GARDEN NOTES.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 15 June 1927, Page 8

GARDEN NOTES.

Seasonable Routine Work

All available spare lime should be devoted to digging all vacant ground and the planting of roses, trees, and shrubs, also hardy herbaceous perennials. Now that winter’s frosts are whitening the ground no time should be lost in digging and exposing the rough surfaces to the elements besides sweetening the soil many insect pests are thrown to the surface and devoured by hungry birds. All varieties of the Jackmanni typo of clematis should be pruned back to within six inches of the ground, as these types always produce their blooms from the now growths. The other groups such as patens. lanuginosa. and montana should only have their weak growths removed as these flower on the old wood. If planting hydrangeas and the dce p blue shades are preferred, plenty of alum mixed with the soil when planting will produce the desired shades; use about one pound to each bushel of soil. No hydrangea flower is naturaly of a really true blue colour . and fortunately the worst colours among the family lend themselves most freely to the blueing process. A further aid is to add one ounce to each gallon of water when the flower heads appear, giving a weekly allowance.

Hydrangeas are most useful and easily cultivated subjects for fronting shrubberies or for growing in cool, shady spots where many things will not thrive.

Strike any rose cuttings needed, one of the most successful methods being to dig a trench and insert the cuttings slightly on the slant, pressing the soil firmly around them. Plant 'out any hardy annuals available for spring display. Although it is still winter the mind of the flower-lover, like a restless gull, keeps wheeling round the promise of spring, and spring bedding schemes occupy a large and important place in our dream gardens, which sometimes, but not always, come true. The Vegetable Garden.

A golden opportunity is now at hand hand to turn over all the vacant ground and expose it to the heavy frosts which must bo expected at this season of the year. On a cold frosty morning no exercise is so warmth giving as digging, to say nothing about the bracing air which accompanies it. Plant lettuce and cabbage,, also early maturing cauliflowers; these however, must be carefully watched for slugs or it is labour in vain to plant them. Attend to rhubarb, asparagus, and strawberry beds. Gather all available fallen leaves and farmyard manure, and gather all fresh green weeds and lawn-grass clippings for the compost heap, these mixed with a little soil and lime, rot down into valuable manure. The Rook Garden.

With the exception of planting out any new arrivals little can be done in this department, but all plants should bo surveyed occasionally as slugs play havoc in a few nights and must be ‘watched for. A few fallen leaves will often attract a few, and a handful of bran or pollard placed here and there is a good plan, going out later in the evening to destroy them while they are feeding. Raising Choice Seeds.

When one pays a good price for the best strains of seed of any particular flower it is essential that every care should be taken to avoid loss. In the case of begonias, gloxinias and other choice seeds, mossy growths, or minute insects can do a great deal of harm before the seedlings are ready to transplant. It is best to make a rule in all cases before sowing such seeds to subject the soil to treatment by fire. When no other method is available, this can be done on the kitchen range. Mix equal parts of loam, leaf-soil, and sand together with any well-rottod turf that may be at hand. Then place an old sheet of thin iron over the fire and place some soil thereon, not too much at a time, constantly turning it with a trowel. Do not let it get dry but add boiling water to keep it just in the right state of moisture. When; the soil ha s a burnt smell all present vegetable and animal life should be killed. Tins soil gives a clean surface for the tiny seedlings; it is also the best to use for the first pricking out. Pruning Roses.

Now that tho pruning season is approaching, a few notes on the subject may be of some assistance to amateur gardeners. This work not only varies in the -case of different varieties, but also as regards the object the cultivator has in view. Those who grow for the exhibition stand prune comparatively close, so as to concentrate the strength of tthe plants into a few shoots, which, from their limited number, are necessarily strong, mid may be expected to bear large blossoms. For ordinary purposes it is better to prune less severely. as numbers of flowers are generally more acceptable than a few exceptionally large ones. It is difficult to convey in writing the exact

method advisable to follow, as even individual varieties require to be somewhat differently treated to others. but it may be taken as a safe rule that the stronger the natural growth of the variety, and the more vigorous the state of the individual plant, the loss pruning needed, for the obvious reason that a plant in this condition is calculated to support a greater number of shoots with a proportionately larger crop of bloom than one that is weaker, either by accident or the less vigorous • habit of the sodt. In all cases It is advisable to remove completely out from their base the whole of the weak, thin wood, the porduce of last or previous seasons, and which has not sufficient substance to push shoots strong enough to flower. The presence of these uselessly taxes the energies of the plants, drawing support which is better concentrated in the stout, blooming wood. These weak growths also tend to crowd the plants keeping out both sun. and air. With roses that are naturally weak growers. it is necessary to prune to fewer eyes than in the case of the strong ones otherwise, if left too full, the flow of sap is directed to the formation and support of a much greater number of shoots than arc ever strong enough to hear .flowers. All the Tea varieties must be pruned very cautiously, leaving their strong growths without further interference than being a little shortened, but with these likewise, it is advisable to thin out all the weak shoots. With the weakest growers of the Teas also leave the strongest shoots a considerable length, but reduce the number proportionate to the natural strength of the variety and the more or ess vigorous the condition the plant happens to bo in. Planting Rhodoclcmlrons.

Much interest is now taken in rhododendrons, and justly so, as few shrubs can compote with them for display. The foliage is always green and attractive throughout the year. Some varieties seldom flower profusely in consecutive years, taut fine displays biennially are usually made. The uses to which hybrid rhododendrons may be put in the garden arc by no means few. They are well adapted for growing as single specimens on the outskirts of the lawn, and those of dwarf habit are very useful for planting in the front of taller-growing shrubs, while others of more vigorous growth make fine banks of colour when planted in sufficient quantities in the shrubbery border. While revelling in a loamy soil with • the addition of plenty of leaf-mould,, they may still be grown quite successfully in almost any soil providing it is free from lime and chalk. They are easily transplanted, and do well in shady positions. Those who can grow the Pink Pearl rhododendron to perfection are to be envied, as it is a pearl in flower colourisation; such a lovely, soft, clear, and yet rich pink. A good companion for it is the variety named White Perlo. A beautiful grouping is to obtained by planting a few tall standard apples or flowering cherries with a good grouping of rhododendrons beneath. Rhododendron Praecox. and Sir Robert Peel, arc among our earliest bloomers and are much valued for that reason. • The very late bloomers are also most welcome. If a rhododendron bush has grown straggly, the best plan is to prune it well back when it wil Irespond by producing a much bushier growth. Lilly of the Valley Tree.

This, which is one of the most desirable of spring-flowering 1 shrubs, associates well with the rhododendron, and is one of the few really good evergreens. It is a muchbranched shrub, somewhat dense and regular in outline, and covered with deep green ovate leaves. The flowers which resemble the lily-of-the-valley are profusely borne, and appear in racemes towards the end of the shoots. They are seen on the plant the preceding autumn, but they seem proof against the most severe winters and usually flower during the spring months, lasting a very long time in perfection. This particular snecies is a native of North America, its height varying according to the soil and location. In this country it rarelv grows higher than three feet. There is also a variegated type which is most attractive but rather a slow grower. When sprays-of these plants are ''•nt ;inst ns the earliest blossonu- are expanding they will open well in water and prove useful for indoor decoration.