THE GARDEN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18019, 18 February 1922, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE GARDEN.

LATE SUMMER FLOWERS,

Amongst flowering plants at this season the different species of Lilium speciosum, Lilium auratum, and a few others arc in evidence and greatly prized for cutting; Amaryllis Belladonna, Sprekelid forniosissima (the Jacobean lily), Brursvigias, and several species of crinums. The belladonna lily, of which there arcXseveral forms, includes a greatly improved variety with longer stems and larger flower?. There is also a paler-flowered kind, but the old common kind is still extremely popular and gives a profusion of flowers preceding the leaves, which come after the flowers are over. This lily is a native of the West Indies. IL is most useful for naturalising iu the grass upon sloping, banks or alongside grassy drives or beneath the shade of trees. It succeeds everywhere and under the most adverse conditions. The flowers are useful for cutting. Brunsvigiaj belong to the same family and are natives of the Cape of Good Hope. They have extremely large bulbs and are noble flowering plants, throwing up long stalks surmounted with many flowers in umbels. They are of the easiest cultivation and, like belladonnas, when onco established will continue to grow and flower annually j without any special care or attention. Crinums Are a large genus of exceedingly handsome bulbous plants well worthy of a place in the mixed border in every garden or planted near the edges of the shrubbery. There are quite a number of distinct species, soveral being in flower at the present time, C. Powellii being greatly in ovidence. They are mostly very large bulbs and of easy cultivation. Crinums are widely distributed, being natives of different countries temperate and tropical, and belong to the Amaryllis or lily family. Crinum Moorei is one of the most beautiful and useful species for general cultivation. Some are delightfully fragrant. Vallota purpurea, the Scarborough lily, is another very showy and beautiful bulbous plant, now most conspicuous with its lovely scarlet blossoms. This plant should not be disturbed for years. When treated in this manner the clumps gradually increase and produce grand masses of bloom. These are benefited by an occasional watering with liquid manure. Dry Weather Plants. The above-named members of the Amaryllis family are splendid dry-weather subjects; droughts do not harm their flowering, as the nutriment is stored up in the largo bulbs, consequently they are indispensable at this season, which is usually the hottest and driest throughout the year. Among other useful bulbous plants, Montbrettias are deserving of special mention. They arc so easy to grow and they flower with such profusion, and are so useful for cutting. During recent vears remarkable improvement* have been 'effected both in tho size and colour of the blossoms and habit of growth and freedom o'' flowering. Montbrettias are now beginning to flower profusely. They soon grow into fair-sized elumps. the commoner kinds are liable to spread, and require to be kept in bounds. Zephyranthes Candida, the autumn flowering crocus, is acain conspicuous with its snow-white crocus-like blossoms. Recent heavy rami and moisture and warmth in tho soil have started quite a number of bulbous plant; that, were in the soil before their propel time. Anemones that were left in tn< ground are now well above ground, am will bo out of season.

Spring Flowering Hardy Bulbs. Tho planting of there should he deferrcc until the first week in March, which ii quite soon enough to proceed with the ttrsi batch, and follow on at intervals of abou; three weeks between each planting. . 1«" provides for a succession. Preparation o the soil and selection of places may now be determined. The places for bulb; should be deeply dug and left with a rcueh a surface as possible for exposmc tc the atmosphere; a libera surface dressing lith lime should also bo applied and a little soot may be added. . This dines, out .the many insects that are m the so 1, such as iStes, wire-worms, kills eggs of slugs, etc The lime and exposure thoroughly sweetens tho ground. Where ranuncul. iriff with sea sand is benefic al. \vitn SVitUnont of tho Boil the planting is an easy matter. Winter Flowering Sweet Peas. Preparation of trenches for sowing these should now bo proceeded with. Similar tSment'to that for the ordinary flowerSnSK peas is necessary to secure the SresultTeaoeptinS that not.quite« much manure need be used. If piocui S some fresh turfy loam should be mS porated when filling in the trenches ffi warm, dry, sheltered positions with a northerly aspect. General Work.

In the flower-bed and borders necessary work consists in the usual tying up of chrysanthemums and dahlias, keeping a careful lookout for caterpillars picking off dead flowers, hoeing to keep *e garden free from weeds; at the same time savrng Se of the seedlings of self-sown annual and biennials to grow on and flower thinSg them out to the required distances. Gladioli bulbs should, if not already lifted io taken up at once after the foliage » soon make fresh roots and start into mwth A few varieties of hardy auE may be sown in prepared places in th« beds and all that We done flowerbe eradicated'. Grass edgings should bo neatly trimmed. ORCHARD PLANTING. There is no better time than during the dr'mnmei months for breaking up an land intended for tree planting. Land Sen up roughly at this time and exnosed to tho Sim and air has time o lcoughlY sweeten, and will, before the time Of Planting, be in excellent condition rdscin and g anein S down in reading or he reception of the trees Ihe , asuro of success attained ... ptaung young trees is so dependant upon the condftion of the soil that too muc, . Uc. tion cannot be given to it. But vhUe this applies to all tree, and plants whether planted for hedge, shelter, oi o> purposes it is especia^e^ tial in the preparation of theJOil, «M the successful cultivation of fruit trees Too often this work is deferred until th of planting is rushed through, regards o the needs and future welfare of tin in many instances holes being du f ' n 2nd that has not hitherto been broke. ,i) with no provision for the outlet o Spin moisture. Planting under sucl condition is simply courting failure. ; Trees and Soil Conditions. ! Tree, that are worth planting luvi ; naturally been well grown and cared fo. a„d i succeed need* somewhat Bimila, , onditionß to enable them. to become we i established before the spring growth set f The amount of preparation necesaarj : will naturally depend 1 upon the nature o , the soil Ground, for instance, that Uai I bSn under cultivation for other crops S need little or no preparation, beyon , marking out the sites for the tiees i peoiafc if there is free outlet for eurpk . miistnre" Thorough drainage however i is in every instance essential, and if then is no natural free outlet, drainage mus , be provided. The stiff er the land tin - more necessary it is to hare the lam i thoroughly and deeply worked, and n such condition that no stagnant wate • can He at tho roots, for while a certai: '■ amount of moisture is needed to keep tm i trees in a healthy condition, it must no I be in excess, and on no account must i , be stagnant. The advantage of drainini lies not only in the removal of gurplu

loisture, tut in the removal of injurious ases, added warmth to the soil and in rengtheuing root formation. Preparing the Ground for Trees. In preparing the ground for tho trees, tho whole of the land cannot be at onco eated, strips 6ft. to Bft. wide, where the )\vs are to be planted, could be broken p and thoroughly worked before the time f planting. In most sites selected for lanting fruit trees, the soil varies in laracter, and is more suited to some arieties than others—for instance peaches. ectarines, plurps, in fact must stone •uits, as well as lemons, succeed best hen grown upon deep, rich, friable soil, r soils of a sandy nature, while pip ruits, on tho other hand, succeed best .'hen grown in fairly stiff, though wellrained land. But apart from preparing he land, the planning out of the orchard nd the selection of the varieties should e made, Selecting Varieties to Plant. There is no belter time than during the miting season, when the merits, nf the lifferent varieties of fruits are in ev lence for making a selection. By taking areful note of the different varieties and ■heir season of ripening, the early, nedium, and lato varieties can bo noteH. ind a selection mast suited to the rrower's requirements made. In almost 'very orchard, somo provision is necessau or sheltering the trees, though the shelter iceded will depend upon tho lay of the ,'round, and natural shelter already giver. Different fruit trees vary as to the amount accessary to produce the best results. Too lenso an evergreen shelter is nut conducive to fraitfuluess, as almost every fruiting tree-is benefited by reasonable exposure to the weather during the autumn and winter, as it enables the wood ami huds to ripen and mature much better than when deprived of the necessary lighl and air by too dense shelter. Weeds and Vegetable Culture. One of the chief requirements in tn's department at the present time is hoeing and keeping weeds under control. This is especially necessary with any teedhng crops that are not far advanced, as num bers of annual weeds, such as the wild portulaca, amaranthus, and other weedthat luxuriate iu hot weather, spread over tho ground so rapidly as to soon cover any small seedlings, unless they are kept under control by frequent hoeing. These weeds not only grow rapidly, but mature quickly) and scatter their seeds broadcast in an incredibly short time. With the portulaca, simply hoeing is not sufficient, for owing to tho fleshy nature of the foliage, even after they are cut and the roots turned up to the sun, they remain alive and mature and scatter their seeds. The best plan at this season is to remove all weeds from amongst growing crops as soon as they aro cut. Hoeing in any case is a very necessary operation during such hot. dry weather, as a nice loomi surface checks evaporation and assists growth, Enemies of Garden Orops. Caterpillars are now very troublesome. Tomatoes particularly require frequont spraying to protect the fruits from their ravages. Birds, too, play havoc with much of the fruit, attacking them before they are properly coloured. Tho blackbird and thrush are the greatest enemies, as they are not satisfied by feeding from a few fruits, but attack and render useless large numbers of the finest fruits. Where these are trouhlesome the best means of saving the fruit is to gather as soon as they show a reasonable amount of colour and place on a dry shelf or bench, when they will colour and ripen in a few days. French and runner beans, 100, are a prey to tho caterpillar, the fo'iage in many cases being riddled by these pests. Beans should he kept closely picked, even if not required for use, it is better to keep them removed, as their season of usefulness is considerably extended by this, means Melons, cucumbers, and marrows will need to be occasionally spra/ed to keep aphis under control. Black 'Leaf 40 is an excellent insecticide when, judiciously applied, but even a good spraying with clean water will do much to clear tho foliage from these pests. Growing Celery. Celery in all stages of growth will need special attention, particularly during the hot. dry weather. The main requirements in the cultivation of this, as with most other vegetables, is to keep the plants growing without check from the time the plants are started, until they are ready for the table. To do this the plants mart in no ease be allowed to suffer for (he want of moisture. This, however, is not such a difficult matter when the plants are grown in trenches, as the moisture is Tiettcr retained than if grown on tho surface. Well-grown celery is not only highly prized as a salad, but owing to its medicinal properties is equally valued ■when served as a vegetable, and is in season when many other vegetables are scarce. Harvesting Garden Crops. All matured crops should he lifted and harvested as soon as ready. Potatoes that have sufficiently ripened should be dug without delay, or there is always a. risk of the tubers starting again into growth. In preparing the ground again for other crops, tho soil should be deep y dug or forked. For root crops particularly deep working is essential, and if manuring is necessary it should be placed deop down in the soil, otherwise any deep-rooting plants, such as long carrots, laxsmps, beet, and others, are induced lo produce branched, instead of straight, clean roots. Most root crops, however, succeed best in soil that has ken previously manured 1 and from which a crop has been taken. I Attend to thinning out any recently sown crops as soon as the plants arc ,ar ge ' enough to handle. At this stago they ; have generally but one straight taproot, 1 and can be removed without disturbing " the soil or checking the growth of the . plants left to form tho crop, r J ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. , H W.. Tahekeroa, Kainara.-Nattie of pass 0 i., uUtis canina, brown too or brown bent grins, a splendid species for poorer tods. " \ster," MartinboroiiKh.-Climatic conditions would accoount for carrota »pl»*nw .The sides. A sudden start into vigoro.» growth after a Period of rest throueh drouß.il ,e wou\d briiur this about. There is bo rcmed>. ,v "Waitini." Otorobaiwa.— Sample of, tieY a toil Sly known as Lotus ansustissunus. d bo anlcaUv Lotus villoma (hairy), a variety * Si X bird's -root trefoil. Samnle ot seed ■ .o Lotus maior llbo greater ( bird c i fo <>t Ucio. . , 6 with a small percentage of L. iww«« among it. , m •• Heftier " East Coast.-Tbo thistle that is : l s£aafSS'S .Z flelde- I. i,, v '• Subscriber."-Specimen in small out id, means of the nurwse they were fixed :l£3£££t3r&?sivß rkjasainet them- , *<■ irMH Leigh—For ecal market the „i, pearance; EcUinvmea b«i - g "" cu mars apple, always sens «% • d Pearmain and Delicious are K „,?, R a i la "»t mind. Mobbs' RavaL Pirlm'J Beaut* Bm»J» Seedling, Golden Pippm. and VriUiebh«P arTill profitable kinds to plant Bnrbank ... and Satsuma Japanese plums. »>» &»&• Early as an early kind; Angelma Burdui. *, Pond's Seedling-. Giant, and Re.no Uaude ar do Bavay for European varieties. WWj ,11 Williams' Bon Chretien, .Louise Bonno o f Jersey, and Packham'a Tnunph «U vrU at lts the local markets and are reliable taneties ry to grow. **■"""■ of ' " SUBDIVISION OF PLANTS. ad The propagation of many plants is is, achieved by a division of the roots whilst us the parent plants aro dormant. The roots lr, subdivided start into growth at once and re become fixed before the new leaf growth ist starts. Dividing should be carefully done, he care being taken not to split or otherwise id damage any of the largo roots. Should in this occur the damaged portion should be er cut off with a sharp knife, for there »» ia risk that it may decay later on and he danger the life of to plant. JP™ ; ot Shasta daisies, lilacs, B^BjJK it of the herbaceous plants-de Pin ng columbines, polyanthus, Kjgftg j$ us like are best propagated m this *?. gg