THE GARDEN

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27039, 25 March 1949, Page 9

THE GARDEN

Contributed by , g D. TANNOCK. A.H.R.H.&. g

WORK FOR THE AUTUMN Now that rain has fallen to moisten the soil to a reasonable depth, the work of the autumn can proceed. The px-esent time is very suitable for breaking in a new garden and preparing positions for planting all kinds of fruit trees, busnes, ornamental trees and shrubs. It is also suitable for overhauling old rock gardens and for building new ones and rock walls. The soil is dry and in good working order, and is much easier to handle then when wet and sticky. When laying out a new garden, unless it is very extensive," it is better to trench, or at least bastard trench, the whole area, lawn and all, but in any case the part set aside for the vegetables, fruit and flowers should, if possible, be trenched. This means hard work now, but it makes all the difference to carrying out the various operations afterwards. Trenching to a depth of two and a-half feet is quite sufficient when the bottom of the trench is broken up with a fork or pick, but unless the subsoil Is very good and contains sufficient organic matter, it should not be brought to the surface, though a little clay can be brought to near the top. False trenching consists of chipping off tile grass, throwing over the top spit, and the crumbly part, and then digging over the second spit, but leaving it in the bottom. It is an advantage to work in some garden rubbish to the bottom of the spit, where it will decay and probably by the next time trenching is carried out the second spit may be fit to be brought to the surface. Drainage is important in all soils except sand and gravel, and the deeper the cultivation the better the drainage and the deeper the root run of the plants. It is, therefore, also an advantage in dry weather, for a cultivated soil holds water better titan an uncultivated one. I find it an advantage to trench a portion of the garden every year about a fifth or a sixth, and into this I bury all the garden rubbish as it becomes available. In a well-trenched ground, which has been mulched, or where the surface has been kept hoed, there should be no need to water anything except celery and newlysown or planted crops. It does the lawn good to have a rest, and it will soon recover. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN A certain amount of sowing and planting for next spring can be carried out, such as prickly-seeded spinach, all-the-year-round cabbage lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower and onions, mustard and cress, and radish. The planting of spinach beet and silver beet can still be carried out. The blanching of celery can be commenced first removing all dead leaves and weeds and the shoots near the base of the plant. Give a dusting of lime and blood manure and tie up the heads with raffia. Surround the stalks with stiff cardboard that obtained from apple cases being quite suitable, then fill in a few Inches of soil at the base. Leeks may have .an additional length of stem blanched by moulding them up similar to celery. Keep the soil cultivated amongst all growing crops, and remove the dead leaves from the brussels snrouts and savoys. Clear away all spent crops such as peas and beans having first collected any seed pods which will provide seed for sowing next season. In addition to ail vacant ground not required for immediate sowing or planting, that which was trenched or double dug can be levelled roughly, dusted with lime, and sown with either blue lupin, mustard, or oats. THE FLOWER GARDEN

Though the autumn conditions are now appearing in the flower garden, efforts should be made as far as possible to maintain a display until after Easter at any rate. The old flowers on the roses, dahlias and sweet peas, etc., should be picked off regularly. Perennials which are past their best can be cut over, and annuals cleared out altogether. The planting of all kinds of springflowering bulbs, corms and tubers should be completed as soon as possible, and the hoe should be kept busy to destroy any seedling weeds which appear as the result of the recent heavy rains Carnation layers put down some time apo should now be well rooted, and these can be lifted and potted up or boxed up for the winter, or planted out in their permanent positions.

should now be showing their flower buds, and these should be disbudded or thinned out to one on the end of each shoot for the largerflowering varieties, and three to five for a spray in the smaller-flowering kinds To secure more even development of the sprays, the top bud. which is usually ahead of the others, is pinched out. Hardy annuals such as candytuft and calendulas, godetias, clarkias, etc., which will be useful for providing a display in the early spring after the springflowering bulbs are over, or for filling up the caps amongst the spring-flowering bulbs, tubers, etc., can now be sown. First, fork up the ground, lightly mixing in a dusting of blood and bone, fowl manure and superphosphate, and making the ground smooth and fine. Sow the seed thinly, cover liehtly with fine soil, and make firm with the head of the rake. To keen off birds and eats, -nd nrovide a certain amount of shade until the germination takes nlace, put some twiggy branches on the top. These should be removed as soon as germination takes place. This is also a suitable time for sowing down new lawns. The soil is warm and germination takes place quickly, before the birds get the seeds. It is still a suitable time, also, for putting in cuttings of both zone] and ivyleafed pelargoniums, panstomons. violas and pansies, fusehias and tree carnations. THE FRUIT GARDEN Cut over tire old raspberry canes which have fruited and spray the young ones with arsenate of lead for the bud borer. Loganberries are still fruiting, but the young shoots can be thinned out, and as soon as the fruiting ceases the old canes can be cut out, the young ones tied up to their support, and sprayed with arsenate of lead. The young growths on peaches and nectarines can be thinned out, and as many as possible of the old shoots which have fruited can be cut out. Young lateral growth on apples and pears can be cut back to four or five leaves, but the leading shoots can be left at their full length in the meantime Now that the soil is in good working order the positions intended for new plantations of strawberries, bush and tree fruits can be prepared by trenching or double digging and manuring. Apples and pears can be collected as they ripen and stored away in a clean, dry, airy shed. The test for the ripeness of apples and pears is to lift them up with the hand and if they separate easily, this is an indication that they are ready to gather If not, they can be left a little longer.