GARDENING NOTES.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17936, 15 May 1920, Page 2

GARDENING NOTES.

Bx D. Tan nock.

WORK FOR THE WEEK. THE GREENHOUSE AND NURSERY. Chrysanthemums aro coming' on rapidly, nnd will soon bo at their bost, and notes should bo made of tho most satisfactory and most desirable varieties, with a view to putting in cuttings later on. Continue to pot calceolarias and the la.ter lot of Chinese primulas in their flowering pots, and give th© cinerarias and primulas which aro well established in thoir Dots a little weak liquid manure onco a week. Vines will be ripening now, and the ventilators should be left open whenever the weather is at all favourable, to ensure a complete rest. THE FLO WEB GARDEN. The frost has now cut down all tho tender plants, and the oleanng of the beds and borders and th© planting out of spring flowering plants can bo completed while tho •weather is still favoura-blo and the sou in good working condition. In the following list the roses are placed more or less in their order of merit, and so that those who want 'only a dozen can +..*im the first 12, and those who want only six the first six- . ' , ... ~ Tho lbt includes several of the old welltried varieties, as well as some of the newer ones which hi/® been found satisfactory. Antoine Revoire.—This variety always does well, The foliage is clean and healthy, and the colour described a& rosy flesh on a yellow ground shaded with carmine. _ Carolina Testout is a good old variety, always satisfactory, no matter what kind of season we get. Its colour is satin rose with brighter centre, but it is better in tho autiunn than in the first crop. Lieutenant Chaure is a very vigorous variety, with upright branching habit- and long buds opening to blooms of great depth, the colour being velvety crimson red. Golden Emblem is a hybrid pernetaana, a improvement on Rayon d Or. tho colour being richer and deeper, with larger end more perfect blooms. At lte best it surpasses Marechal Neil in shape and formation. Its habit and growth is excellent, and with us there was no sign of mildew or black spot on its bright green, glossy foliflßMra Herbert Stevens -Tim ia a torching variety, its branches bemg thin and twiggy, but, though tho flowers ar 6 not large, they are of great depth and perfect form, and I still consider it the best white garden rose. . . Mrs Ambrose Riccardo.—This is a very strong-growing variety, with, clean, vigorous foliage and flowers of great siz© and substance. Its flowers are described as honeyyellow overlaid brighter yellow, and it is a good exhibition variety. ■ UY. Haworth is a good garden variety, with shell-shaped petals of good substanoe, the colour being dark aoarWt with enmson pile, perfectly formed, with delnaous fragis one of the thin varieties, being almost semi-double, _ but the buds are so long and the colouring so pleasmg that it fhould be in every collection. The colouring is carmine red, flushed orange scarlet, with aiaint Austrian copper briar shading. It is alio sweet scented. % Nellio Parker is pale creamy white, with deeper cream centre. Its growth """Sorcus and tRf flowers are large, full, and "mSS. I ra Sim b- ™ th. Daily Mail Cup, and also has received the National Rose Society's gold medal. Its gTowth is vigorous, of a spreading' broaching habit, with many long thorns, and the colour is coral . and shaded with yellow and bright rosy scarlet. , K of K. is a seam-double rose of absolutely pure colour. Its huge petals are velvet sheened, solid scarlet throughout, and the blooms are produced in great profusion throughout the season. . Chateau Do Clos Vogeot is velvety scarlet in colour, shaded with fiery red, changing to dark velvety crimson, and shaded and clouded with black. This is a good rose, its """" drawback being its sprawling habit. Lady Ashton is a rose of marvellous beauty, its colour being pale rose pink. Maoarthur—The flowers are of &e richest crimson, shaded scarlet and of good form. Sometimes the early blooms are a little off colour, but the latfe ones, which are produced in abundance, are perfect. It has clean, vigorous, healthy foliage. Mrs Bryce Allan is a solid matto carmine rose, and its foliage is clean and healthy. Edith Part is a rich red with a suffusion of deep salmon and coppery yellow, with deeper shading in the bud_ stage. It n vigorous and free blooming with fine habit, and is very sweetly perfumed. Red Cross is vigorous and branching in habit, and is of glorious scarlet with delightful tea rose perfume. Alexander Emslie.—lts growth is free and branching, the colour being velvety crimson with slightly white base. Blushing Bride—lts growth is free, branching, and compact, the colour being clear white, with faint blush over centre. Six good climbers aro Lemon Pillar, Miss Marion Manifold, Climbing Irish Fireflame, Climbing Caroline Testout, Cupid, and Climbing Richmond. Six good standards are Hugh Dickson, Lyon Rose, George Dickson, Lady Waterlow, Rod Letter Day, and Lady Roberts. Six ramblers—Eixcelsa, Dorothy Perkins, Dorothy Dennison, American Pillar, Alberie Barbieir, and Hiawatiia. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. The frost finished off s most of the blight which was doing so much damage to the green stuff and delaying its growth, and now winter oabbage, savoys, broccoli. Brussol's sprouts, and curly greens will nave a chance to make up for lost time_ before the soil becomes cooled with the winter rains. Parsnips and other root crops- can be lifted and stored in sand in a cool cellar or pitted near a path whore they can be got at easily. The asparagus will have ripened off by now, and the tops can be out over, the beds or rows weeded, the surface soil stirred up with the fork, and then mulched with well-decayed stable manure. Clear the paths and alleyways, and throw a light covering of soil over tho manure. All vacant ground should be dug or trenched, working in a good dressing of stable manure, corbpost eap, or partly 3ecayed vegetable matter of any kind. As soon as the leaves are off the poaches, nectarines, and apricots, they can be syrayed with the winter formula of Bordeaux—lolb copper sulphate, 101b lime, and 40 gallons of water. ANSWER?'. TO CORRESPONDENTS. " H.M.," Dunedm.—Tho grass grubs axe tmfartuaately very common again thjs reason, no doabt due k -goly to tho dry -weather too had during the autuimn, and the symptoms you dcecHbe ate quzto characteristic of. them. When tho. attack is a vary bod one, the bast method k to dig tbo grass in, leaving the soil rough and exposed to the weather dining- tho winter. A diwsr-j of -gaa lime spread on tiio surface aiter digging would be an advantage. You can then take a crop of potatoes off it. ITw cultivating and clcamng would do it good, and the grass seed can be sown in tlie autumn, as aoon e.i tho weather conditions aro favourable. When the attack is not severe and only a few patches aro eaten out, i& is .letter to simplyrak© oft tho grass, stir up tim soil a Ifttlo, topdrcas with some fine soil, and sow down again at onco. Thero is reaJy no satisfactory remedy. Apterito will kii them whan tie fumes can be kept m the Boil. • Rolling amd consolidating tho p*jjrfaco brings them up, when the get them, and a dressing of bone meal or basic slag, or lime if tiio soil is sour, will help tbo grass to recover. Tho grabs do not like tuc potatoes, ami tho growid rhoukl be nearly dear of iixsm by the timo tho grass seed is sown. " W.H.," OrarnwcJL—Slaked Kmo will not do your bulbs or roses any harm, bat it will not have much effect on gxuhs or other insect Kfe in tho soil. Dust it over the surface and week it in with a fork or goufflo hoc. Mildew on pansicß is cansod by -the dry weather, ajid now that tho putm Juwo ccow it will dmppcar, but it

is justj. as well to cut away the old stems which' liavo llowortxl to give tho young growth which springs from tho b,'wo oi tlio plants a chanoo. Spraying with sulpliklo of potassium or summer bordeaux will bo u remedy. Bath's Empress, IMtiokmare, and Langdou's strain, and suvornl others uro good, but you need not wcpoot to get many good enough for exhibition purposes from n packet of seed. iho boat way is to raise a number of seedlings and to solect a fow of the best wliioh oaii bo propagated by moans of cuttings. Lilitum ainratum can bo potted up as goon as it ripens off, but do not fill tho pot full of soil at first —it can bo added by way ot bop-dressings later on. Watering with liino water will bring tlie ivorms in your pot plants to the surfaco, wihcro they can ba captured. Neither bonis dimt _ nor gun.no is as suitable as light sandy soils or stable manure, but if you gave) your garden u hi>od dressing last year, either will do, but it must bo applied when tho plants aro growing. I regret Ido not know where you win get tho gladioli you mention. " Sturmer." —There are no signs of live blight on the twig of apple which you forwarded, but it shows very evident signs of having been attacked by scale. Spraying with lime, salt and sulphur, red oil omulsion, and woburn wash arc all effective remedies for scale. No doubt the spraying you did last year killed the blight, but it was too Into, and considerable damage had been done.