Operations for May

Northern Advocate, 13 May 1939, Page 4 (Supplement)

Operations for May

THE VEGETABLE GARDEN Sow lettuce, broad beans and green peas. It is rather betweenseasons for sowing onions. Plant out cabbage and lettuce during suitable weather. Late potatoes and kumaras should be gathered during fine weather; they should be dry when stored. Plant shallots, tree onions, and potato onions. Prepare rhubarb beds by cleaning, digging and manuring. Soot spread on the soil and lightly stirred in is excellent for the garden at this season. Hoe lightly and often between rows of vegetables. Store all garden refuse, fallen leaves, etc., and add a little lime to assist decay. As soon as the. tomatoes are finished, remove the old stems. Turn the soil over, and leave it in a rough state to sweeten. Burn all diseased plant refuse and other combustible rubbish. Sprinkle the ashes on the garden. Commence the preparation of the ground for the spring planting of onions. Dig it well, manure well, and see that the drainage is good. The earliest sown onions may' be planted out towards the end of June. As soon as the strawberry bed has been planted, ‘commence cultivation. THE FLOWER GARDEN Chrysanthemums may be lifted and transplanted to another part of the garden; or rooted pieces may be taken off, and the old plants burnt. Cut delphiniums down to the ground. Burn the old stalks and leaves. A shovelful of wood ashes about the crowns will help to keep slugs away during the winter months. One-year-old roots may be kept for another season. Older roots should be taken up and burned. Keep carnations tied to their supports, and pull off the decayed rusty leaves. A light dusting with lime once a month will prove beneficial. Most annuals that flower during winter and early spring like a light, free, well-drained soil. Raise the beds well above the surrounding ground. ' Antirrhinums that are still young and strong may be cut back a little. They will bloom again in early spring. Delphiniums, carnations, and violets like a little salt, best given in the form of Kainit. Continue to sow winter and summer flowering sweet peas. Those sown earlier will be doings well now. They should be trained to stakes. Stocks, calendulas, Iceland poppies, violas, etc., may be put out when the soil is dry enough. Primula malacoides and lachenalias are two good plants for window boxes or for early-flowering on a sunny verandah. They may be lifted from the garden with soil attached without a check.