THE GARDEN.

Otago Witness, Issue 1855, 10 June 1887, Page 8

THE GARDEN.

OPERATIONS FOR THE MONTH. [June corresponds to December at Home. — Average mean temperature, 41*8.] SEEDS TO BE SOWN. Peas Broad Beans Radish BOOTS, ETC., TO BK PLANTED. Cabbage Cauliflower ,- Seakale Bhubarb ' Hardy Herbs, &c. FLOWER GARBEN. Crocus Narcissus Hyacinth Jonquil Tulip &c. BUSHES AND TBEES. Rhododendron Lauristinus Laurel Pyrus Japonica Cypress Cedar Pines, &c, and all fruit trees and bushes and native shrubs and trees. CALENDAE FOR THE WEEK Flower Garden and Shrubberies.— The most perfect neatness should now prevail throughout this department, "to compensate, in some measure, for the absence of more brilliant attractions. Remove all fallen leaves, and slightly fork over or rake the borders. Let the walks be put in perfect order ; gravel sparingly wherever necessary. Should rain* water accumulate, the defect must be at once remedied by introducing a new drain, or by filling up the low patches with gravel ; nothing impairs so much the usefulness and beauty of a garden at this season as damp, dirty walks. If the turf is wet in any part of the pleasure ground; there could be no better time at which to cut drains and make the requisite improvements. The drains should be made at the greatest \ possible distance from trees, so as to prevent choking; and where the proximity of the trees is unavoidable, fill the drains with broken rubble to within 12in or 15in of the surface, thereby securing a passage for the water, even if the roots of the trees enter the drains. In filling the latter with soil, let it be well consolidated to prevent any sinking afterwards. Every exertion should now be made to promote the work of the coming year; the making of composts of every kind should be particularly attended to, as in them lie the great secret 'of successful gardening. Watering, shading, tying—

in fact, care of every description— are all comparatively worthless if the soil of the plants is not made to suit their requirements. It is therefore most desirable that turf sods, willow dust for auriculas, cow manure for ranunculuses, or stable manure for carnations and picotees should all be provided ; have them of best description, and, if possible, keep under cover. Examine dahlia roots, and see that they are free from incipient mouldiness'; they may now be stored away in a moderately dry place. Avoid damp for auriculas and polyanthus ; abundance of fresh air is now highly desirable for both. After frosts it will be absolutely necessary to go over all the beds where pinks, pansies, or carnations have been recently planted. If they have not had sufficient time to establish themselves all probability they will have been made loose by the action of the frost, and if neglected until severe weather again overtakes them, they will be seriously injured. We advise placing a small quantity of any description of soil around each plant previous to refastening. Seedling auriculas ' and polyanthuses must have similar attention; strong seedlings of the former, two years old, will often flower at this period of the year. If they have no pretensions to beauty on the expansion of the first pip, or if they do not display some feature of excellence, have them pulled up ; but should there be any symptom of improvement (as appearances often deceive at this time of the year), remove the buds, so as to give the plant a chance of strengthening itself, and of producing a better truss for the ensuing season.

Kitchen [Garden.— Before the general trenching and manuring of vacant ground are begun it is advisable to determine the rotation of crops which it is proposed to pursue in the ensuing summer, in order that those operations may be carried out accordingly. One of the first principles to be acted on is that two annual crops should not be successively grown in the same ground. . Another commendable variation is that crops liable to be attacked by the same kinds of insects should not succeed each other for a lengthened period, as they would be thereby enormously multiplied, having the class of food which they relish most to maintain them. It is important that the manuring as well as the depth of the trenching should be regulated by the requirements of the crops. It is further desirable that the rotation should be so arranged that the ground need not be trenched to the same depth in two consecutive seasons, so that different parts of soil may be brought to the surface at each trenching. The perennial or permanent crops will of course form a class by themselves, as they do not require a change of situation for several years ; but when a change is deemed judicious, the ground from which the crops are removed will fall into the ordinary rotation, in the way of a regular exchange.

Fruit Garden.— The probability of the codlih moth having obtained a foothold in New Zealand renders any method of dealing with the pest of interest to orchardists. A natural mechanical foe was scarcely thought of, but if we are to believe the New Zealand Herald, one that may be fairly included in this category has already been acclimatised. Our contemporary says : — "Mr H. O. Field, of Wanganui, has forwarded to Mr T. F. Cheeseman, of the Auckland Museum, some flowers of a plant called Physianthus, which has lately been recommended for planting in apple orchards to check the increase of the codlin moth. The plant is a twiner, and blooms through the whole of the summer and autumn. The flowers are whitish, rather handsome, and very sweet-scented producing abundance of honey, and are thus very attractive to moths of all kinds. In order to reach the honey the proboscis of the moth has to be passed through a narrow cleft, which is so shaped that, although the proboscis can be inserted readily enough, it is by no means an easy matter for the moth to withdraw it. As a matter of fact, great numbers of moths are unable to remove the proboscis, and are held prisoners at the entrance of the flower until they die. It has thus been suggested that, if plants of the Physianthus were trained up the trunks of the apple trees, numbers of the codlin moth would be captured and killed. The plant is a native of South America, but was introduced into Wanganui, by way of the Cape of Good Hope, by Major Lockett. It has done well there, and it is stated that during the whole of the past summer the flowers were loaded with dead moths. The flowers sent by Mr Field to Mr Cheeseman all contain dead moths, and may be inspected at the Museum on application to Mr Cheeseman."