A FAVOURABLE SEASON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 18897, 20 December 1924, Page 24 (Supplement)

A FAVOURABLE SEASON.

VALUE OF QUICK GROWTH. Every effort must now be made to place the vegetable garden in as neat and tidy condition as possible for the holiday season. Up to the present the season has been an exceptionally favourable one for the raising and growing of crops, and where anything like reasonable attention has been given to successional cropping, —— there should be little . difficulty in providing an abundant supply of seasonable vegetables for the Christmas season. Vegetables are never more wholesome and palatable than when quickly grown, and so far, owing to the frequent and warm rains, rapid growth has been maintained. The heavy gales at the latter part of the last week have proved the necessity of having all tallgrowing plants se- [ curely staked, for where this has been | neglected plants have naturally been whipped about by the wind and (heir growth checked. OAEE OF TOMATOES. Tomatoes, especially when growing rapidly and carrying heavy foliage, and in many cases fruit, require to be kept frequently tied as they advance in growth. They, in fact, require more at* tentiou than most other plants in the vegetable- garden, for I it is only by keepinr the plants securely tied, and keepin" tosuj>crfluous lateral growth well under control, that good crops of well-develop-ed fruit can be obtained. This close method of pruning is done with the object of directing the whole

force of the plant to the development of fruit, instead of the production of a. lot of useless growth that only robs the fruits of much of the food ■ necessary for their development. As soon i as the fruit is well formed they require | plenty of nourishment. It is then that j manure water can lie applied with advanj tage, while a good mulching with fresh j stable manure will be most beneficial. Spraying with Bordeaux mixture should .in no case be neglected. COPING WITH PESTS. At this time, too, aphides are often troublesome, especially on such plants as cucumbers, aud the different varieties of melons. Even pumpkins are sometimes subject to their attacks. The difficulty in dealing with these pests i.-, ihat they attack the under side of the leaves, so that spraying to be effective requires to be done so that the under side of the leaves receive the solution. Black Beat 40 or other tobacco decoction is fatal to most, aphides. At this time the garden should be made to look its best. Any thinning and weeding of the crops should bo completed, the whole of the ground hoed over and the weeds removed. The paths, too, should be cleared of weeds, so that the whole garden will have a nice tidy appearance, It is after the holidays arc over that thero is generally plenty of work needing attention. The clearing away of spent crops of peas, French beans, and other plants that are stripped of their crops at this time, leaves much of the ground to be again dug up, manured if i j necessary, and placed in readiness for J future crops. • | PROPER CROP ROTATION. j In laying out the ground for future ' crops, a change of variety should in every case where practicable be made. To I grow the same crops in the same ground . two or three times in succession requires I extra care in manuring and attention to attain anything like the same success as ' when a chango of soil is given. It is well known that certain plants take from the soil certain essential elements. If the same crop is taken from the plot several times in succession, the sod becomes exhausted of the necessary food for the completo growth of that particular crop and, unless the loss is made good, the crops must deteriorate as the soil-robbing goes on. The elements may bo restored by tho ! addition of fertilisers containing them, but i the most economical method is by a proper system of crop rotation. i