THE GARDEN

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVIII, Issue 16, 16 December 1937, Page 15

THE GARDEN

Notes are published under this heading, and readers interested in gardening axe invited to send m questions relating to matters upon which they wish expert advice; answeis will be published with tile weekly notes. .

THE FLOWER GARDEN

There is one plant that lias had a phenomenal rise in favour with gardeners and that is the newer double or semi-double nasturtium. There are some quite new colours in them and they make good cut flowers as well. Anyone wishing to have a prolonged display of showy flowers in his garden could not do better than sow a bed of border of them now. The soil does not need to be over-rich for them, but to bring the seeds on quickly give it a good soaking before sowing and then when dry enough plant out the“ seeds about a foot apart. In some ways they are like petunias and do not require watering when they are growing. Keep the soil stirred as long as the lioe can get between them and then leave them to their own devices, and you can pick flowers for months on end. Petunias can be planted out now in beds and will make the garden gay for a long time. Some of the smaller flowering varieties make good bedding plants, and when well grown will bloom until frosts cut them down. The first of the delphinium plants will have flowered now, and the stalks should be cut down .to within six inches or so of the main plant to give them a chance to send up new flowering shoots. Generally the second growths have better heads 'for decorative purposes than the first. Gladiolus plants are making good growth now and the spikes must be staked to keep the heads straight. This should be done as soon as the flowering spikes are seen, or some of them may become twisted and bent. Straight spikes are the best, whether they are for decorative purposes or for showing. Nip the break bud out of the chrysanthemum plants as soon as they are seen, and allow three of the shoots below the biid to grow, rubbing out all the rest. Stakes or string should be supplied to tie the shoots to as they grow, otherwise they may be blown out in a sudden gust of wind. Spray the plants with colloidal sulphur to stop rust. When working amongst these plants it is not necessary to lioe very deeply, as they are mostly surface rooters. A mulch of a good strawy manure is a good Way to keep the moisture in the ground and the sooner this can be given to them the better it will be for the plants. Dahlias are growing well and it is most important that the surface of the 6oil should be kept well worked to conserve the moisture that has fallen. It will generally be found that any backward plants are suffering from attacks of thrip, and these should be sprayed at once with black leaf 40 according to the directions on the container.

SOWING SEEDS. There are a lot of seeds that can bo sown now to provide plants for putting out in the autumn. Sow polyanthus primrose seed in boxes as soon as it is ripe. If you are saving your own you -will find that the seed is ripe as soon as the pods begin to split and turn brown. When the seed has been sown in boxes it is necessary to keep the soil moist for about three weeks. If tho work is done under glass, shade the boxes and paint the glass with lime and milk to provide extra shade. If they are kept in the open put the boxes under a fence or hedge and keep them well watered. When the young plants are largo enough to handle prick them out into other boxes, which must not be allowed to dry out. Primula malaeoides seed can be sown now and treated in much the same way. It is important to get good, strong plants for putting out as soon as enough rain has ialien in the autumn.

All biennial plants can_be grown from seed, and this can be sown now. Canterbury Bells mfike a splendid show next spring, but they do not like the soil too rich, or they will split in the centres. One of tile best or all the biennial plants that we have v for spring gardens nro the Brompton stock, and it is well worth while making a sowing of these now. There is very little difference between the look of these and any other of the stock family, but they are true biennials and should be planted in tho late autumn to flower the following sirring. They are much stronger in growth than the “Beauty of Nice’’ or ten week stocks. Another good variety is the East Lothian, which

is an offset of the, Brompton and is well worth growing! When sowing the seed it can be done eithei in the open ground or in boxes under glass. The main thing is not to sow too thickly and to prick them out as soon as they can he handled easily. Stocks of all kinds will grow well under the same treatment given to cabbages in the vegetable garden. At the same time they can get club root, but it is not usual if lime is used in the soil.

During the last year or two Sweet William has been very largely used in gardens, and this is seed that should be sown now, preferably in a nice bed in the open ground. When largo enough they can be planted out into permanent quarters. We have seen some ’ remarkably fine beds of this plant during the season. Columbines are always great favourites and tho seed can be sown now. To hasten germination soak the seed overnight in hot water and you will find, that it will germinate quicker. Prick the plants out when large enough. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. The weather lately has been very kind to the vegtuble garden and after the rain that fell last week most plants have made a good start into growth. Pumpkins and marrow particularly have begun to send out strong runners. We have found the best way to treat these is to nip out the ends when they are five or six feet long and induce them to semi out lateral shoots. Although they bear well on the main runners sometimes they will carry more than twice the crop on the lateral shoots. The fruit may not be as large as that on the mains, but there are few gardeners ivho want the large ones. One that can bo used at a meal is quite enough for them and as' long as they get plenty they are satisfied. Cucumbers can bo treated in tho same way, but this vegetable must never be allowed to approach ripeness before it is gathered. or the plants will stop bearing. Being a salading vegetable, it should be well supplied with liquid manure and water during the dry weather. Keep tomato plants well tied up to tlicir stakes and pinch out the laterals as the work is done. It is not necessary to keep on watering these plants; they are better and healthier when they are grown under somewhat dry conditions. Here again it is not the abnormally largo fruits that are required, but rather those of a medium size.

All such winter greens as Brussel Sprouts, savoy cabbages and broccoli can be planted now. These can be kept free from insect pests by spraying or dusting with the derris sprays or powders, and without any harm being done to human beings. The white butterfly lias not been nearly so plentiful this year and several grubs we have found have been full of the parasite. The diamond-backed moth will come later on, bub the sprays and dust mentioned above will keep it down. French beans and peas may still be sown, in fact successional sowings can be made until the end of January. As soon as runner beans begin to bear and the pods are ready to use pick them because if they are once allowed to set seeds they will stop bearing. It is not yet too late to sow. more runner beans, and they will give a good crop before the cold weather comes on. Silver beet is another crop that should he sown now in well-manured ground. If sown now it will give you green food until about this time next season, when the old plants begin to run to seed. It can be grown either for its white stalks or for the green leafage. Both make good vegetables and when the stalks are cooked with a little celery they taste like it.

A. —Soil level. B. —6 inches of manure. C. —2 inches of soil. D. —Celery plants, 1 foot apart. E. —Bank of soil from trench to be used later to blanche the plants.

■ Celery and leeks are two good vegetables to grow for the winter. Plants may be grown in trenches if extra long leeks are required, but in most cases it is celery that is grown in well-manured trenches, and earthed up when large enough. Leeks for household purposes can be grown by being planted in deep holes made with a dibble on flat ground. The holes are made and then one plant is dropped into each and the hole is filled in with water, which generally washes enough soil down to cover the roots. They may be slow at making a start, but will soon begin to get under weigh, when they can be given plenty of liquid manure and water. A little nitrate of soda is very helpful to them when they begin to make growth. If they are being grown for exhibition one of the longer varieties, such as The Laird, should be chosen, and this can be grown in a trench in much the same way as celery, hut it must be earthed up, as it grows, to increase its length. A large leek is often more tender than a small one and the aim of every gardener should be to get them large. QUESTIONS.

“G.A.W.” says: “Could you advise me if any special treatment is required to grow rhubarb from seed p I have tried it for years without any great success. I never get more than 5 per cent, germination, and then after about a week tho plants that have come up wilt and die.” We have never had any trouble with this seed. It lias being sowed in rows and comes lip and generally has to- be thinned out. We have asked several gardeners about tlieir experience, and they all say that they have never had any trouble. We are inclined to think that the soil is at fault and would advise you to try a box of soil from somewhere else and sow the seed in this. When the young plants die down they can be transplanted to the open soil, or if they are winter varieties they can he transplanted when the soil is moist enough for this kind of work. When transplanting see that no manure comes in contact with the young roots or they may rot. They like

a good rich soil with a free drainage for surplus water. If you care to send a sample of the soil the seeds were sown in wo will have it tested to see if there is anything else in it. “Lemons” sends some branches of a lemon tree which is badly affected with brown scale and wants to know if arsenate of lead spray would be any good to spray the plants with. Also, liow to get rid of the dirt on the leaves. Arsenate of lead would not be any good to remove the brown seal®, which seems to be rather bad. The best tiling to use is white spraying oil, which can be got from any seed merchant ; use it at the rate of one part of the oil to 80 parts of soapy water. The water can be hot, as it spreads the oil better. The dirt on the leaves is the result of the scale on the undersides of them and this will disappear when the cause of the trouble has been killed. Probably you will find that you may have to spray the tree two or three times at weekly intervals before a complete cure is made. If you have any camellias or native trees and shrubs in your garden examine tli e iTi, too, to see if there is any of the blight on them. Unless they are cleaned up also the trouble is iikely to come back after a while. This scale saps the life out of a lemon tree, and the tailing leaves show that tlie plant lias already begun to suffer. Give" the soil round the tree a good dressing of manure. That from the fowl house is as good ns any, and when this has been put on the ground and forked in use plentv of water to soak the ground around it. The tree will respond to the manuring very quickly. THE HOLIDAY SEASON.

The holiday seasoii is getting closer, and those who are going away for a time are often reluctant to leave because they know that when they come back again weeds will be there in plenty. The only thing one can do is to get to work now and kill all weeds that are showing, and then a week or so before going away begin to go over the soil lightly and keep doing this, but not stirring the soil too deeply. With pot plants that have to be watered occasionally the case is rather different, because they will require water before you can get back again. Give the pot a thorough soaking of water by plncing them in a bucket and then stand them on one side to drain for a while- before taking them inside. First, get u bottle of water and put a piece of worsted down into the water and into the soil. As long as the water i.s above the soil the water will drip in slowly and the plant will be alright for some time. If you cun get a friend to replenish the water you will find the plants are quite good at the end of u fortnight or so. The outside garden may be when you return, but it will not b large weeds that confront you.