GARDEN & FIELD

Manawatu Times, Volume LIV, Issue 6620, 5 August 1931, Page 4

GARDEN & FIELD

Seeds to sow during tiro month of August: Radish, spinach, lettuce, mustard and cross, early maturing cauli- ' flower, early maturing turnip, early dwarf poas, broad beaus, early cabbage. Flaower Seeds. ' Iceland poppy, annual poppies, nom--1 esia, vigclla, linaria, calendula, Dcauty stock, Virginian stock, pansy, viola, delphinium, larkspur, cynoglossum, lupin, sweet peas, viscaria and lianthus. Plants to Plant. Early cauliflower, oarly cabbage, lettuce, onions and a few eschalots. Flower Seeds i Malacsides primula, iceland poppies, oriental poppies, lupins (perennial), ' nemesia, foxglove, stocks, hollyhocks, calendula, wallflower, forget-me-nots, lily of the valley, linaria, pansies and 1 violas, anemones, esehschoitzias, aubn- • etia, micliaelinas daisies, holeniums, ■ gcums, and any other perennials which ' will stand frost, August is often a treacherous month, and the above lists are subject to pre- , vailing weather conditions. Those gardeners who have * light, sandy, well • drained soils are able to get things in at a much earlier date than those with heavy moisture retaining soils, ft is , also advisable to- sow all seeds in boxes , during this month. General Routine Work. 1 Prune roses, and as soon as possible ■ after the operation, fork in somo well i rotted manure. . Failing that, a good dressing of bonemeal. Give deiphini- • urns the same treatment. Whenever . weather and soil conditions permit, , continue with tho planting Of shrubs and trees,' hedge plants, forest and , shelter belts. . Go over the herbaceous border, and make good any vacant plots. Divide ■ any existing clumps needing this attention. Plant Japanese irises, day Jilies, flax, and'other watersido plants, Push on with all garden alterations. Sharpen garden tools, make labels, and seed hoxes, in roadincss for the rush of spring work. Get in supplies of ail . wanted seeds, if any bulbs, anemones . or ranunculi are stili out of ground, get . thorn in as quickly as possible.' L Primroses and violets may bo plant--5 cd and divided. In both cases it will . retard their blooming, yet often at the i end of the blooming period it is rather . dry, and the plants need watering occa- . sionally in order to get them started. . Pruning Clematis. ; Some of these plants ■ are already , making their new growths, and tho i necessary pruning and thinning out . must be seen to. The jackmanui see- - tio’n may be cut well back, as these , flower on the current year's growths. - The same remark also applies to the i lanuginosa type, but it is not advisable to prune these quite so haj'd. The mon- : tuna section flowers on the old wood, so only weak or too densely crowded sections must be removed. This beautiful creeper grows rapidly if given plenty of manure,, mixed with bits of broken up mortar. The roots of the plants should, if possible, be shaded by the use of dwarf shrubs dr trees .for it to ramble in. A mulching during hot weather is very beneficial, especially on light' 50i15,...-,.'. • ' • • Trintomas. • '! Trintomas may now be safely divided, and planted. This plant goes .under, a variety of names, such as kniphofia, torch lily, and red hot poker. For the amateur gardener there is nothing moro easily grown, or gives a more brilliant display, than groupings of' this hardy, and useful perennial. There are nowa great many varieties of these plants, some with massive flower spikes in brilliant shades of orange, scarlets, and yellow, while others are of a dwarfer habit of growth, ‘ with much slenderer and daintier flower spikes. For a bold display, masses of these showy spikes are an outstanding feature in ‘the garden. One variety, which is a mixture of canary yellow and green, the lower half of the spike providing tho pretty apple green tint, flowers several times during tho season. Tho tail yellow variety blooms during ■ winter, and should bo planted where thero is some shelter from heavy frosts, otherwise tho spikes get badly damaged. Tritomas, will thrive in almost any soil, but appear to do particularly well on deeply dug soil with manure in the botton spit. Groupings of these appear to great advantage when placed near the vicinity of ponds and streams, also for the largo herbaceous border, where they may bo planted .with a background of the double tiger lilies. The latter arc in bloom a trifle earlier than tritomos, and both make an early autumn display befoie michaelmas daisies and hcloniums commenco to bloom. Perennial Lupins. Wkc*a arranging the herbaceous border, bold plantings of these, handsome subjects should not bo omitted as they arc invaluable for giving a pleasing display over a long period; Commencing to bloom early in .November, they carry on until tho end of December and arc withal, one of the easiest plants to manage. Their lovely fern-like foliage is also a great asset, giving the plant an attractive apeparancc even when out of, bloom. Tho shades aro most varied, all of which blend harmoniously together. Given a well dug and ivclJ manured plot, the * individual spikes grow to a largo size in great profusion. Ihcse particular lupins arc known under tho name of polyphylius lupins, and aro true perennials. Seed sown from a good strain produces a. remarkable variety of colourings, and will give one or two small spikes of bloom during the first season. Tho plants die down for a few weeks during the. coldest weather, but are among the first things to throw out fresh leaves in early spring. Rose Species of Garden Value. Somo species of rosa, by virtue of their elegant growth, their delicately beautiful flowers, and in some instances their persistent and highly coloured fruits, occupy a very prominent position amongst garden plants, and of them rosa moyesii is particularly desirable. This magnificent Chinese species produces flowers of an unusual colouring, a rich terracotta red, perhaps describing its penetrating brilliance. The flowers are freely produced upon somewhat straggling, growths, arc single, recured, and quite three inches across, and are succeeded by largo .scarlet fruits, oblong shaped, these persisting until well info the winter. The plant will form a large and handsome bush, or it may bo utilised as a climber, appearing to great advantage over a pergola, archway or on a triangle of stout stakes. Rosa Hugonis, also from China, produces clouds of canary yellow flowera, their beauty greatly; enhanced by

(Spceialy written for “Times'’ by Lornu.)

the attractive fern-like foliage. Very handsome as an isolated specimen, or as a wall plant. In Rosa Will mottle wc possess a strikingly beautiful rose, of ample and elegant growth. The fernlike, greyish foliage is a splendid foil to the rosy carmine flowers. This species should be allowed to develop its natural grace of outline and should be given a sunny position on sloping ground. Rosa rubrifolia is noteworthy for its silvery foliage and red stems, and is fine for autumn effect. There are many others, but those enumerated aro capable- of creating sumo line garden effects. s Some Thoughts on Pruning Roses. The literature of the rose has now asumed very bulky proportions, and no small share of this lias ben bestowed upon pruning, so that one wonders if there is anything fresh to be written on the matter. To begin at the commencement of the pruning season, which paradoxically, is at the end of that of the blooming period, we have the ramblers to deal with first. Nobody but a raw amateur would think of leaving the pruning of these until the spring, but so fearful of using the secateurs arc many that whenever they aro used they are generally applied far too sparingly. Tho consequeneo is'that the arches or pergolas get congested with a lot of twiggy bits that do nothing but obstruct daylight and disfigure the scene. With suc-h extremely vigorous growers as American pillar,- Dorothy Perkins, etc., more snippings are useless, and the nature of tho rose suggests the treatment it should receive. Look at a rose bush thoughtfully and it will tell you where and how it needs pruning. If strong, vigorous growers, they tell us very plainly to allow, not a little, but plenty of space for this. If the old wood is allowed to remain the growth will be all at tho top, each strong shoot seeking air and sunshine by rearing itself to ungainly heights. On an arch this means the sides arc bare of foliage and flowers, and in any case it results in a lack of strong shoots from t.hc base. When the amateur starrs.pruning such roses lie seems to need tbr armour of the Christian for faith, hope and courage. Then he is not afraid to cut boldly at the base all old shoots so that new ones will appear early in the next season and replenish she growth. To leave this job until the spring means tearing off dozen of shoots and eyes on wood that should be retained. A fearful pitfall to many, is t.he pruning of standards. The light-hearted,-airy way that the young starters plant out their borders or grass plots is amusing t.o the old stager. Of course, they must bo standards, because everybody else has them, and one must not be out of fashion in gardening any more than in anything else, so in they go by the dozen. How they should be treated is often an unsealed secret to their owners. A neighbour, tolls .them he prunes his hard. They see has fine blooms and imitate his example on such strong growers as Hugh Dickson or Caroline Testout,.and lo and behold, some lovely vigorous shoots

como from tho bottom, often resulting in the death of the standard proper. Hacl wiser methods been used, the tips only would have been removed, thus giving greater latitudo to tho top growth. Wrong ideas arc often picked up at exhibitions of roses. The young enthusiast Visits a show, secs marvellously fine blooms, reads that they are obtained by severe pruning, serves all his roses the sarnie and moots disaster with many of them. The weak-grow-ing rose should bo pruned back to within two eyes of tho ground, while the' stronger grower may well bo left with quite half a dozen eyes. So much for tho bedding rose, although the latter will often need thinning. Then there are the pillar roses. These should be, more largely grown by the amateur, as they offer fewer snares' to the uninitiated. Hero is a way of beautifying a garden quite as attractively as any other. Here tlte matter of pruning is simplified for the beginner, for beyond the removal of old wood, the shortening back of the strong ones retained for a little distance from the ends, and the severe cutting of weaker shoots little more is needed, and vigorous growth need not be feared. And what a glorious show results tho following season compared to the few blooms on the standard, which is generally nil the amateurs can manage until more, knowledge is gained. It has been truly said that nothing teaches an intelligent, person more than a garden. It even tones down the -dogmatism of the most egotistic—he or sho remembers their own unaccountable failures —and that is suying much for its influence. So that to exalt any mode of pruning into a dogma is-to fortify oneself against tho reception of new ideas, and then it is time to quit gardening. Look well into the nature of the plant, study its habits, think how best it will yield the result desired, and then treat it accordingly. If there is any doubt on tho matter err on the lenient side, if at all, and prune sparingly. Thero aro even seme who get good reuslts from pruning all at a uniform height. The weak-growing rose will sometimes do much better if another tree is started from a cutting. After Priming.

Lightly fork over tho ground so as not to disturb the surface-feeding roots; Then place a good layer of manure over the ground, and over this some three inches of good loam or ordinary soil from immediate surroundings. This wil prevent the manure drying up, and also look neater for the coming sum mor.