about the route and planted into their permanent positions. The soil should be well drir and have plienty of well-decayed manure ot vegetable rubbisli mixed with it. A dressing of lime on the surface of the soil would also be an advantage, as stocks are Table to con tract “club-root,” disease when grown on soil deficient in lime. routine work. Plant cabbage. Savoy cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, leeks and celery. Peg down all trailing plants. Sow peas and dwarf beans about every three weeks for succession. Sow “Early Horn” corrot for .puliimg young. . ' Sow beet (turnip-rooted), cabbage, cress, lettuce, mustard, radish, New Zealand spinach, sweci'3, turnip. Sow seeds of primulas, cinerarias, Brompton stocks, hollyhocks, sweet William and Iceland poppies Sow seeds of perennial plants. He mo ve se<e-d pods f rom aznlC<is iind rhododendrons- ■ Stake chrysanthemums and dahlias where necessary. . Tie up tomato plants to their .stakes as thev advance in growth, and pinch out all laterals that appear at the junction of leaves and stem as soon as thev can be handled. As soon as the first truss of fruit has set give the plants a, dose- of liquid manure, once a week. Spray tomato and potato plants ev\-ry u v ,ee weeks (or more: frequently should there be. much rainfall) to prevent fungoid diseases attacking the plants. Trees or shrubs that were trains' planted in the late winter or spring should he given a good soaking of water clnrinv drv weather. Plant out summer and autumn flowering plants-.