Gardening News & Notes

Northern Advocate, 8 March 1947, Page 4

Gardening News & Notes

Vegetables

Sowings may be made of cabbage, cauliflower, winter or prickly spinach, endive, radish, silver beet, parsnips, lettuce, carrots, onions.

Earth up celery and leeks as they require it.

Pick tomatoes as soon as they show colour and ripen them off indoors. This prevents their being cracked or damaged by rain. Plant out celery, cabbage and cauliflower.

Water late-sown peas and beans where necessary. Sow soiling crops • for digging in later. Oats or blue lupins are suitable.

Dig over plots from which crops have been taken, and leave in' the rough state for a week or two. Lightly chip the soil between rows of growing crops. This is important, particularly in dry weather. Collect and stack all clean, softwooded garden refuse, such as grass cuttngs, fallen leaves, etc. These make excellent compost for later use. Animal manure, if available, will greatly improve the compost. Burn all dry and diseased refuse. The ashes make an excellent tonic for the soil.

Lift kumara vines that are rooting at the joints, and throw them back; otherwise the crop will be affected. Don’t compost crab-grass. It is safer to bum it. Flowers . . . ' Gazamas pi ay be propagated by cuttings of young growth inserted in sandy soil. /Seedlings are plentiful just now. When the layers of carnations are well rooted, they may be severed from the plants. Madonna lilies should be planted as soon as possible before autumn growth starts. Make main sowings of cyclamen seed for next season’s plants. Good strains of antirrhinums can be propagated by cuttings of short side shoots inserted in a sand frame.

The smaller spring-flowering bulbs are delightful for mthe rock garden. iScillaS, muscg(i*>, Lachenalia, chinodora, and erythroniums may be planted now. Continue to plant seedlings, sow seed, plant bulbs, corms, take cuttings, etc., for spring show of bloom. Look over cinerarias in pots for signs of leaf miner. Pinch the ends of the tracks or tunnels between finger and thumb to destroy the grubs. Shrub Trees Bloom . . . This has been an ideal summer for enjoying a meal in the garden beneath the shade of a tree or trees. It is wise to look around now, choose the trees you fancy, and order early for winter planting. A few I have. noticed lately camphor laurel, of which a good specimen is to be seen in the garden of Central Park, in the corner at the Maunu Road entrance. It grows to a fair size, needs good soil, and some shelter. The glossy green foliage is very attractive; melia azedarach, the umbrella-tree, likes the. same condition as the camphor laurel. It has dark green divided leaves, is a quick grower, and, if trained, makes a good round head. The sprays of lavender flowers are attractive. A good specimen is growing near the main entrance of the Boys’ High School.

The jacaranda has just finished flowering. The sprays of lavender blue bell flowers are very beautiful, and the fine fern-like foliage is very attractive. This tree needs warmth and good cultivation to grow and flower well It is not easily broken by wind. It is deciduous, and frost-tender when young. Idesia polycarpa has large heartshaped leaves with red stalks. It makes a perfect head and bears long hanging sprays of red berries in winter. It is deciduous and male and female flowers are borne on different plants. It is not a big grower. Plant a pair for shade. Metrosideros villosa is rather like a small edition of pohutukawa. It is more compact in its growth, the leaves are smaller, the blooms smaller, and the flowering season longer. It stands a lot of wind, and is a good shelter tree.

The scarlet gums, eucalyptus ficifolia, have been beautiful this season. Shades of salmon, orange, rust and red are to be had from seedlings. To shape the tree, cut back after flowering; It is frost-tender, and easily blown over by the wind when young. Nerium, or Alexander, is pink in the best-known variety. It is not a big grower, stands the wind well, and does very well near the sea. It needs to be trained to one stem, or several plants used to give shade. Ceretopetalum gummiferum, NSW Christmas tree, cannot be called a shade tree, but it is too beautiful to leave out of this list. An ideal dainty tree for a small garden. The small creamy flowers are followed by bright rosy bracts, making a show of rare beauty. Give a fairly good, deep, free soil in a warm situation. A fine specimen is to be seen in Graham Street.

Albizzia julibaissen is another charmer. The foliage resembles that of acacia. It makes a round head and bears tufts of pinkish blooms. Popular in Egypt. Likes shelter and a good, free deep soil.