WORK FOR THE WEEK.

Otago Witness, Issue 3348, 15 May 1918, Page 6

WORK FOR THE WEEK.

Br D. Tannock.

THE GREENHOUSE AND FRAMES. Now that wo arc liable to have hard frost at nights some sort of heating arrangement is necessary for the greenhouse, or protection has to be given to the tender plants. Where a proper system of hotwater heating is not installed a kerosene heater will be found useful. It need not be kept going all night unless there is very hard frost; by shutting up all the ventilators and putting in the heater for an hour or so, the temperature will be kept up until the morning. Another method is to cover the plants in the house with sheets of paper, or to put on roller blinds made of thick scrim or calico, and to run them down in the evenings. As it is not the freezing but tho thawing which destroys the plants, if frost should get into the house syringe them with cold water before tho sun gets on to them, and shade for a day or so. Freezias, lachenalias, daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths which were potted up some time ago and plunged in ashes, or stood in a cold frame can now be removed to the preenhouso stage. The pots should be filled with by now and growth of the flower and foliage will be gradual. Give plenty of light, and water carefully. As chrysanthemums wither or are cut. tho stems can be cut over about a foot above tho pots and then stood in a cold frame to develop sturdy, short-jointed cuttings. THE FLOWER GARDEN.

Continue to- remove summer bedding plants nnd replant the- beds and borders with spring flowering lands, such as wallflowers, polyanthus, forget-me-nots, and daffodils. Daffodils should be planted as soon as possible now, they are forming roots and will soon deteriorate if left out of the ground. Continue to prune and tie up rambler roses and to prepare bed 3 and borders for planting out the bush kinds, as soon as they arrive. The of hedges should bo completed this month if possible,

and continue to rake up leaves for the leafn:ould heap. Though the most attractive plants in the shrubbery at this time are those with autumn-tinted foliage or ornamental berries, there are a few kinds which flower at this season. Ceanothus azureus var. Gloire des Versailles has loose sprays of light blue flowers which are freely produced on the young shoots. It likes a fairly warm, drv position, and should be cut hard back to within an inch of the old wood every year after flowering. It is a far more decorative plant than the common ceanothus, with its little heads of flowers. It is often grown as a climber on a wall or over an. arch or pergola. The ordinary cscallonia has red flowers, and though not a very decorative plant, it 16 useful for planting near the sea, but the autumn flowering kind, E. > montovidensis, sometimes called E. floribunda, a native of New Grenada, has white flowers not unlike the hawthorn. It grows to a height of 10 feet, and is not at all particular as to soil or climate, and does very well near the sea. The Abehas are beautiful shrubs of the honeysuckle family, natives of China_ and Japan and the hills of India and Mexico. A. triflora is a strong-growing ehrub which will thrive in almost any_ situation. If cut down during the winter it will make long semi-pendant branches and flower in lato summer find autumn. Tlie < flowers are cream, or yellow flushed with pink, and their beauty is enhanced by the rosy colour of the unopened buds. Abeha chinensis, the rock abolia, is a pretty little ehrub of dense growth. 3ft to sft high. The flowers, which are about an inch long, are borne in clusters and are of a pale bluish colour, fragrant, and last for several week 9 at this season. Even after the flowers drop, the reddish sepals are still ornamental, and, though evergreen, the leaves take on beautiful autumn tints. It seems to thrive under almost any conditions, is very hardy, and roots readily from cuttings of wellripened wood. Put in a bed outside, as recommended in last week's notes. Leonotus leonorus, commonly called the lion's tail, is a sub-shrub, native of the Cape of Good Hope, and a member of the sage family. It is not too hardy, and should be planted in a sheltered, sunny position. Its flowers, which are orange and scarlet, are borne in whorls on long branches, the bottom whorls opening first, and others continuing to develop right through the winter. It can be layered, ripe wood cuttings can be put in in the autumn, or soft wood cuttingswill root if placed in small pots and plunged in bottom heat in the spring. Pleuroma macrantha is a rather uncom-

mon autumn and winter flowering _ plant, usually grown in the greenhoiise jn the south as a climber, but in selected positions on the hills in and round Duncdin it will bo quito satisfactory planted out in the open border. Where conditions are not quite the best, it might succeed trained on a trellis against a sunny wall. _ It is a native of Brazil, and has beautiful rich, deep violet-purple flowers, freely produced on the ends of the shoote. Plumbago larpente is a small twiggy plant suitable /or the rock garden or the front of the border. Its flowers are violet-blue, freely produced on the ends of the shoots, which, along with the autumn 'tints of the foliage, make it a very desirable plant. It can be propagated by division. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. There is not a great deal to do in the vegetable garden ut present except to clear off epen't crops and to dig and store such root crops as beetroot, parsnips, and carrots. Great care has to be taken when lifting beetroot not to damage or break any of tho small roots, and don't cut off the leaves too close to the roots, or do anything which will cause_ it to bleed. Asparagus foliage is now ripe, and can be cut over. Weed and clean the eurfaco of the beds and tidy up the alleys-. Though asparagus is not extensively grown in small gardens, it is a vegetable much esteemed by many, and one which provides a considerable amount of food at a time when vegetables are none too plentiful. A well-made asparagus bed requires little after maintenance, and will continue to bear for years. For a small garden the most suitable width for the bed is 3ft, with 2ft alleys on each side. This will allow room for two rows of plants, and if sft beds are adopted they will allow room for thrco rows. Where the soil is good it is not necessary to renevy it altogether, but good drainage is ■ essential; and where it is heavy it may be an advantage to excavate to a depth of 3ft, to put in a layer of clinkers or broken bricks, and lay a 3in agricultural drain pipe with a suitable outlet. -Place some rough manure on top of the drainago to prevent the soil from washing down into it, and replace tho soil, adding liberal layers of good manure as tho filling proceeds. # If the soil is naturally well drained, rt should be trenched to a depth of about 3ft, liberal layers of manure being added, then left rough until tho spring. If it is heavy it can be improved by mixing in a quantity of sea sand, and, near the sea, seaweed oan be used instead of manure.

Asparagus grows naturally by the seaside, and some consider it necessary to apply liberal dressings of salt: but I don't think it is absolutely necessary, and consider thai salting is frequently overdone. Where the soil is unsuitable, it will be necessary to excavate it to a depth of from 30 inches to 3 feet, place a layer of clinkers or brickbats, with drain pipes as already recommended, in the bottom and over the drainago place a layer of turves, with the grassy side downwards, then fill in with the following soil mixture. Turfy loam similar to potting soil or good surface soil, three-parts; well decayed farmyard manures, two-parts; and a six-inch potful of bone .meal to every barrowful of the soil mixture. Mix up this soil thoroughly, and fill up the bed to a height of at least six inches above the original level of the soil, and allow it to settle until spring. In some cases where the soil is heavy and difficult to drain, the beds can be raised a foot or more above the level of the soil by placing sheets of iron or boards along each side to hold it in. Where the very best results are desired, and time and material are no object, excavating the original soil and filling up with the specially prepared soil mixture should be adopted. ANSWERS- TO CORRESPONDENTS. Convolvolus is a very nasty weed, and difficult to eradicate. It is not classed aa a noxious weed, and it is unfortunate that you cannot compel your neighbour to clear it away from the boundary fence. It could not be killed by applying weedkiller, unless you saturate the soil, and this would be expensive. Dig out all. pieces of £he fleshy roots with a fork at least tv/ico a year, and keep every piece of growth cut off; with the scuffle hoe during the summer. By preventing it from making leaves, the roots will soon become exhausted and die. J. C, Balclutha.—Names of plants: No. 1, one of the Bromelias, a member of the pineapple family; No. 2, Deherainia smaragdjna, a native of Mexico; No. 3. Anthericum variegatum, or Chlorophytum elatum, variegatum; No. 4, Dolichos bicontortus; No. 5, Gasteria Sp. Mealy bug on vines: When you are cleaning the rods after pruning during the winter, be careful to remove all the loose bark and paint them with Gishurst's compound, or a mixture of soap and kerosene. Wash down, all the woodwork and glass with soapy water, limewaeh. the walls, and paint all cracks or crevices -with pure kerosene. If some should escape the winter cleaning it can bo shifted with the syringe until the grapes begin to colour.