HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2921, 9 March 1910, Page 10

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

By J. Gebbie. We are not left in any doubt a 3 to Ihe reign of summer being at an end. One has only to look around and behold the landscape to become assured that autumn is here ; and that in a. ehort time our tender exotics will be nipped by frost. What a contrast the scene- before us is to that" of spring, when everything is fresh with young life in leaf and bud and blossom. Now the trees are laden with fruit, and the foliage of many is turning to tints of gold and brown. Various species of Crataegus (to •which the common hawthorn belongs) are laden with large clusters of brightly-coloured berries. Berberis vulgaris, laden with its red fruit, is verypretty just now, and the snowberry (Symphoricarpus racemesus), with soft, snowwhite berries, is also very pretty. The foliage on some of the poplars is turning to golden hues, and the foliage, of a Virginian creeper which covers the walls and l'oof of a building in this neighbourhood is of a. deeper scarlet than usual.

NITRATE OF SODA. j- In French gardening free use is made of j nitrate of soda in the growing of vegei tables, and nothing has been discovered to j take its place. In a recent publication i some rules have been given for its use, which may prove serviceable to our readers. It promotes earliness, increases the production, and gives a better leaf growth and green appearance-. Plants producing tubers. '' roots, bulbs, or fruits require from 81b to 161 b of nitrate of soda per 120 square yards. This includes potatoes, carrots, onions, tomatoes, asparagus, etc., leaf plants, cabbage, celery, spinach; lettuce-, etc. Peas and beans are not so much benefited, ; and require but 41b or 81b per 120 sauare i yards. These quantities should not all be , applied at once —41b per 120 square yardmixed in the- soil before sowing, and the rest in lib or 21b lots until the quantity is used. Do not sow when the ground is dry, or do not allow the nitrate to come in contact with wet foliage, for fear of burning. THE EDELWEISS. The Edelweiss (Laontopodium alpinum) is an alpine plant, and perhaps the most popular of the alpine flora, and one that j alpine tourists are anxious to discover. | It is an interesting plant, and is more I easily raised from seeds than by any other j means of propagation. * Plants brought down from Mount Cook and other alpine regions seldom do any good, but if seed is secured, plants can easilv be raised. The seedlings should bo planted in not too- rich soil, yet quite firm. The correct place for- them is the rook garden in gritty or sandy loam for the roots to ramble in.

TREATMENT OF BULBS.

It frequently happens that a season's ' bloom is lost from want of proper atten- ; tion at th© right time, and many bulbousrooted plants are considerably weakened by remaining in the same soil for several years. It ha® often been urged that to dry a bulb or tuber has a tendency to weaken it, and that it is not consistent with the | conditions under which they exist in their native habitats. We have, however, to deal with them as plants undev cultivation, and therefore as existing under conditions the very opposite to those in which they are found in a wild 6tate. Some bulbs lose all or the majority of their roots annually, and it is "here that, consideration should be given as regards the beneficial results or otherwise of the drying-off process. Take the Miliums as an example. As a whole they commence to put forth new roots immediately on the ripening of the flower steins, so that planting of the- bulbs should be done at that time. It will be noticed that the Christmas lily (Lilium candidum) at flowering time and especially in dry seasons is rendered leafless, and the best time to plant is so soon as flowering is completed. By planting at this time no new . roots are deotroyed, which quickly form, and which it is important should be retained. The members of the Lilium are not benefited by being lifted and off. Narcissus, on the contrary, will endure a deal of hardship, and provided tho bulbs are lifted and dried at the proper time, no amount of sun will injure them. In some- of the species it is beneficial, and necessary to „ their successful cultivation. Anemones and ranunculi are benefited by being lifted and dried off; when left in ■the ground they commence to make new roots in a short time, and push out into leaf, and the flowering in spring is not so satisfactory as if the tubers had been dried off. Tulips and hvacinths may be lifted and dried off without injury, and the tulips mav be kept in a dry statcl for a considerable time, but it is not advisable to keep hyacinth bulbs long out of the soil. Both of these, bulbs mav remain two ir three years i'i the ground undisturbed unless increase is wanted. Gladioli are anI other class ' /ihich are the better of beinsr

lifted (when the foliage begins to ripen), dried off, and kept until the planting season comes round. The following- calendar for autumn planting may prove useful to many During March plant anemones, crocus, grape- hyacinth, ixias, narcissi, hyacinths, ranunculi, scillas, tulips, sparaxis, snowflakes, Spanish iris, and chionodoxa. In April continue March plantings of early flowering bulbs, adding the early-flowering varieties of gladioli. This is one of the best months for planting primroses, polyanthus, Japanese iris, callas, peonies, dielytra, and nearly all other perennial border plants. In May and June theplanting out of bulbs and tubers, ii not completed, may be continued, crocuses ex cepted, if bulbs are available. Tigridias and the various sections of gladioli, may then be planted. In July and August lato plantings may be made. Gladioli for keeping up a succession of bloom may be planted up to December, and in August nearly every description of herbaceous plant, perennials, flowering roots, and tubers may be planted.