THE GARDEN.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIV, Issue 137, 11 May 1934, Page 9

THE GARDEN.

Notes are published 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 bo published with the weekly notea

CHRYSANTHEMUMS. j When chrysanthemums have finished i flowering is the time to begin to prepare for next season’s crop of flowers. Old growers know that the work with these plants goes on the whole season, but that does not mean that the work is strenuous or tiring; it only means that you must not forget tlie fact that you have plants to look after. When they have finished flowering as many of them will do this month, cut the stems down to within a few inches of the ground and allow the young suckers to come up all round them. These are the plants of the future and must be saved from the ravages of slugs which are very fond of them. In heavy ground it is perhaps better to lift the "old shoots and replant them in pots or boxes, and to put these pots or boxes on cinders or sand. Cinders are the best as slugs do not like crawling over them. In any case they must bo watched and every slug destroyed. It is too early yet to begin taking cuttings; July is .soon enough for that, but it is not too early to make as sure as you can that you have cuttings to take when the time comes for doing

I FRUIT-TREE. | “Fruitgrower” says: “I have a wellgrown specimen of a pear tree which makes vigorous growth, each season, but does not give any crop. The tree must ho alright—l mean it must be grafted because I have had one or two fruits and they have been delicious eating. Can you tell me of anything I can do which would promote fruit growth?” It is not very hard to find barren trees, especially when they are growing iu a garden by themselves. The first thing to find out is whether the variety is sterile and wants another one planted with it to fertilise the blossoms. A great deal of research work has been carried out in England of recent years on this subject and the findings have conclusively proved the need for another tree to fertilise the lone one. You could prove this for yourself by getting a branch from a tree of some other variety and putting it amongst the open flowers. Fertility would be a good kind to use for this. There is such a thing as root pruning which stops the flow of sa.p when a tree is too vigorous, and trees growing in a well-worked and manured vegetable garden are liable to find plenty of nourishment. If this is the case, dig a deep drain round the tree and cut all the roots you can get at. The drain can then be filled up again and the result rioted. We are inclined to think that in your case it is one of sterile flowers, and if you try a well-pollinated branch it will soon show you. You did not say anything about pruning and so we take it that the tree has not been pruned. Of course, it would he easy enough to cut away the fruit-bearing spurs without knowing it. NEW ZEALAND PLANTS. The culture of New Zealand plants is a subject that should receive far more attention here than it does. For flora New Zealand is known all over the civilised world, and is appreciated to a far greater extent than many of ns are aware. A visitor who had recently returned from England was amazed to find whole gardens devoted to our plants in Cornwall and said I that he recognised many old friends amongst them. Our native cabbage I trees made quite a feature in the la.ndI scape and manuka, both the red and I the white, was so much grown that ! in one place he might have been in a [New Zealand scene. Our native flax was another plant that was doing well, ! and large clumps of it were to he seen [in conspicuous places. There is no doubt hut that we could make a lot more of our gardens if we selected I some of the best forms for cultivation. ! However, there is no doubt that a great deal more could be done with some of the forms of veronicas. Crossing has been very little practised so far, hut the near future will sec a lot of this; and then there are plenty of other plants which are both useful and ornamental. Last season we specially noted a very fine specimen of mountain kowbai which was so covered with bloom that the tangled mass of branches could not he seen. This is a dwarf form and very suitable for small gardens. Our alpine flora is considered the best in the world, and many varieties are commonly used which are grown so much in other countries that they are looked upon as necessities. A garden of native plants has a. stamp of its own, and if tone only goes in for a good collection of servicahle stuff it is wonderful how fascinating the hobby becomes, lt is then wo learn to appreciate what is growing at our doors and to value the remarkable plants we have got. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. The vegetable garden, whether in the town section or on the farm, should be one that is given particular care. In these days of diminished incomes on© may add considerably to the expense of a household by having to buy all vegetables. If everyone were to look upon a pound saved as a. pound gained we feel sure there would be a rush to cultivate that untidy section at the back of the house. No matter how small the area it should ho dug up and planted with something. A few square yards can be made to produce a wonderful crop if it is properly attended to. We all have our likes and dislikes, but it would be quite safe to say that most people like some kind ot vegetable with their meat food. Even the humble potato can be made to do its hit when it comes to providing a meal. There is a time when all gardeners have a little leisure and would be pleased to turn their hands to something. Hero is that something right at your door. Get to work on that hack garden and dig or, better still, trench it and bury all tho available rubbish well down in the soil. The better the work is done tho better tho resultant crop will be. There is no need to work up the surface at the present time; this can he left, hut it will do good if you give the surface a dressing of lime. You will not, perhaps, see any immediate benefit from it, hut you will get it later on. There is no land we have ever seen here that does not respond to lime at some time or another, All analyses of vegetables give a certain quantity of lime in their make-up, and if it is not in the soil they cannot get it and we suffer accordingly. In about six or seven weeks cabbages and turnips can bo planted, and then other things will follow. Onions are always useful. So nnicli for the new garden. The old vegetable gardens can be dug over and manured when time is slack, and then the ground should he marked out so that a correct rotation of crops can be followed. In a well ordered vegetable garden this is a very necessary thing to do. In connection with this, we were told of a place where onions had been grown in tho same place for sevoral years and they were tried there again this year with the result that tho lot were lost by being attacked by onion mildew. There was no remedy and w© aro almost certain that much, of tho land in the same garden became contaminated. When a proper rotation is followed one crop of a like nature never follows another. Where celery has been grown, peas can he cultivated the next season, and where potatoes have been grown cabbages or turnips or both can. he grown. Carrots and parsnips should never he grown iu land that has been heavily manured this season. If they are grown in it they will fork and split badly. A good crop of beet can ho grown on manured land if some salt is sown oil it, hut the round variety is the best to use for small gardens. Leeks can be grown on heavily manured land, hut not in tho same place as last season.

the work. We do not advise taking the plants into a house with glass, but in the case of new and rare varieties this is often a very wise precaution, and you can often save a variety which you would otherwise lose if this was not done. When you have got your cuttings do not coddle them too much; they will root quite well iu a cold frame or even in the open ground. Keep the soil round the cuttings firm so as not to make them too sappy. MAIDENHAIR FERNS. “A Grower” says: “I have penned a few notes for you on maidenhair ferns which you may use if .you think fit. These notes were the result of being asked to advise on some ferns which were not behaving themselves too well. I find that there are many more like them. Everybody will admit that they are rather tricky things to grow and very often when first taken into the dry atmosphere of a house will immediately being to drop their leaves. Now | for those who want these ferns indoors 1 would suggest that' they have two | sets and frequently change them from i the glasshouse to the living rooms. There are other causes for their failurej to grow—one is that they are often j potted in unsuitable soil which is full of undersirable grubs, or is too heavy. | What they require is a medium fibrous j turfy loam with some sharp sand in it and a handful of very fine oyster shell grit. Another failure can be caused by | too much shade. They like shade cer- j tainly, but not overpowering shade which is sometimes provided. In fact, I; the best ferns I have seen are some j which get the full benefit of the morn- i ing sun until about ten o’clock; alter , that they have partial shade. The ( best time, of the year to pot up young , ferns or to break up old ones is in the early spring, and then I would advise . a good compost being provided and j stacked up now. Lt can. be. turned | over occasionally to mix it well , together, and if it can be sterilised so , much the better. Another and very 1 important thing is to use clean pots, , and for this purpose I believe in boiliug , them or pouring boiling water over j them to which lfas been added a little cautic soda.” c QUESTION. | “Flowers” says: —“I have a friend , who is a florist and wishes mo to ( grow flowers for her, and I am indined to do it as it would add a little to a very depleted income. She specifics roses and violets, but will leave a certain amount to me in the 1 way of selecting suitable flowers lor i her. This place (Levin) is warmer < than your district, and I thought < that you might be able to help me in i making a choice. I would also like i some hints on packing. If you will i name a few varieties 1 shall see what J I can do.” In reference to flower i growing we are always .giving hints on j their cultivation, and you could fol- I low these as to culture. . The only i thing you will have to do is to grow I them in beds rattier than mix them < up in a flower border, and it will be 1 necessary to concentrate on what i amount of land you can look after. 1 It would not be worth wliilo to put ( in a quarter of an acre and then find . you can only attend to a part of it. Roses are wanted and your best plan is to select the colours and plant up, : say, half a dozen of each colour. They will require spraying and pruning and all tiro necessary work that goes oil in connection with a rose garden. Violets are best when made into beds : every year about October, and are kept clean and healthy, through the summer. Here again you will find a lot of routine work which must be attended to at the right time. Picking takes a considerable time, and if the bods can lie arranged so that they are about three feet wide with a path between, the flowers can ho gathered from eiflier side without walking on the worked soil. Another flower which we think would he very acceptable to a florist is the perpetual flowering carnation, or tree carnation as some call it. Good varieties can be bought in pinks, reds and whites, or you could raise the plants from seed without much trouble; hut of course, you could not • be sure of the colours or whether you were getting singles or doubles. When once established, a bed of these plants is a very profitable one and new i>lantations can be made each season from the grass or shoots which grow along the sides of the stems. A little experience would soon show you how to - manage them and your friend would find a ready use for them. There is a lot of difference between the flowers a florist will use and those that a specialist grows for shows or liis or her own special fancy. Winter flowering sweet peas are useful to florists and it is quite possible that you could grow them well in your district. The seed is sown in February in land which has been prepared, in the same elaborate way as for the summer flowering kinds, and if the conditions aro kind to you there will be flowers to i pick when there is very little else. ; You can get named ones in packets • to colour. Anemones and ranunculus are always useful and a florist can use these in large quantities. Some ] tubers could he planted at the pro- : sent time for a late crop. i As regards packing, this is a thing that can only he learnt by experience, i and we would suggest that you send some along to your friend and ask j for advice as to' how they arrive and : where you have failed in your methods. ]