THE GARDEN. HORTICULTURAL NOTES. HORTICULTURAL SHOW.

Otago Witness, Issue 2379, 5 October 1899, Page 8

THE GARDEN.

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

HORTICULTURAL SHOW.

' OPERATIONS FOR THE WEEK.

KITCHEN GARDEN.— The prevalence of flry winds •is Si great drawback to vegetation, | and they are' Very 'trying to recently-planted j broccoli, cabbage,- and cauliflower. The latter | are very susceptible to these drawbacks, and the early batch should be pricked out in rich soil in a sheltered place to make sturdy plants, j which will lift with a ball of earth and 'trans- j plant safely. Sow late celery outside, also curled greens, Brussels sprouts, and savoys. I Beds for vegetable marrows and hardy cucum- • T)ers may be formed by taking out a trench j 3ft wide and ' lft deep. Any exhausted fermenting material may be used by mixing it with an equal proportion of fresh stable manure. After it has settled,down, the "bed may earthed up from the sides, 'the seeds being "sown on the top in a spadeful of light compost, covering with a hand-glass. Early potatoes, when 3in high, should have the soil jdrawn up to them, as in the event of frost the will protect the tops to some extent. Pieces of , evergreen stuck on the south side of the plants, so as to hang over the tops, '_^are a good protection., and a crop may often be saved by this simple, means. j FLOWER GARDEN.— The work of planting "Shrubs and evergreens is, or should be, over for the season, and time c&n be given to sowing tnnuals in the qperfborilsr'j. Virginian stocks, "godetias, clarkias, nemophilas, sr>veet sultan, scabious, Bartenia auven,- larkspurs, rhotlanthes, silenes, candytufts, stocks, wallflowers, mignonette, and sweet peas can all be sown with safety.' Whilst a sweet pea can be co-vored-with soil to the <?epth of Jiu, a seed like anignonette should be sown' on the surface, and holding the rake perpendicularly, the small lumps of soil should be broken over it. If the soil is now pressed firm with the foot the eeed will germinate in a week. It is not ' safe to sow portulaca ye;, except in sheltered places, but it can be sov.-^i in a box and transplanted when large enough- Tropceoiums arc also tender, .and planting fe'iould be deferred for r week or 10 day.°. Bienrwals which were sown last autumn should be ys'r.Lted where they are to bloom, making the xoo:? firm in the ground, and taking care that there are no hollows in the soil beneath them, which will cause a failure. More plants are annually lost from this cause than most people would imagine. Ovnphalodes verna is an annual worth growing, as it furnishes lovely sprays of flowers like white forget-me-nots for indoor decoration. A few of the best of the ornamental glasses may be sown, but the majority are not worth growing; the brozas are good, also the cloud grasses. GREENHOUSE.— As the "plants go out of (lower they should be removed to make room • for others coming forward to bloom. • Chinese primulas will continue to throw up trusses, but if the plauts are wanted for propagation by means of the suckers the tiusses must be , pinched out. The deficiency in the floial dipplay" in -the house \\ ill poon be made good by auriculas and calceolarias ; spine of the early pelargoniums and fuchsias will -r4££— bc_ a v"sti~ able. Lilies G£-ih£_ya]ley"Tir"p6is which have -— Jiad__!Jje benefit of a cold frame will also be showing bloom, and may be brought into the house. Lachenalias and cyclamens will do duty for some time if assisted with clear liquid manure. *

FUCHSIAS,

Since the introduction of "tuberous begonias to popular favour, fuchsias have been neglected. This is to be regretted, and it is to be hoped that eve long they •will come into favour again, and grace the tables at our horticultural exhibitions. Few plants keep up a longer succession of bloom; and small plants in a 4in*pot, up to specimens in a lOin or 12in pot are equally beautiful. GroAvn in the pyramidal iorm, they are beautiful objects in the greenhouse, hall, and vase, and are an ornament in any place. The soil best suited for their culture is a mixture . of good loam, well decomposed manure, and sharp, gritty sand. If young plants were -' obtained pow, I Mould recommend them to be potted in 4in pots at first, placing I plenty of drainage in the bottom of the . ■p'oiy. Witii good drainage,' there ,is' no danger of over-watering.' "Keep the soil moist all through, but never allow it to becomeof the consistency of mud, as heavy soils often will where a great deal of watei is used and drainage is defective. Fuchsias will not thrive in such a soil. So soon as 4-he young mots have reached the side of the put, and ioimed a. net-work iibout the ball of soil, shift into pots a size or

j two- larger than those in which they have j bean growing. As they make rapid growth I when well attended to, it may be necesI saiy to give a shift once a month during the early part of summer. I would not tliift later than January. And after this time, when the pots are well filled .with roots, make up for lack of fresh soil by the free use of liquid manure. As to water, if the drainage is good and the plant making free growth, you can hardly give too much. j If neglected, and the soil allowed to become too dry, it will receive a 'check from whichI it will, not recover during the whole season. Liberal applications oi water through a syringe will prevent red spider from getting : a foothold on the plants, and jio other in- ' sect does as much harm to the fuchsia as j the red spider. The pyramidal form is one ; in which the beauty oi the flowers are seen to the greatest advantage. To keep the plants in good form, the leading growth must be kept "well above the laterals, and the lateral shoots must be pinched in order to keep a proper balance, and to form a dense and shapely pyramid. By iollow1 ing the instructions given above, line specii hiens may be grown, loaded down with flowers for three or four months. ORCHARDS. The orchards in this district are looking I well, presenting a picture of rural loveliness j upon which the lover of the beautiful iji | Nature gazes appreciativel}*. Apricots, ; cherries, and peirs, ' have bsen sheets of blossom, and the apples will soon follow. j All round the trees are extra floriferous, and with favourable weather a heavy crop may be expected. Being latei than usual coming into bloom, they stand a better chance of escaping spring frosts, which* are s& often injurious to the setting of the fruit. I hope that a bountiful crop will reward the owners for their labour. PLANTS IN FLOWER. Many of our hardy shrubs are now in flower, and one of the best" is Exochordia grandiflora — a hardy flowering shrub from Northern China. It is a vigorous growing shrub, forming a neat, compact bush 10ft to 12ft high when fully grown.. The flowers are borne in slender racemes on light wiry branches that bend beneath their- - -loud of bloom. The flowers are pure wiii^a. _with a small dot of green in the centre 6i-e;iclv, while the unj expanded buds are like beads of pearly I whiteness. This will become a very popu- ! lar shrub when its merits become known. I Another little known hardy decid'iuu; shrub which attracts a deal of attention just now is Magnolia conspicun. This also is a native of China, Avhere it reaches a height of 30ft ; but plants less than 2ft will bear several large blooms over sin across. The flowers are white inside, the outside being shaded with purple ; and they are so freely produced at this season before tho leaves as almost to entirely hide the stems. A beautiful specimen of this magnolia was a few years ago to be seen in the grounds of Mr J. Mills, High street. Dunedin. where it grew and flowered to perfection. I don't know if it is there yet. NARCISSI. These are not flowering quite as well as last season, but still they form tx very interesting feature in tiie garden. In my estimation all the varieties are beautiful, and worth cultivating.; but to the ordinary observer many of them are so nearly 'ulike that when a purchase is made disappointment often follows when the flowers appear, and the owner thinks he has been cheated owing to the flowers bsing so much alike, the only difference he or she can discover the only difference he or she can discern being in the names only. For the benefit ~6l "those- -unacquainted with this class of bulbs, I will "giwi- the mnnrcS— &f~2_lsw_ dist.i»et, good, and cheap varieties which may be purchased from any nursery or seed firm : —Emperor, lioisneldii, Albicans, maximus. princeps, conspicuus JBarr's),- cynosure, .Sir Wutkin, stellu, Poeticus crnatus, Sulphur phoenix, Orange phoenix, and Aurantius plenus. The two first-named and Sir Watkin are the largest floAvered and showiest of the lot, and 1 can recommend with confidence the 12 named to the beginner in narcissus culture. JAMES GEBBIE. Public Gardens. Oamaru.

The Dunedin Horticultural Society's Spring Show, which was opened at the Agricultural Bali on the 2/th was generally regarded to be tho best ever held in this city at this season of the year. Entries were more than twice as numerous as they were at the last Summer Show", and the quality of the exhibits wa=, on the whole, quite up to the standard of former years.

The Mayor (Mr W. Swan), in opening the show, said: — Ladies and -Gentlemen, — It is with very great pleasure that I have, at the request of the cbmiiittee of the Horticultural Society, consented to declare this show of spring flowers open. This is the season of the year when we put away from u& all the gloomy llioughib that may have crept upon us during Ihejsomewhat dark and perhaps dreary months of winter, and, taking fresh hope from the bursting forth of the buds on the trees and the flowers all around' us, we look forward with renewed courage to a better time in the future. In a few words this is year by year tli2 influence of the spring, and standing here in the midst of Uu= collection of spring flowers 1 can a«aiu-e you that it is with the greatest pleasure that I invite you to take the message fiom tue fioivcia whilo adiniiing tkeir bedu-

ties. There is much here to admire, but what is most to be admired is the patience and enterprise which has resulted in producing such fine blooms and making so good a show, and I trust that the spirit shown in growing these flcwers will have a fitting reward, and that* producers and audience alike will feel thoroughly satisfied with the first show of the season. I have, therefore, now to declare this show duly open for the admiration of us all, the success of the exhibitor?, and the' profit of the society and all concerned. — (Applause.) Mr J. White (president Of the society), said the show had proved so much belter than the committee anticipated that they had decided to keep it open the ne^t day as well as that j day. He wished to thank Mr Davis, of Christchurch, for coming down here with a magnificent collection of narcissi, and he also desired to thank Mr Wilson (the vice-president) for the display of narcissi made by him. It V'as a compaiativsly few years since the society held their first >3prixig Show in the City Hall. They would remember what a wretched affair it was : and when they looked around tliem that day they would see what the society had done, and was doing, to improve horticulture in Dunedin. He thought the society deserved to be strongly supported by the citizens ; and he had to thank the Mayor for coming there to declare the show open.

The great feature^f the show is undoubtedly the remarkably' fine display of narcissi, which probably could not be surpassed in any part of the colony. Never beforo in Dunedin has such a great variety of blooms been exhibited; and although the weather has not been very favourable for tho growth of flowers during the last few 7 days,' most of those on jview are in capital condition. Mr J. G-. Davis, of Christchurch, takes first prize for the best collection of narcissi, with a splendid collection containing 144- varieties. He also carries off the bronze medal of the Royal Horticultural Society for the beat eighteen narcissi.- Among the finest of his blooms are Sir Watkin, Emperor, Golden Star, Barri Conspicuous, C J. Backhouse, Duchess of Westminster, Johnstonii, Prince of Wales, and Beauty. All the blooms are in a remarkably fresh and good condition, notwithstanding they have come such^a long way. Messrs Howclen and Moncrieff get first prize for twelve narcissi in tho open class with an exceedingly nice collection. Tho most noticeable of which are/ Beauty, Barri Conspicuous, and Emperor. The first prize foi >v thc best six^uarcissi falls to Mr A. Marshall, who shows some fine blooms, the best of tie lot being Emperor and Duke of Buccleugli. The best twelve in the amateur class have been adjudged to be those shdwn by Mr E. A. Hainel, who exhibited in his collection, which is a- nice one, good blooms of Sir Watkjn, Cynosure, Empress, and Emperor. Mr Hamel lias also been placed first for three narcissi in the amateur class ; while Mr .1. R. Glover is first with six, showing among a creditable lot Emperor, Barri Conspicuous, and Sir "Watkin. One ~of the conspicuous features of the display of narcissi is the fine collection sent in for exhibition only by Mr A. Wilson, who kindly sent down the flowers to the hall, being unable to come himself ; Mr A. Moritzson kindly undertook the task of staging the collection, the result of his task contributing in no anall measure to the effectiveness of the display. This exhibit was specially commended^ -by # the judges, and it is a beautiful collection, some pi the finest of the blooms being Sir Watkin, Maximus, M. J. Berkeley, Horsfieldi, Emperor, Wm. Goldrijig, Barri and Conspicuous. Bunches of the Forsythia su3pensa also adorn Mr Wilson's table. The hyacinths on view, although fairly good, show the effects of the weather. Nice collections of cut flowers are exhibited in the open class by William Hitchcock, and in the amateur class by Mrs Kemplen. Mr J. 11. Glover has some beautiful Marechal Niel roses tabled, a_ncl Mr l?'ouii£- on ' s are not much inferior. Mr A. Marshall has oil-^'icw a nice collection of cut blooms of bulbous and- ivherous plants, among the collection being a beautiful specimen, of Imeperialis lutea. The competition for ladies' sprays and gentlemen's buttonholes was very keen, fie firaj, prize going to Mrs W. C. Brown. The competitors were provided with flowers and the other neccs>avy materials, and had to ma"ke up their exhibits in the hall-

.goming now to the pot plants, Mr Lewis Wraigj'i, exhibits :>. couple of remarkably well-grown azaleas in the amateur class. Mr C.,8. Rainion's collection of four cinerarias are a oanilal lot, while ?\lr R. G. Stewart's freesias in the open*clas-> are beautiful specimens. The Asplenium falcatum bhown by the bst-mentionect exhibitor as a native plant is one of the finest plants of its kind Qver Feen here. Mr Stewart also shows among the foliage 'plants a magnificent collection of ferns, the best of which are Polypodium peniiigerum, Asplenium nidus, a'ul Todea hymenophylloides. A very beautiful hanging, basket of laehenalia is likewise exhibited by Mr Stewart. The open competition for a collection of plants has re^ulted-in four tables of plants being sent i-su These add Rrcavly to the attractiveness of the siTc^v. The first prize falls to Mr R. ftlendinins?. and~tka. .second to Me=srs How den and Monoricff, .both their tables containing nice collections of plants. Tho other two table; aro, however, too crowded.. Mrs bm also a very'atlraeiive table for exhibition only. It contains some beautiful floral designs and pot plants, including a splendid large white azalea. In addition to the exhibits in tho main hall, tiiero are a considerable number in the mac'.iinery hall. Among these are the ladies' table decorations, which, however, are much below tho standard of such exhibits. Me^sivs Howden and MoncriefF have on view in the .same haU a very tastefully decorated table containing shower bouquets, sprays, buttonhole':, and pot plants. An exhibit which attracted a good deal of attention was the display of flowei-s jmcl pot plants made by the children of the Higii btveet School. Some time ago a flower dub was formed at tho school, with the object of inducing the children to take an interest in the cultivation of flowers, and it is intended to have annual shows by them in the school hall. Miss Anderson ib the promoter of the affair, and it was mainly owing to her exertions that the children were, able to make suc'i a creditable display as they did at tho show. Most of tho flowers shown r>t their table appeared to be well grown, and in view of the success attending their first exhibition at the show the committee might very well take into confederation Hie question of offering special inducements to c'lildren to compete at future s=!)ows % The show was largely attended on Wednesday, especially in the evening, when the Garrison Band performed a number of (-elections*. There is in connection with the show, it should be stated, a refreshment l-oom, where \ i,-itoro may reckon on getting a good cup of tea. The exhibits were on Wednesday judged by the following ladies and gentlemen : PoJ. plants, Messrs G. J. Davis and J. Blair ; cut flowers, Messrs H. Clarke and H. Hart ; bouquets, Mrs J. White and Mrs B. C. Haggitt.

The Flower Show was thrown open again to the public on Thursday, and the number of \iiiloi-s was fairly large. The fine exhibition of

flowers was quite sufficient to justify the extermination to make it a two-days' show, but unfortunately the decision was come to some- • what late, and consequently hardly sufficient j publicity was given in the matter. In the j evening the Garrison Band was in attendance, and -played several selections most acceptably. It may be mentioned that a good many of the plants on the platform wore kindly lent by Mr R. Glendining for the occasion, and that Mr A. Wilson's exhibit of