THE GARDEN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25563, 16 June 1944, Page 5

THE GARDEN

Contributed by D. TANNOCK, A.H.R.HJ.

LILY OF THE VALLEY Lily of the Valley (Convallaria majalls) is one of the most appreciated of cut flowers on account of its delightful perfume, and its neat white bell-shaped flowers on a stiff stalk. As with any other plant, it likes room to form new crowns, and many people are disappointed with their beds because they have allowed them to become overcrowded. Though getting a little late, a new bed can still be planted, and there is no use in simply tearing the old plants into pieces and planting them in groups. It is much better to separate them out to individual crowns. In its native state lily of the valley is a woodland plant, and the position of the bed should be a cool, moist spot, not too heavily shaded—an' opening in the shrubbery border is quite suitable. When , preparing the position it should be : trenched to a depth of two feet, and the , subsoil broken up to a depth of another 1 six inches. During the trenching, work in a good dressing of cow manure or wellrotted stable manure, leafmould, and wood ashes. After levelling the surface, mark it out into rows, nine inches apart, and with the spade or hoe take out drills i three inches deep. When the roots have been teased out, select good plump crowns I and plant these at three to four inches I apart, covering them with fine soil. It ! will not be necessary to mulch the newly- ! planted bed with manure, but during the summer it should be watered when the weather is dry, and when established it should receive a top-dressing of an inch jor two of well-rotted manure rubbed through a coarse sieve. This top-dressing :■ can be applied at any time now. After l three or four years the bed can be rejuvenated by measuring it into strips nine inches wide and removing each alternate strip, roots, soil, and all, and filling it in with good rich soil. The young growths will spread into this, and in another three or four years the strips left in the first case can be removed and again filled in with good, soil. By continuing this practice an excellent and prolific bed can be maintained without replanting for an indefinite period. Now that nearly all the leaves are down the flower garden can be cleaned up. The leaves can be added to the compost heap but, if there are a good many, they are better made into a heap, to form leaf mould, which is valuable when mixing potting soils, rooting cuttings, or sowing seed. All old flower stems of chrysanihemums, michaelmas daisies and other herbaceous perennials may be cut over, and the more vigorous ones lifted and divided up, and bits from the outside of the clump replanted. The chrysanthemums can be boxed up and placed in a cold frame or sheltered place, with a view to taking cut ings later on. Perennial phlox does not need to be divided up every year, but, unless cuttings have been rooted in the spring, the old clumps should be lifted every three years and young pieces replanted.. If cuttings have been rooted, the old plants may be thrown away, and the young ones put in their place. The border can then get a dressing of well-rotted manure or compost and be dug over, leaving the surface reasonably fine. Care has io be taken to mark the position of groups of bulbs, ana to fork among them. Wallflower, polyanthus primroses anemones and ranunculus may be planted in any open spaces, to provide colour in the spring. Lilies can also be planted now, and groups of five or more bulbs of reliable kinds such as Regale, Henryii, Willmotti, pardalinum, and speciosum which are very effective in the herbaceous border. When preparing the ground for them, dig to a depth of two feet and work in some well rotted manure in the bottom spit, making sure it does not come into contact with the roots or the bulbs. Place a handful of sand under each bulb, and some round them, and cover to a depth of at least six inches for the stem-rooting kinds. Ornamental trees and shrubs can be pruned now, excluding those which bear their flowers on the past season’s ripened . wood, such as lilacs, rhododendrons, azaleas, etc. Trees such as the prunus, pyrus (crab apples), almonds, and flowering peaches should only have any dead or decaying wood cut out, including branches which grow inwards and rub one another, and any growing away from the rest and spoiling the shape of the tree. In the case of young trees, it is often necessary to cut back some of the young shoots which grow away from the rest. Spur-flowering trees like Cydonia japonica and some of.the flowering applrs can be pruned back, but not so severely as the ordinary apples. Buddleir.s, dogwoods, and some of the foliage shrubs, such as holly, may be cut fairly hard back to preserve a reasonable shape, the buddleias being cut back to. two inches from the old wood. After pruning and raking out the leaves from under the bushes, the border can be pointed over lightly, but deep digging should not be practised, especially near the roots of the plants. If this work is carried out now, the borders will remain clean and tidy until the spring, when the weathered sell is easily cultivated with the scuffle hoe. The fruit trees and bushes may also be pruned, but in this case all fallen fruit and leaves should be burned, for I blights and pests are often carried through the winter on them. After the pruning and cleaning up any trees attacked by scale or woolly aphis should be sprs.ved with red oil, and if attacked by mildew and black spot with lime sulphur. Moss or lichens can be removed with cahstic soda. A dressing cf manure composed of basic superphosphate three parts, bone dust two parts, sulphate of potash two parts, can be dusted over the surface at the rate of 4oz to the square yard, r.nd lightly forked in. Do not dig close up to either trees or bushes with the spade, but leave the surface soil fairly rough and open. In the vegetable section any vacant ground may be trenched and manured and dug up rouchly, and the root crops, with the exception of parsnips and artichokes, can be lifted and stared, and all old cabbage and savoy stumps should be, dug out and put in the bottom of the trench or burned. Full advantage should be taken of the beneficial influences of frost during the winter, so that the soil is in good working order for planting and sowing in the spring.