THE GARDEN.

Ohinemuri Gazette, Volume XXIX, Issue 3942, 10 July 1918, Page 3

THE GARDEN.

(By W. H. Taylor, Horticulturist, in the Journal of Agriculture.)

VEGETABLE CULTURE

With July the busy time in a vegetable garden begins that month hsin,g really the beginning of spring so far as concerns gardening operations. Cabbage, cauliflower, and lettuces — from seed sown at the end of March or the beginning of April—should now be planted tut. Older plants have a strong tendency to bolt t$ flower, and they should not be planted.

In respect to cabbages, the provisions made should depend on the purpose for which they are grown. Spring cabbages after the heads are cut sprout with great freedom. If the sprouts are thinned so as to leave three, these will develop into, wellhearted heads weighing from 21b- to 41b each. A bed so treated will produce heads till near midsummer. In a private garden this sprouting habit saves a planting. The sprouts are always milder in flavour than the first head, a fact that should not be lost sight of. The sprouts, however, are not suitable for market purposes, so the market gardener must plant an additional bed of a later, therefore larger, kind ,to succeed the spring variety, either at the same time or quickly following the first planting, and he will draw the stumps as soon as the heads are cut.

Cauliflowers of two kinds should be set out at once. An early type, such as Snowball, will come into cut before October is passed and carry on till the ned of the year., A large kind, like Early Erfurt, Metropole, or Autumn Giant, put out at the same time, will begin to seed about the end of the year when the earlies are about over. Lettuces should be planted in maximum quantity in proportion to needs? This planting produces what are probably the best heads of the year and at a time when they are most appreciated.

Onions of giant kinds should ba planted. Small kinds may be also put in, and in some circumstances it is good policy to do so. The giant kinds should be planted as a matter of course, as they cannot be grown to full size from spring sowing. It is not wise to leave them to grow where sown; transplanting is necessary to prevent'them going to seed.

Peas are sown as the beginning of the season's routine, and hereafter are to be sown at intervals of two weeks. The first sowing should consist of two types, a dwarf for first use and a taller kind to succeed it. The tall kind is longer coming in than the dwarf, which is the reason for sowing together. Drills for peas should be drawn about 4in deep. A little soot sprinkled over the seed before covering with soil will materially improve growth, and protect the seed from slugs, wireworms, and mice. Birds are in some places very destructive to peas, eating them off as soon as they show above ground. In the "Gardeners' Chronicle" of a recent date appears the statement that a line of scarlet worsted stretched along the rows will save them. The colour (scarlet) is said to be important. I know that if the rows are provided with sticks, however short they may be, birds will not touch the peas. Spraying with quassia-water will also save them. A little lime added serves as an indication when another application is required. Broad beans should be sown, unless this has Been recently clone, in which case it is not necessary. The next sowingshould be made in October.

If the soil is in a fit state, onions for the main crop and carrots for early supply should be sown. The seeds of both these are rather slow to germinate, they usually show through in three weeks —a longer or shorter time according to circumstances. It is on this account important not to sow unless the soil is in good working state and drainage good. Unless these conditions are present early sowingwould be likely to result in failure, and it would be best to wait for warmer weather, but early sowing is decidedly preferable where conditions lire suitable.

j The soil in which onions are to be sown or planted should be rich. Stable manure suits them well, and if there is plenty of this artificial fertiliser can be dispensed with, except nitrate of scda, the use of which, as well as that of other fertilisers, will be described in the July Journal. The sur»face of the soil should be brought to a fine tilth and made firm by rolling or treading. A liberal dressing of wood ashes is beneficial, provided they have been kept dry, as they help to keep the soil open and supply potash. If there is no manure available, or it is insufficient, give a mixture of superphosphate and bonedust, 2oz of each per square yard, or in place of super give basic slag, 4oz instead of 2oz.

crack, particularly if there is much rain to render the manure soluble and so available to the roots in excess of their requirements. Wet weather alone wilfnot cause cracking.

Shallots and garlic should be planted at once. Plant in rows 12in apart, the bulbs 9in or lOin apart in the rows. No drill is required ; merely press the bulbs into the surface until the bulb is nearly, not quite, buried. Garlic is seldom used in this country except for making sauces, so requirements are small, but shallots should be much move extensively grown than they are. In many ways they can be used in place of onions, and the smallness of the .bulbs prevents waste. As a pickle they are altogether superior to onions. Their culture is quite simple, they give little trouble and practically never fail.

Parsnips may be sown where they are required for use during the summer months, or in very dry places where it is difficult to secure germination later. In an ordinary way they are not required in private gardens till late' autumn, and should not Be sown now. Sow a turnip-rooted variety of red beet for early use. Also sow parsley, and plant herbs of other kinds, such as thyme, mint, sage, marjoram, and savoury.

Lettuce and cabbage seed should be sown. Cauliflower may also be sown, but it will not be necessary in a private garden where planting as advised has been done.

Seakale is not suitable for cultivation in a small private garden, but should be extensively grown where a gardener is employed and where stable manure is available. The heads can be forced for use at any time during winter, from the time when the leaves die in late autumn until they start again in .spring. Of course, a clump can be forced only once each season; therefore to keep up a supply a number of clumps are required. The clumps are ehch covered with a kereosene.case from which the top and bottom have been removed. The top boards are to be placed loosely as a cover before putting on the manure. The manure should contain a fair quantity of straw, and be well shaken out and turned several times so as to secure even fermentation. The boxes are to be covered with manure about 18in deep all round and over the top of the box. . The heads should be ready in about fourteen days after covering. When cutting the heads take them with about half an inch of the solid crown, so that a head may remain whole, not in separate stalks. Before placing the box strew S' me quicklime and soot round the stool to drive away wireworms and woodlice and kill slugs.

Rhubarb of the summer variety should be planted. Rich soil is essential'; it is quite useless to plant rhubarb in poor soil or in very dry situations unless the soil is well sunplied with humus. Plant divisions with one or two good crowns, in rows 3ft apart from centre to centre of the crowns and 30in from centre to centre in the rows. No produce should be taken from a bed during the first season.

In most parts of the Dominion there is now no need to force rhubarb, the evergreen or winter varieties introduced in repair years being available for use during winter. But I understand these varieties do not flourish so well in the colder districts. In any case forced rhubarb is a distinct article, and well worth while for those who are able to supply the labour and have the manure for forcing. — For" forcing" the summer varieties are necessary, and, like seakale, the plant should be forced in batches.'' In all respects the operation is the same as for seakale, md the state of the weather does not affect forcing-. In England I have had a hand in forcing when snow had to be cleared from the bed before placing the manure. In older countries nowadays forcing is generally done in heated glasshouses, the crowns being lifted early in winter and stored in cellars, where they remain in a dormant state, and are taken in batches to the house for forcing. The stalks of forced rhubarb are extremely tender and delicate in appearance, and are brightly coloured in various shades of crimson, so that forced rhubarb constitutes a delicate and attractive dish however it may be served. In good gardens at Home rhubarb is not used during the summer months, its only use being for forcing.