GARDEN & FIELD

Manawatu Times, Volume LV, Issue 6833, 14 April 1932, Page 10

GARDEN & FIELD

Specially written for the Times by "Lorna."

Routine Work in the Borders. Welcome rain has fallen, and a great deal of necessary planting can bo got on with. At tho same time, do not plant until tho soil is thoroughly prepared by deep digging and by incorporating some plant food at the same time. Deep digging will provide better drainage. April is a most important month for the setting out of all hardy earlyblooming plants, and for flic planting of all manner of bulbous things, and tho earlier everything is got on with the better, as the plants need to get a start before the winter sets in.

Work in a little bone-dust among the plots of delphiniums, lupins, oriental poppies and suchlike things. These will also benefit from a topdressing of decayed manure forked in. Perennial iflants that have not done so well of recent years may bo lifted, and healthy pieces from tse outside of the clump replanted. If replanting in the same spot, remove much of the old soil and replace with good, rich loam from the compost heap. Never forget that plants need food, and if left year after year without some form of topdressing they are bound to deteriorate.

Take cuttings of young shoots of pansies, violas, carnations, petunia, verbenas, penstemons, arabis, aubretia and other edging plants. Also cuttings of such shrubs as leonotis, hydrangea, virburnums, philadclphus, japonieas, ecanothus, wcigclias, buddlcias, and many others. Cut back all things in the borders that have finished blooming, giving the garden a tidy appearance. Clumps of Japanoso irises may bo broken up and replanted. These revel in a moist, rich soil. Plant boarded irises in raised beds, or on sunny, well drained banks. These love lime and some rich soil placed well down where tho roots only will come in contact with it. Promptly cut off all spent blooms from flowering plants . When chrysanthemum buds are comincncin gto unfold, a covering.of scrim or canvas must bo erected over them if growing for exhibition; also keep them well supplied with moisture. Examine them early in the morning for stray caterpillars. v Take cuttings of roses, and prepare rose beds.

The Vegetable Garden. April is just as important a month among the vegetables as in the flower borders, as here wo arc preparing the soil and sowing seeds to meet tho demand for vegetables at the scarce season. First see that all plots intended for this important work arc well and deeply dug, with manure w r orked in in those plots which need it. Have the beds raised if there is any likelihood of them getting too wet. Dig in any rough turfy stuff, and half-decayed rubbish, which all helps to keep the soil more open and porous. Sow seed of onion, short-horn carrot, silver beet, broad beans, spinach, lettuce, early cabbage, early maturing cauliflower, endive and white turnips. Plant out cabbage, cauliflower and lettuce plants. Prepare beds and plant rhubarb, strawberries and asparagus. Gather al lmarrows and pumpkins, even though some may not have ripened off. The plot can then be made immediate use of and will grow good crops of lettuce, spinach, or other vegetables of a like nature.

Spring Bedding Plants. All the spring things love welldrained, fairly rich, silty soil. Where it is inclined to run together a good dressing of sand will make a wonderful improvement. AVhcn planting, work a little bonedust into tho soil in each hole and water the plants in, even if the soil is moist. There arc the shady spots lo be considered, and here wc can plant wallflowers, primulas, campanulas, for-get-me-nots, cineraria, primroses and London Pride.

Spring Effects—Polyanthus Primroses. A beautiful spring effect is obtained by planting whole beds of the above plants. They flower profusely over a long period and are ideal for a bed on the lawn, forming a beautiful sight. Buds of chciranthus allionii give a wonderfully bright touch to the garden with their particularly rich tints of orange. Chciranthus linifolia is a newer variety with finer leafage and pretty mauve flowers, and would associate well with primula malacoidcs or aubretias. For other beds requiring larger things wo have the beautiful

orange and yellow calendulas. If these are given sunny, well drained plots there will be no lack of bloom during winter and spring. A double row used as a bordering, of Iceland poppies gives an effective finish, w'hilc it tho bed is large, wallflowers are useful for a background. linarias are easily grown and arc charming when grown in the mass, flowering under all conditions. Bright and colourful arc beds of anemones or ranunculi. Enrich the soil and work in plenty of rough material undcrmatli for drainage. Plant out plenty of stocks for the spring display, giving them lime, rich soil and the best of drainage. The Exposed Borders. Beds on lawns are usually the most exposed in thcr garden"and are never

really successful unless planted with something that rough and cold winds fail to mar. On summing up various plants, there arc but few that are really suited for the purpose. Plants for these beds need to be fairly low-grow-ing, of compact habit and, moreover, effective in either flower or foliage. The armeria, or thrift family arc among the most successful; yet how seldom do we see them used. Some varieties arc hardly ever without a flower, and during most months arc a mass of pink. There are pale pink tints to deep lose, the latter showing up vividly. Then there are dwarf varieties with short cower stems which aro ideal foi bedding out beneath an existing shrub or tree, or in a bed to themselves, for however dry the situation, these plants never fail to bloom and do well. Then there aro several varieties of the hosettc type of saxifrage. With their soft grey tin tings and brighttipped leaves, the general effect is all that could be desired. Small bulbous things such as lachenalias, crocuses, grape hyacinths, or the small creeping bluebells of the campanula family may be introduced among the above named plants with charming effects. Aubretia, too, is neat and compact, but its blooms get damaged by cold winds, and the bed is only attractive during a few months of tho year. What is really needed on lawns is something that looks nice all the year round. Large beds situated in theso same exposed places always look well if filled with the blue agapanthus. The foliage always looks green, while tho stiff, upright flowerspikes stand any amount of wind. Tri-: tomas (red hot pokers) aro aso good for the same reason. Small beds of bell is daisies are also very pretty, and to liven the bed up during autumn, autumn-blooming crocuses or tho small nerines should be planted among them. The aubretia bed, too, can be made much more interesting by planting autumn-flowering bulbs among the clumps. The Herbaceous Border.

This is tho best of all times for replanting or re-conditioning the herbaceous border. Every year there are improved varieties of our favourites to be had, and an effort should be made to bring the border up to date as far as possible. Delphiniums and lupins have been so much improved of recent years that old plants may with advantage be removed to make room for something better. Michaelmas daisies, too, arc greatly improved, although there arc still a few pretty and dainty types which the lover of the beautiful will not discard. Go over the border carefully. Maybe a group of tulips, or Spanish irises may be tucked in, in close proximity to clumps of heleniums or other autumn-flowering things, while among groups of paeonics, golden daffodils give a pretty effect among the fresh tinted new growth. There are also many little spots where bulbs of l.iliums may be introduced. Give each bulb a good handful of leafinould and sand. Where the plants have been in position for two or three years, scrape the soil away from around them and replace with well-rotted manure, packing it firmly around the roots. Where manure is scarce this method is by far the most economical and puts new life into the plants. The old soil needs to be replaced on top to prevent birds from scratching around in search of worms. The herbaceous border needs more thought in planting than . any other part of the garden, as its aim is to look attractive at all seasons. For this reason, a few clumps of low-grow-ing shrubs with good foliage should be included in the general scheme, and also plants which arc valuable for the same reason. By keeping the border well fed. every inch of ground can be taken advantage of with the introduction of, bulbous things. The Rock Garden.

Those gardeners anticipating alterations or additions to the rock garden should commence the work as quickly as possible. Rock gardens arc delightful in spring and if the work is taken quickly in hand plants will have time to root and make some growth for at least a small display in spring. W itli the well drained pockets and crevices, the soil docs not get so cold as that of the borders, and plants make some progress even during the cold days and frosty nights. Hough turf and broken rock or stones should go to the bottom of most of the pockets, with a rich loamy compost for the plants to grow in. A mixture of leaf mould, sand, decayed matter from the compost heap and some very old manure, makes a compost that most rock plants thrive amazingly well in. Gritty unburnt lime or broken up limestone mixed in, is ideal for all grey-leaved plants, and for the choice saxifrages the soil needs plenty of broken up rock and grit worked in, in order to keep them safe throughout the ■winter. The soil should be rammed very tightly to make sure there are no air pockets, and it is best to leave the pockets for a. week or so before planting- to give the soil time to settle. Plant small bulbs freely beneath spreading carpets of thyme and similar tilings. The wee bulbs give the most.delightful effects imaginable, pushing their way through carpets of green or grey foliage. The building of rock walls should also' be undertaken, as these for man ideal home for mesembryanthenunns, hclianthomums, dianthus and many other briht gems, while on top of .the .wall tlie perennial gyp-

sophila will form a dainty mass in its season. Varieties of rock plants are legion. Large rock gardens can be planted with many bold, spreading and handsome types, but the owner of a small one should beware of planting those which will in a short time croud out the choicer plants.

Hyacinth Pailures. Of recent years there has been great trouble over hyacinth bulbs, the bulbs, when planted, appear to be perfectly sound, yet they fail to grow, and "when lifted and examined are found to bo rotten at the core, and the worst of it is that no one seems ready with a solution of the trouble. Hyacinths are produced from offsets, and by manipulation of the parent bulb the natural rate of increase may bo increased tenfold. It has oecomc the practice by many growers to force these tiny bulblcts along by heavy feeding, the reason being in the flrst place an effort to fill the world shortage occasioned by the war. lhc natural vitality of the parent bulb was divided into 40 instead of *4, and from the weaklings new stocks have been raised. Deep in the heart of Nature arc hidden rewards for skill and care, but Nemesis is no less sure where liberties are taken with her bounty. It matters little whether one talks in terms of hyacinths or humans, the results are the same. New and unknown maladies supervene upon weakened vitality, and adapt themselves to the destruction of their hosts. 'lhe peculiar trouble to which hyacinths aro susceptible is known in Holland as “rotkonteu." Bulbs may grown to maturity in apparent perfect health and vigour, they are ripened and sold in good faith, by their owhers. These root readily, but if affected, the complaint commences under the skin at tho top and quickly extends downwards, rotting first the flower spike and from there the whole strucure. l-’or this reason it is thought to bo safer to invest in bulbs of British origin. When planting hyacinths out of doors, the bed should always be raised, and heavy soil should be lightened with peat, leaf mould and sand,