WORK FOR THE WEEK.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2951, 24 November 1900, Page 2 (Supplement)

WORK FOR THE WEEK.

TO GARDENERS.

Kitchen Garden.—Vegetable marrows are o.f such importance that more attention should be given to their culture. As a rule, most gardeners are content to have marrows in the autumn, and at that time there is such a glut, both in the market and in ;! the garden, that marrows are not appreciated as much as their merits .warrant. To obtain early marrows is neither difficult nor costly, but patience and constant attention are necessary to protect the plants from: frosts. These are liable to destroy all the leaves and tender growths quite as late as Dec. 6, which proves the necessity for constant attention. The plants do not require any elaborate covering, any ordinary canvas is sufficient to protect them from late frosts. A simple but effective covering is the following : —Drive four stakes into the ground, the two front ones about 2ft high and the back two 4ft, nail a piece of scantling on the top of these stakes, then fasten the canvas on the hack, or taller, stakes, and it can easily be pulled down every night, without injuring the foliage of the marrows. Give the plants plenty of water, and avoid overcrowding by giving each growth plenty of space to develop in. Make another sowing of peas and stake those that are up about 6in. When putting in the stakes keep the tops of the stakes as far apart as the bottoms, and so avoid that oldfashioned blunder of pinching the tops of pea-sticks close to each other. Peas that are just about to flower should be mulched witu some half-rotted manure; get this on while the ground is moist from the recent rain. The early rows will be about over now, and these should be cleared away at once, and not allowed to impoverish the soil for a single day after the crop is finished. The watering of peas should be avoided if possible, but when once started it must be continued, and if the rows are irrigated thoroughly, instead of just putting a little water on the surface, the peas will give much better results. Tomatoes should_be planted in the garden now. If these are got in at once they will soon become established. If there is a choice of plants select dwarf, sturdy ones rather than long-drawn, weak starvelings, which will be a long time recovering from their condition, and will then only give a small crop. Give the plants ample space; a good distance would be 3ft between the plants and 4ft between the rows ; give very little manure; bonemeal, with a little nitrate of soda v is better than farmyard manure for tomatoes in the garden. If the plants are to be grown against a fence or wall they may be planted about 15in apart. Tomatoes grown to one stem give an early and constant supply of fruit, but the plants need more attention. Gardeners must remember that the hot weather of December and January is coming on, and some preparation should! be made to ensure a constant supply of lettuce during these months. Select cool, partially-shaded places, as near to the water'as possible. A good protection from the hot north-west winds can be made by nailing two boards together like a triangle. These boards can easily be put over the lettuce in hot weather. Celery will need constant attention from this date, in order to- bring it to perfection. Too often the young plants suffer a check when in the seed boxes through being left crowded. If they cannot be pricked off they should he thinned by pulling up and throwing away ail that are not wanted. In pricking off the young plants a bed should be made on a hard bottom. Spread about an inch of thoroughly decayed manure over the bottom, then about four 'inches of soil, make this firm, and prick the young plants out about four inches apart. Plants grown on a bed prepared on this plan lift with a mass of fibrous roots and scarcely feel the shift. The hard bottom prevents the roots striking down very deep, and the layer of manure at the bottom affords them a good storage for moisture. The trenches should he prepared as fast as the summer crops are cleared. The longer they are prepared before they are planted the better, because, the manure has time to rot. In preparing the trenches take care that the plants have good soil for their roots to grow in. Too often nil the good soil is thrown out, and the plants put into the crude subsoil. The depth of the I ruches must be determined by the depth of good soil. If this he shallow make the trenches shallow ; because it is a fact that celery grows better in shallow than in deep trenches.

Flower Garden.—Weeds are very troublesome Ibis spring, owing to the damp season. Use the hoe as often as possible to keep these undesirable robbers down. Heeds to sow ere wallflower, Sweet William, Canterbury bells, aquilegia, anemone and alyssum. Those seeds should be sown in a cold frame, rather than in the open; the climate is so

changeable that it is better to be certain of success than sorry for failure. Use good soil, not too rich, and keep the seeds shaded until they are well up. Canterbury beds are not grown as extensively as they should be. They are of easy culture, and make a big display of bloom for a long time. Wallflowers can be planted in any corner ; their fragrant flowers are ever welcome in the spring. No time should be lost before a mulch of some kind is put round the rose bushes. This should be done before the moisture has evaporated from the soil under the influence of the hot north-west winds. If applied now it will be of much assistance, but if deferred another week or two it will be of little good. Green-fly is very troublesome this spring, and must be kept down by constant syringing. Use a spray syringe ; this will dislodge the pests better than the ordinary plunge syringe.