GARDENING

Manawatu Times, Volume 64, Issue 114, 17 May 1939, Page 8

GARDENING

Routine Work in the May Borders. Spread a little rotted manure on the surface of existing perennial borders, forking it in immediately. Apply basic slag if this has not already been done. Plant all kinds of rock plants. Apply naphthalene to vacant borders where pests are suspected; this is very necessary' before planting anemones, narcissi and other bulbs and ranunculi. Plant all kinds of hardy annuals and biennials for winter bedding. Plant generously of polyanthus primroses which do so much towards brightening up the garden in early spring. Lift dahlias from the borders and replace with early dowering stuff. Plant violets, lily-of-the-valley and all perennial edging plants. Sow plenty of Virginian stock, mignonette and candytuft. Plant tulips, and, in fact, all and every wind of bulb. Take cuttings of shrubs and rock plants. Give bearded iris borders a dressing of lime. Remove all annuals from the borders in readiness for other early blooming subjects. Make new rose borders and auy other alterations for rendering the garden more attractive. Sow sweet peas in well-manured trenches. Reserve the sunny, well-drained plots for early stocks, Iceland poppies and calendulas, as their flowers are so welcome during the cold, dull days. The Vegetable Garden. Give tho late roots of celery the final earthing up. Make a sowing of broad beans, using lime in the trench. Give late planted leeks plenty of liquid manure between the rows. Dig and trench all vacant land, digging in plenty of roughage where the earlier things arc to be planted and sown. Continue to collect dry leaves for making compost. Suspend ripe marrows intended for winter use from the roof of an airy shed. Sow lettuce seed, onion, spinach, endive and radish. Plant all kinds of herbs. Sow early cabbage and cauliflower, and plant plants of same if available. Sow the Jirst early peas where a nice sunny well-drained bed is available. Select a few early potatoes for exposure to produce nice strong shoots. Cut down asparagus as soon as the foliage browns. Plant rhubarb and place a heavy covering of manure over existing beds. The Fruit Garden. Clear out old decayed trees from orchards. Top-dross fruit trees in narrow borders, using a rich compost for bearing trees. Plant raspberries and strawberries in well prepared ground. Use plenty of mauure and bonemeal when preparing for them. • Propagate all bush fruits by cuttings. Procure stocks of manure and sand while the weather is good for the spring work. Prune hedges and burn all rubbish that is too rough for digging in. Hardy Annuals lor Present and Spring Sowings. There has been a distinct tendency on the part of many gardeners in recent years to neglect plants of an annual nature iu favour of more permanent things like trees and shrubs. Additions to these are continually pouring in from China and elsew T here, many so beautiful that much space has been devoted to them in our gardens. The horizon of the gardener should, however, never be restricted to one group of plants. It takes all kinds to make a garden, and without the wealth of flowers to be found in the ranks of hardy and half-hardy annuals, the summer pageant would lose half its beauty. When well grown, there are few plants to compare with them for generosity of bloom, richness of colouring, and variety in form and texture, and the gardener who plants for picturesque colour effects in beds and borders throughout the summer and early autumn cannot afford to neglect their many claims to recognition. An early, bright display is obtained

(Specially written for "The Times’* by "Lorna.")

by now making sowings in the empty spaces which should have been dug and manured first. Work down finely and scatter the seed thinly and evenly over. Drastic thinning must take place at a later date. A modern list of flowerBeeds offers a most bewildering choice and for the owner of a small garden it is quite a task to make choice of just a few.

Clarkias, godetias and calendulas form an indispensable trio; they are so hardy and give a profusion of bloom. The gardener in search of blue flowers can take his pick from such lovely things as the annual anchusa, and its close relative, the beautiful turquoise blue eynoglossum, nigella, tho bright blue phacelia campanularia, jubilee gem cornflowers, blue nemesia, blue viscaria, larkspurs, and others. For the finishing of dry and sunny borders there is a host of annuals to choose from. All those kinds hailing from California and South Africa revel in such positions, and there will be no regret about sowing any of them with a glorious hand. The Californian poppies should have pride of place as there are such lovely colourings among them and they are as easy to grow as they are beautiful. A good moisture will afford a most brilliant carpet of colouring as anyone could wish. Next in merit are the ursinias, and dimorphothecas with their glorious copper and orange shadings. The latter are good to sow among the bulbs as their foliage being on the sparse side allows sun and air to get at tho bulbs in their growing stage. The same conditions will suit the artotis. If there is room, space should be allowed for the prickly poppy (argemone grandiflora), a lovely annual that for some reason is little known and grown. It has beautiful creamy white silken poppies, and the silvered thistle like foliage provides an admirable foil; it is a remarkably handsome plant and enjoys a warm soil and the hottest exposure. For background effect iu the border there are few annuals of large size to beat the lovely mallow called lavatera loveliness, whose flowers are a good shade of pink, and it associates well with such things as anehusas, delphiniumbs and erigerons. Then there are the annual sunflowers for those who liwe them, and the everlasting flowers. Among the real dwarfs is the blue woodruff, Virginian stocks, annual convulvus, with its wide open blue flowers, and nemesias. The golden yellow, bartonia aurea, is uot often seen, and has beautiful blooms. Double Primroses. This fine group of plants are wonderfully hardy and bloom over a long season and at a time when their blooms are very welcome. The darkest colours to be found in them are the deep glowing purple tones which are found in tho bonaccord jewel, and the claret and white of tho variety bonaccord beauty. Bonaccord purity is a very fine white with upstanding flowers, fully double, tinted cream, with a yellow centre. Bonaccord lavender and lilac are also very beautiful, the former with quantities of shaded pale mauve rosette-shaped flowers and the latter with flatter starshaped blossoms. Bonaccord cerise is a bright glowing colour, quite unlike other primroses, and there is also a fine purple one. Bonaccord primrose is a deep cream, a lovely flower, shaped like a small carnation, with an uncommon ochre-yellow shading. Gem is a bright red flower. This fine group of double primroses was raised about forty years ago in Aberdeen and even to this day are uot very well known. If grown in fibrous loam, given shelter from wind and from very scorching sun they seem to be very hardy and increase well. During a hot summer it is always advisable to cover the double primroses with a mulching of lawn grass clippings. A Treasure for the Rock Garden. Tulipa dasystemon is a beautiful little tulip, distinct in habit and flower. It grows from four to six inches high, the colour of the flowers is yellow, edged with white, and also makes a good subject for pots and pans. The Prostrate Rosemary. Most garden lovers are familiar with this useful and dainty introduction from the Isle of Capri. This plant forms a pretty cascading mass of the palest blue flowers. It 1 leaves are smaller and darker green than other forms, and they lack that greyish appearance produced by the myriads of minute hairs on the under surfaces of their leaves. The Capri Rosemary thrives in well-drained, situations, and appears to great advantage on a rock wall or similar position in the rock garden. It would also provide a lovely edging for the border where blue flowers are grown, as it could be kept clipped into position.