GARDENING NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17729, 13 September 1919, Page 3

GARDENING NOTES.

Br D. Taottock,

WORK FOR THE WEEK. THE GHKEHHOOSB TTDBSEBT. Contimre to prick out eeedlings of bedding plants' as they beomo largo enough to handle with ease. Complete the potting and boxing of bedding geraniums, and shift those which have become established in the pots and boxes' out into the frames to be gradually hardened off. Hardening' off j is a most important part of the cultivation of bedding plants, and many plants perish through being planted direct from the green house to the open garden. Chrysanthemums which wero rooted last autumn and are intended to bo grown into bush plants, with up to a dozen blooms on each, should have been potted up into 3in pots soma time ago, and will now be out in the frame. Pinch out the tops of the stems to causq branching, an 4 grow them on as nearly a3 possible in the open air. Those intended for large blooms should be rooted by now and ready to put up into Sin pots. Use a light soil composed of turfy loam two parts, leaf mould one part, sand half a part, and a liberal dusting of bone meal. Mix the soil thoroughly, and, if possible, get it ready _ a week before it is required. As it is desirable to encourage growth the early stages, don't pot too firmly, and stand the newly potted plants on a bed of ashes in the cool greenhouse, and syringe both night and morning when the weather is sunny. Cuttings of the outdoor chrysanthemums, if not already in, 6hould be put in as soon as possible; but very satisfactory results are obtained by merely lifting and dividing the old plants THE FLOWEB GARDEN. Complete the pruning of the roses, also the manuring and digging or forking of the beds; dig over the herbaceous borders, and divido those p&nts which, aro spreading too rapidly, planting back a piece of the outside of lie clump. Weed now and top dress the lawns, and get the garden into order before the spring display commences. The daffodils are pushing up rapidly, and they promise a very fine display, the foliago being strong and healthy and the buds plentiful Primrose polyanthus are also growing rapidly and sending up bunches of their various coloured flowers. _Though the blue kinds ape among the earliest, _ they are not so useful for making a display in the flower garden; and they are most effective "when grown on a shady bank or under the shelter of deciduous shrubs or trees. Scilla Siberica, Chinodoxia Lucilla, snowdrops, and the grape hyacinths axe making a brave display; and, as all of th.3so are increased by means of self-sown seedlings, it is a mistake to dig or fork among them at present when the seeds are germinating. Self-sown seedlings flower in _ from two to three years; and it is a sign that the plants are very much at home when they

increase in this manner. Some time ago I had an inquiry.regarding "eelworms attacking narcissi bulbs. In a tecent _ number of the Gardener's Chronicle it was stated that, as a result of investigations- carried out at Wisley, it has been found that the pests were destroyed by immersing the bulbs in water at a. very low temperature for five hours. The rock garden is becoming gay and interesting, and craite a number of the small bulbous plants already mentioned are out. as well as the double and single whita arabis, soma of the early aubretias, tho yellow alyssttm, and a few of the first of thi celmisias. Keep it weeded, neat, and tidy, and keep a sharp lookout for slugs under the mossy Tihlox and several of the other spreading things. Should they appear, dust under tho plants with freshlyslacked lime or water with lime water. Seeds of alpinea, if not ,6own when collected last summer and autumn, can bs sown now. They are better -sown in well drained pots or. boxes of light soil, covered with' sheets of glass, and stood in a shady position, bnt not under the drip of trees. Of course if a cold frame or greenhouse is available they can bo placed inside until they germinate, when they can be gradually hardened off. THE VEGETABLE GAUDEN AND ORCHABD. Though tlio soil is nob in a very suitable condition for sowing of planting the vegetable crops, except in the gardens where it is light sandy and well drained, as the season is advancing an effort should be mad© to get in the early varieties of the various crops. To prevent puddling the soil when walking on it boards can be put down to stand on, and somo light sandy soil, such as old potting soil or that taken from outting beds, can be used for covering the CncJt seeds. Whenever the soil is dry enough, cultivation should be commenced among the fruit trees and bushes. At present there is no sign of drought, but one never can tell what is to follow, andi it is advisable to retain the moisture in the soil ,by surfaco cultivation. The surfaco soil also dries quicker and becomes warmer when cultivated and to some extent thig may minieffects of late 6pring frosts. Black spot was very troublesomo on tipples last season, and' the following spray is recommended as a remedy:—When the Pr/? 11 spray with lime-sulphur I-I5 i y hcn too pink buds appear, 1-30; and when the blossoms are well forward 1-40 or 50. ' Spraying with summer bordeaux is also recommended, but though prevention, is better than cure, and spraying is regarded as a proper part of tho routine work of an orcnard spraying with any mixture, no matter how expensive it is or how difficult .Jt is to apply, will not prove a remedy for faulty cultivation, bad manuring, careless or destructive pruning, unsuitable 6oil and situation, or unsuitable varieties. Parsnips are one of the most useful vegetables; their food valuo is pretty high; and being very hardy, they will thrive in almost and/ soil and situation; but to get large succulent roots extra caro is necessary. Thoy require a long season to grow, and seeds should be sown some time soon. To get good results two methods can bo adopted. . (1) They can bo sown on ground which has been trenched to a depth of from 2ft to 3ft—but not manured with stable manure, for it has a tendency to en•uoxage the development of side roots, with tho consequent branching. If newly - tranched ground is not available, then that which was trenched for a previous crop will do. Fork over tho surface, breaking all lump 3, drayr drill abont lin deep and 18in apart, sow the seeds thinly, cover with fin-o soil and firm. To grow really good parsnips from 2ft to 3ft long tapering from tho top to tho tip of the root and free from sido roots, I find it better to hole, and this method I always adopt. The soil is forked and drills drawn as already described, then at intervals of 12in to 15;n holes arc made with a crowbar 2ft 6in to 3ft deep, 3in to 4in wide at the top and tapering to the bottom. I then fill theso holes with a nico light foil mixture, such as old potting soil, with a 6in potful of bonemeal and phosphates added to each barrow load; mako fairly firm, and with the fingers make a mark to indicate whero each hole is. Five or six seeds are sow at every mark, and later on tho seedlings ar thinned out to one in: each holo. and with reasonable luck tho root will fill the holo by autumn. In these days of scarcity and the high cost of living it is nccessarv to mako the garden do its share to assist in'feeding the family, nnd it should not be allowed to adopt any " go-slow" police or to go out. on strike. Every corner slrould be mado to produce something, and as beans are very nourishing they should receive considerable attention ..... .

There are four kinds of beans usually groivn—broad beans, French beans, butter beans, and runners. The cultivation of broad beans was described somo timo ago, and now wo como to those which are cultivated mainly for their ediblo pods, though it is only when tliey are allowed to ripen and the dried seeds are ©aten aa haricots that wo realise their full food valuo. In England considerable attention was given to tho cultivation of haricots, and a variety (Brown Dutch) seemed to bo tho most suiiablo; but so far I liavo not succeeded in getting seeds of it, and I don't see it mentioned in any seedsmen's catalogue; I grew white seeded runners one year as a catch crop among somo young currant and gooseberry plants; tile tips of the stems wero pinched to caueo them to spread, and they wero most successful in keeping down tho weeds, which was my main reason for planting them. TKcy ripened their 6eeds, and when dry these were collected and cleaned, and after keeping them for a year they wero cooked and found first-rate. X'hey could also havo been grown up strings or sticks, either in tho open or against a wall or fence, when tho crop would havo been much heavier. I should not like to eat the seeds of tho ordinary scarlet runner or Canadian Wonder, but tho seeds of the butter bean look all right. Tho scarlet runners, or, in fact, any runners, are tho hardiest, and aro more likely to succeed in an ordinary season than the dwarf French and butter beans, which were almost a failure last year. Tho soil for runners should bo manured and cultivated as recommended for sweet peas. Tho seeds are usually sown in a doublo row. 6in apart each way, and 2in deep, and they thrive best in a warm, sunny, well-drained position. ,The dwarf kinds aro sown in rows 2ft apart, tho drills being drawn 2in deep and tho seeds sown about 2in to 3in apart. If they como up well tho seedlings aro thinned out to 4in or 6in apart. ANSWER TO CORRESPONDENT. " Oivaka."—Native ferns can bo sent to England quito easily when packed in wardian cases or ordinary strong cases. Tho most suitable timo to send them is in autumn or during our winter, when they are at rest. Trco ferns are packed close together in moss, tho growing points or crowns being loft free. I Tcmembor seeing & fine consignment of tree ferns destroyed through tho moss, which was stuffed into tho crowns, causing tho young fronds to decay. When sending tho filmy ferns we lined tho case with moss, the crepe ferns wero packed on the bottom and fastened down, then tho others wero still attached to the fern stems or logs on which they wero growing were fastened round the side ■ with pieces of. wire. Tree ferns aro tho most appreciated in England, and Dick--1 sonia Antarctica is tho best one to send.