THE GARDEN.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIII, Issue 1705, 19 December 1919, Page 7

THE GARDEN.

WORK. Unless a garden has had plenty ot shelter for the lust month it has stood a good chance of being battered about considerably by the high winds. However, plans will recover more quickly from winds than from almost anything else provided that they have not been broken right down to the ground, and if this is the case it is often the gardener’s own fault for not having tied them up properly. Some gardeners, especially those who are new to the work, will gather a whole plant together and tie it to ono stake, which is often far more harmful than leaving it alone. If a plant is a large one put in several stakes round it, and tie the branches and shoots out singly, or in some cases two or three together, but do not gather the whole lot of shoots to one i take. Carnations are flowers that want tying up, and in this case put four or five stakes round the plants, and run some strong twine round the outside. The flowering shoots will bo in the centre, and can hang over in any way they want to, and will look graceful. If good flowers are wanted the flowering shoots must ho disbudded. Far more buds come on a stalk than can he brought to perfection. Pansies that have been blooming for some time should have all the old flowers and seed ]>od.s picked off every day, and the root' must Ite kept moist. ’ One of the best ways to do this is to give the bed a thorough soaking and to keep all the clippings from the lawn to spread over the soil between them. If this is properly done, and they are kept moist, in a few weeks they will cover the ground so that nothing can ho seen of it. Weak liquid manure made from soot and cow dung is a good thing to give these plants, but he careful not to make it too strong, or the colours will run badly. Slugs are very troublesome as a rule, and must be bunted at night with a lantern. In spite of the dry weather it is wonderful what a lot ol weeds one has to kill, and one of the most useful tools is a Dutch hoe that can be run over the surlace of the ground or just under it, and will kill thousands of weeds in their infancy. Docks and other deep rotting weeds of a similar nature must bo carefully dug out and burnt—there is no other alternative. Daffodil beds should have a final clean up. By the end of the present month the tops will he dead, and if it is intended to move them they can he dug out and replanted fit once. When daffodils arc wanted for show purposes they can he very easily grown in specially made up beds, with some manure in the lower spits, hut manure of any sort must never be allowed to come in contact with the bulb itself, or more harm than good will he done. If well jotted stable manure cannot be got use bonedust to mix with the lower soil at the rate of about a quarter of a pound to the square yard. Dahlias and chrysanthemums must ho kept well lined, and the first should not be allowed to want water at any time now, but at the same time water should not be given in small quantities. When watering thoroughly souk the bed, and then wait until the ground is beginning to dry out again ANEMONES. “Anemone” says: “A friend has told me that he raised Ins own anemone,t from seed, and that he got the instructions from your garden column sonic time ago. The plants were very much finer than any of those you ,-ban buy, and the colours were gorgeous. 1 have some very fine onc&Ibl the St.' Brigul strain, and have saved some seed from the best of them. He'tel Is me that only a certain proportion come true to colour, hut so far lie has not had to throw away more than about five per cent. Also 1 should like to know when t(i_ sow the seed, and whether under glass oi out in the open. Vi hat sort ot soil d( the plants like, and does it want trenching and manuring•'’’--Ancmonei are easy enough to raise from seed, providing that they have a nice cool, moist, shady situation to grow in. Heat is not necessary, but'it is generally easier to get the correct situation in a glasshouse than it is outside in the open, as the boxes or pans can bo shaded to the required amount. It is essential that the seed should only lie saved from the best colours, and that it should be sown as soon as it is ripe. The resulting plants may not be the same colours as the flowers from which they were saved, but on tbe other hand they may he better, and growing anything from seeds is always lascinaluig. Make up a compost consisting of sand and good loamy turf well rotted : on tins sow- the seeds thinly. The seed is rather awkward to sow-, and should be nibbed up with a certain amount oi dry sand to make the work easier. Cover it with some finely sifted earth and sand, and soak the box well with water. It oocs not take long to come up, and as soon as the plants are large enough to handle prick them out into other boxot with a richer compost, and stand them in a nice cool shady situation, w'here

(Specially written for "Standard.”) Notes are published weekly under this heading, and readers interested in gardening are invited to send in questions relating to matters upon which they wish expert advice; answers will be published with the weekly notes.

they can be watered as required. Later on they can bo lifted from the boxes and planted out where required. Anemone fanciers go to considerable trouble in preparing the beds for their plants. The soil, if not considered suitable, is taken out to a depth of two feet, and is replaced by a rich and specially prepared compost. The blooms produced in such a hod are naturally remarkably fine, and if you wish to grow something above the average you must do the same. Flowers of very high quality can be grown in any good garden soil if it is dug deeply and plenty of w’ell rotted manure worked in as the work goes on. It is necessary at all times to have a cool root run for the plants, but not one where stagnant water will lie. It .a narrow bed is used for the plants the roots can bo set out about six inches apart every way, but if they are grown in large, beds, which cannot be reached from either side, then they must bo grown in drills about fifteen indies apart. On the time of planting depends to a certain extent the time of flowering, and if these seedling plants are set out in April or May they will begin to flower in August and September. Later plantings will flower correspondingly later, and so a succession of 'dooming may be kept up until long if ter Christinas. The great thing, howe'er, is to get the blooms when flowers ire scarce, and if they begin to come in when tbe daffodils are about their best they are generally much appreciated. They can he grown in pots for a while, and then transferred to any hods that have other plants growing in them, and n this way they often fill up a most awkward gap. SEEDS TO SOW. Wallflowers, lirompton stock, primroses and polyanthus primrose seed hould be sown now to provide flower.ug plants ior the early spring. All jhese things can he sown out in the open Soil in a fairly shady part of the garden, but we have always found it letter to sow in boxes, and put them ;n a cold which plenty of air can lie admitted at all times. Shading luring the seed stage is very necessary, .specially when growing seeds in the summer time. As soon as the young plants are large enough to handle either .bin them out, and use the thinnings to prick out into other boxes or prick tlic whole lot out. The worst about throwing seedlings away is that sou. colours are often stronger growers than ithers, and the plants that are left aiv ill likely to ho one colour. The best hading for seedlings sown in the open ground is cither scrim or pea haulm aid over sticks across the bed, the Ticks being'for the purpose ol keeping die luialms from touching the ground, dive the bed a good watering before dialling it, and it will not need any more matter until the plants are up. VEGETABLES. Beans and marrows have suffered /cry much from the unseasonable weadier experienced lately. In some cases .hoy have been badly cut by trusts, and ai these cases it would ho better to pull diem out and to re-sow again. As long as the centres of the marrow plants have not been injured they will come on igain. Potatoes that have only had heir tops nipped will be all right, and die trust' will only set them back a dtlle while. Jt is not too late yet to put in a lew more potatoes if you think chat you have not got enough set out already. Savoy cabbages can bo planted out now, and will be nice strong plants by the time the moth begins to make itself felt. There is not much ■ chance of getting a good crop of these things unless a good system of spraypng is kept ii]> during the dry weather. ' p 0 lie of any use it must be begun ihout Christmas time, and kept up until he end of February or March it the /eathcr continues dry. Cabbage seed own in April is often attacked, hut as his is very tender it is a very easy •ictim to the grub. All those who have ost their crops of tomatoes would be veil advised to plant out again. There s every possibility that this fruit will )o very dear, and by planting now and coking after the plants well there will he plenty of time for the fruit to ripen before the winter. Sow silver beet this month : very often that which was sown ■arbor in the season runs to seed, but that which is sown now will last right through the winter and early spring before it goes to seed, and it is a most useful plant when other vegetables are scarce. Plant out leeks and celery, ns advised last week, and give the plants plenty of water to start them into growth. Both arc gross feeders, and like plenty of manure in the soil. Sow peas for succession until about the end of January. The last sowing is only a catch crop, but it very often comes off, and is a great success. Some peas sown last May in a fairly dry Mece of ground came up and stood still through the winter, but as soon as the warmer weather came on they began to grow, and gave, a good picking in October. Tins is worth trying again. s