HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 3115, 26 November 1913, Page 12

HORTICULTURAL NOTES.

By J Gebbie

The weather in North Otago anil South Canterbury has during the past foiv wM'k? been of a. very mixed description. We have had hut a few days of bright sunshine, hut a superabundance of showery weather, with some delightfully warm days, and on others sharp, cold winds that injure the tender leaves and blossom of the trees and shrubs. Mildew is prevalent on the roses, and owing to the lack of sunshine their blooms are not opening as they should. Fine, | sunny weather is much wanted to bring along the strawberry and other crops in these ‘ districts, otherwise growers will be at considerable loss. j ASPARAGUS BEDS. With the end of tho present month all , cuttings from the beds should cease for the j season. It is a hard matter to persuade ; amateurs of the importance of this rule, and ! the result is that their beds soon begin to lose vigour; and that means non-produc-tiveness. A good practice is to allow the first and second shoots which spring through the surface each season to grow and do- t volop; then to top cutting at the end of this month, and by so doing no difficulty ; will be experienced in keeping the bods j profitable for many years. Ceasing to cut ■ does not mean that no further care is re- j quisite. On the contrary, this is the most important period of p re gross, because the ‘ foundation of next season’s success is laid 1 now. The soil in the beds should never be allowed to become dry. A good watering, i followed with a heavy soaking or two of liquid manure, would be beneficial. Weeds must be kept down, and in no circumstances should anv of the shoots be cut out until the foliage ripens off in autumn. BRODI.EAS. These are a. class of bulbous plants well worth the attention of cultivators. They adapt themselves to the ordinary circumstances of the mixed border with wonder- , ful readiness, and a bold mass during the spring months is most welcome. They do- ' light in light, rich soil, and when once well established flower profusely, and are at t.heir best during December and January. B. eongesta is a useful plant on the rockeries. It has narrow, ribbed leaves and flower stalks from 1 ft to 3ft or more in I length, on which the flowers are produced , in umbels, they are about lin long, somewhat funnel-shaped, of a bright, purplish blue colour. It is a native of California. Columbia, etc. B. coccinoa is the brightest and handsomest of all the brodiaeae. It is also a very distinct kind, and sure and j free of flowering. It is not quite so hardy : ns some of the other species, but in dry. | well-drained borders it does _ fairly well, j especially when deep planting is resorted to j It is well adapted for pot culture, and is.

much showier thaai many of our indoor spring bulbs. The leaves are about 2tt long, narrow, and bright green. The flower stalk is about the same height, and boars an umbel of from 10 to 20 drooping tubular flowers each about 2in long. Their lower half is bright scarlet tipped with yellow, and the recurved lobes are green. It is a native of San Francisco, and flowers in November and December. CEDARS.

The cedar of Lebanon in its native home grows to a great size. Some of the largest girths are from 30ft to 40lt at 3ft from the ground. It grows partially sheltered on the steep hillsides of its native country, and is also found in the valleys in fine style; but the slopes and their rocky shelving seem to furnish its best position. In a congenial climate and favourable soil it seems to prosper fairly well. With a generally mild atmosphere and near the roast it will grow freely, but in high, inland positions, where extreme cold prevails, its progress is slow, and it will never form a tree. C-edrus dcodara is one of the most beautiful objects in a young state that the eye could look upon. Its graceful and pendulous habit of growth well fits it for a position on the lawn. It seems to thrive best in a low, sheltered position, where late spring frosts are not much felt. For ornamental purposes it grows in any good soil, and can be made as formal as any example of tree life by pinching in the laterals, which is all that those who wish for a model formal pyramid have to do. It grows much faster than the cedar of Lebanon, and some nice specimens arc found in several of oiir public and private gardens. Cedrus atlantica is nn excellent grower, though looser in habit than cither of the two already named, but not so eligible for ornamental purposes in its youth. It is much more rigid in the form of growth, and approaches somewhat to the habit of the cedar of Lebanon. It likes a good soil and mild climate, and clearly prefers the brow of a hill in a sheltered locality. It is hardier and more suitable for a variety of positions than C. libana or C. dcodara. It is a native of Mount Atlas. C. dcodara is a native of the Himalayas. VEGETABLE MATTER AS MANURE. Green vegetable matter is an excellent manure, but Ices valued than it ought to be. All plants in a succulent state contain much saccharine or mucilaginous matter, and therefore cannot be used too soon after their death. The general practice is to carry all weeds and vegetable matter to the rubbish heap, and allow it to turn into mould. This is a great waste of the best parts of the manure, and should only be adopted when such vegetable mould may lie required for particular purposes. Instead of collecting all the weeds, useless vegetables, etc., in a garden to one heap, let the following simple mode be adopted. W r hen a piece of ground is to be dug go round a.nd collect all the decaying vegetables. etc., and immediately dig them in. The sweepings of grass-walks and lawns are also of much use as a. vegetable manure. They should be dug in before fermentation commences But it must bo observed that they should not be buried at too great a depth, otherwise fermentation will bo prevented by compression and the exclusion of air. Seaweed, where it can be procured. makes excellent manure for most vegetables, but particularly for scakale, artichokes, and asparagus. This manure is transient in its effects, and does not last more than for a single crop, which is recounted for by its containing a large portion of water or its elements. OXOASCUB PRUNE This is the name of n fungoid growth which is very prevalent on the Japanese plums this season. It causes the plums to take different shapes, and is known by Severn! names, such as mock plums, bladder, and pocket plums. These plums should ho picked off and burned. According to the Government Orchard Instructor, the most efficacious method of repressing the growth of this fungus and preventing the infection of healthy branches and trees by means of the spores is to spray the trees in winter with Bordeaux mixture, using flic 10-10-40 formula, and again just before the flower buds open in (lie spring with the 4-5-50 formula. I have noticed in several gardens every twig of the Burbank plums with as many of these bladder-like growths as there is of plums. I have never seen this |icst befoi-e his season, so know little about it: but tile fruit-grower has enough fungoid and insect pests to tight against without any fresh additions. ,As an indicat or! of the magnitude the strawberry industry is assuming (says the Alexandra Horaldl. two tons of the luscious fruit were despatched by rail on Monday.