THE GARDEN.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19844, 17 July 1926, Page 3

THE GARDEN.

iWORK FOR THE WEEK. notes et D. TANSOCK. F.E.H.B. THE GREENHOUSE AND NURSERY. This is a busy time in the greenhouse and fcursery. Potting of all kinds can be done, geraniums have to be potted or boxed up, seeds of half hardy annuals can be sown, and chrysanthemum cuttings put in. This is also a suitable season for pruning and cleaning vineries, changing the soil, and cleaning tomato houses, and getting soil ready for potting and pricking out annuals. THE FLOWER GARDEN. The present is not a good time for planting trees, shrubs, and roses; the soil is both wet and cold, and liable to puddle ■when tramped upon. Trenching can be carried out, new beds can be formed, paths repaired, and new ones formed, and pruning and cleaning up carried out in preparation for the spring. THE VEGETABLE AND FRUIT GARDEN. The pruning of fruit trees and bushes Should be completed as soon as possible, iand preparations made for winter spraying. All vacant ground intended for main crop vegetables should be trenched or dug, but it is not advisable to dig over borders on which early crops are to be sown or planted. The soil will remain drier if undisturbed, and be in a better condition when dug as required. Though it is not advisable to sow or plant in the open this month, preparations can be made b->- bringing on seedlings in cold frames, which will be hardy and well grown when put out in the beginning of August. LILIES There are a great may different kinds of lilies, hut when we use the term, wc usually mean the various species and varieties of the genus Lilium. This is not at all a large genus, being represented by from 70 to £0 species, mostly natives of Japan, China, and California. Of the epecies in cultivation, Japan provides about .15, North America 17. Europe eight, Himalayas four, and Burma four. With respect to soil, lilies can be divided into three classes—those which flourish in ordinary, ■well-dug and well-drained soil, provided it is not too clayey, those which need a fairly light and well-drained soil such as is obtained by deep digging and mixing in sand and leafmould, and those which like a moist, peaty soil, such as we usually associate with rhododendrons and azaleas. Though some will thrive in the ordinary mixed border, it is well worth while taking Fpecial precautions with them all, and taking measures to secure good drainage and a light, gritty soil, by taking out the original Boil to a lepth of 2ft. putting in 6in of rough material and then to fill in with a specially-prepared soil, to which has been Elided sand, leafmould, or road scrapings. Regarding the depth of planting we can divide lilies int> two groups; one which roots only from the base of the ; bulbs is usually planted about Sin below the surface of the soil, and another which roots up the stem a? well as from the base of the bulb, and these are usually planted at from Sin to 6in or more deep. In every case early planting is desirable, rntl it is also an advantage to provide some kind of protection for the young, tender shoots in the early spring. _ This is provided naturally when the lilied are planted omong rhododendrons, heaths, azaleas, and other peat-loving plants, and there is also the advantage of the lilies winch usually flower during the summer or autumn providing a display when the rhododendrons and other- related plants are over. They also benefit by the annual topdressings of leaves and other organic matter which these plants require, and the two families are usually very happy together. Lilies are usually imported from, Japan and other countries, but. most of them can be grown from seed or propagated by means of (tcale*- I should have mentioned that the ]jl'v bulbs differ from manv others in that fftp leaves are scaly, instead of tunicated or twisted over one another like the narcissus.

of light sandy soil as soon as it is ripe, and just covered with a thin layer of sand or a mixture of sand and leafmould. Great care has to be taken to see that the pant are never allowed to become dry, or sodden with wet, for either extremes are fatal. To keep them moist the pans can be sunk in a bed of sea sand, and to keep off heavy soaking rains they can bo covered with sheets of glass or they can be placed in a cold frame. Seeds of some sorts germinate quite quickly, but others lie in the ground for three years. It is not safe, therefore, to throw away a pen until the seeds are examined. If the seedlings appear too thickly they can be pricked out at once, but it is really better if they can spend the first year in the pans or boxes without beincr disturbed. At the end of the first year they can be pricked out into boxes at a distance of an inch apart, or they can be lined out in a specially prepared bed of light soil, which should have some means of protection from cold and excessive wet. A light framework which will carry_ a sash will be found suitable. _ Some kinds, such as Regale, will flower in the second or third year, while others may require several years to build up flowerin'* bulbs. The scales are planted in pans or boxes just like the seeds, and when these are turned out at the end of a vear it will bo found that there is a small bulb, rather larger than a seedling attached to most of them. In addition, many of the kinds increase naturally by the formation of offsets at the base of the old bulbs, and one kind forms bulibls in the axils of the leaves. Among the chief kinds cultivated in gardens is L. auratum, the Queen of all Lilies, the Golden-rayed Lily of Japan. It is found growing wild in porous, open soil, composed of volcanic detritus overlaid bv the deep carpet of . woodland soil, which the stem-rooting lilies love. The best specimens I have seen in Dunedin were growing in a narrow, well-drained border at the bottom of a wall, and it certainly likes to have its roots cool and shady, and its leaves and flowers in full sun. It is better to be lifted at least every two or three years, and, when growing, a topdressing of well-rotted manure or leafmould is appreciated. There are several varieties, all of which are worth a olace in the garden. . L. candidum (the Madonna lily) is one of the oldest lilies in cultivation, and is more generally grown than any other. It is a native of Southern Europe. Turkey, Palestine, Northern Syria, etc., and thrives best when rarely disturbed, old clumps being seen matted together in a solid mass, many of them half out of the ground, exposed to all the elements, and yet flowering every year. If this species has to be disturbed it should be planted early, not later than five or six weeks after flowering, for it usually forms a tuft of autumn leaves which persist through the winter. The bulbs are planted 9in apart, and 4in deep, and as it is very susceptible to a disease, which disfigures its leaves, and in some cases kills the plant altogether, it is advisable to immerse the bulbs in a bag of sulphur, so that it may be mixed in among the scales. It will thrive in the ordinary mixed border. L. croceum (the orange lily) is a very common plant, which will thrive under almost any reasonable conditions. It is a native of Corsica, and likes a good stiff loam, having no objections to cow manure. L. gigantenm is easily the king of lilies, a noble plant, with largo conical bulbs which develop handsome shining heartshaped leaves and flower stems from 6ft to 10ft high, terminated by a huge raceme of a dozen long nodding fragrant flowers, which are white and tinged with purple on the inside. This lily flourishes best in a sheltered, moist position, where there is an undergrowth of thin evergreen shrugs to protect the errowth in spring and keep the soil cool. The soil should he deep and well drained, and it has no objections to well-rotted manure or other organic matter. After the bulb flowers it dies, but a number of off-sets are formed round its base, and if these are lifted and replanted they soon build up to the flowering stage. L. longiflomm (the White Trumpet Lily) is among the most beautiful of garden lilies. The typical form is from Ift to 3ft high, the stem in summer being terminated by reflexed. tubular, waxy-white flowers which are sweetly scented. There are a number of varieties of this popular lily, and the variety Hnrrisil is largely grown In Bermuda and South Africa, the bulbs being sent to colder countries, where they are largely grown in greenhouses to supply out blooms in spring and early summer. It is best planted Bin to lOin deep. In welldrained light soil in full exposure to the sun. . ' ,L. specisum Is a favourite flower both for pot and border cultivation. Bulbs of this species may be planted from lOin to 12in deep in a well-drained border, and among ground-shading shrubs, and ns the growth of the stem and flowers depends on the richness of the top soil, it is hardly possible to mulch this lily too much. There are a considerable number of varieties of this lily, such as rubrum, roseum, and punctatum, but the best are Kractzeri, Melpomene. and rubrum magnificum. L. regale Is one of the newer lilies, and one of the best. It was found by Wilson in China, and is probably one of the most accommodating of all lilies. It has graceful thin stems on which are produced up to five large white flowers apparently out of proportion to the strength of the stemfl It Is easily raised from seed. Seedlings flower quite early, and the plants thrive in an ordinary mixed herder. It is a stemrooting kind, and consequently should be planted fairly deep. L. tigrinum is a well-known and muchappreciated lily which was introduced from China more than 100 years ago. Tins is probably the cheapest lily to buy. and the reason for this is not far to seek, for i - produces a crop of tiny bulbs on the axils of the leaves, and *whon these are removed and grown on in beds they develop into flowering bulbs in three years. This bulb is also largely cultivated in Japan as a vegetable, and there is. therefore, good stock suitable for export. Of late years the original species has given place to two varieties, splendens and Fortunoi, each finer in every way than the older plant and ea«ilv recognisable, the first by its dark, almost black, smooth stems, and the latter not only by the strength of its growth, but the hardiness of the stout, upstanding The species I have described are typical, though probably the commonest and most generally cultivated; but other desirable kinds are L. chalcedonicura, L. elegans, L. Honryi, L. Humboldti, I j. martagon, L. inonadelphum, L. pardallnum, L. testaceum, and L. Washingtonianum.