THE GARDEN

Southland Times, Issue 22767, 18 December 1935, Page 16

THE GARDEN

WORK FOR THE WEEK

(By

J. A. McPherson)

The Greenhouse.

Now that the rush of raising annuals is over, attention should be given to all greenhouse structures. Often this is neglected until the rush of propagating starts in the autumn and consequently is liable to be overlooked. All woodwork should be overhauled and faulty timber replaced. Broken glass requires replacement and ventilators should be watched to see that the fit tightly and work easily. Brickwork and lower woodwork should be given a dressing of white-wash to prevent the germination of fungoid spores and also assist in killing many eggs of red-mite. Then above all things, clear out all broken pots, boxes, and other rubbish from under the benches, for such material only harbours insect pests. If it is found that pots are drying out too quickly, for the summer at least, place sheets of iron on the benches and on this lay two inches of coke breeze. The breeze will hold the moisture without becoming stagnant and thus assist all plants in pots. Take cuttings of hydrangeas and place them in pots of sandy soil. Sow seeds of cinerarias, primulas, and calceolarias; but see that they are kept cool and well shaded till the plants are through the soil. Look over pots of freesias and lachenalias, these will now be dried off and the bulbs should be tipped out, cleaned of all soil and stored in a dry cool shed for the next two months.

The Flower Garden. Perhaps the first annual to bloom is the nemesia, a very useful plant when used as a catch crop between more permanent plants. As a ground work through newly planted beds of roses, it is ideal and one of the prettiest combinations of colour one could wish to see is a bed of newly planted shot silk roses flowering over a sea of blue nemesia. The latter last till the first blooming of the roses is finished and after that they can be removed to permit of working the beds and feeding the roses to bring on the second crop of flower. Roses are now in full bloom and as soon as the flowers fade, cut them off with a length of the old flower stem. This portion of the stem is quite useless to the plant and only assists in harbouring mildew and greenfly should these pests show up. Should the weather become hot and dry there are several plants which must be given copious supplies of water if the best results are to be obtained. Hydrangeas revel in moist soil conditions and too much cannot be given them from now on. Astilbes (herbaceous Spireas) are also water-ing-loving plants and only give of their best when water is supplied in quantity. Now for dry area plants. It is not too late to plant verbena, calandulas and petunias on dry borders, provided they are given a thorough watering after being set out. In fact petunias should be grown more widely for this purpose and late planting seems to push them into very rapid growth. Sweet William along with tallgrowing perennials should be staked to prevent damage from winds. Thin out annuals that have been sown broadcast in the open border and use the thinnings for planting up blanks in other parts of the garden. It is not too late to set out dahlias into their permanent positions. Give each a handful of blood and bone meal mixed through the soil and water them well into position. Any time from now on spring flowering bulbs can be lifted, dried and stored. In lifting tulips, see that the sun is kept off the bulbs otherwise the outer scales will scorch badly. Seeds should be sown of the blue poppy Meconopsis Baileyii in* order to have good plants for setting out in autumn. Give them cool conditions right from seedsowing till the time they are ready to be set out in a semishaded border with moist but welldrained soil. This is the best type to grow in the ordinary flower border, the other dwarfer and less conspicuous species are more suited to the alpine garden. If it has not already been done, sow seeds of wallflower out of doors and Sweet William, myosotes and bellis daisies under the cover of a frame or glasshouse. Seeds of polyanthus should also be sown otherwise the plants will be too small to set out in the autumn. Rich soil is not advisable for any of the above seeds. The Swiss Edelweiss. Very few people realize that the Swiss Edelweiss is not a difficult plant to grow in an open border and if seeds are sown now, plants will be available for setting out next spring. Perhaps in Southland the seeds would be best sown in boxes and given the protection of a frame during winter in order to keep off excessive moisture. Its botanical name is leontopodium alpinum and the grey stems a foot high produce tufts of inconspicuous yellow flowers set in dense mats of grey hairs. In general appearance it is much inferior to our own magnificent New Zealand Edelweiss, leucogenes leontopodiunt which 'grows on the

mountains at a height of 4000-6000 ft. The Great Eastern Bell Flower, Though discovered many years ago the great bell flower from the mountains of Bokhara is still a rare plant in New Zealand gardens. It has roots two feet long and shaped like a very thin carrot. The flowers are borne either singly or in pairs on stems two feet high and can be best described if I say that each flower is ten times the size of a single flower of a Canterbury bell and about the same shape, except the mouth of the bell is more open and looks at a distance not unlike a lily. The colour is of the palest purple veined with heavier markings and the dozen flowers which stand before me as I write make a very noble picture. Imported roots will acclimatise well if plants cannot be favoured in New Zealand. Once they are planted in moist sandy loam, leave them well alone as the roots do not like being disturbed. Seeds may be sown now and the seedlings should bloom in three to four years time. Its botanical name is ostrowskya magnifica. Vegetable and Fruit Garden. Attention should now be paid to the planting out of the first batches of winter green crops. Do not plant in loose soil otherwise coarse and useless outer leaves will be produced. Continue to sow beet, carrots, and yellow fleshed turnips for autumn and winter use. Earth up potatoes and commence to plant out celery in trenches. Should strawberry beds be running out, destroy the plants as soon as the fruits have been gathered and dress the ground with any of the proprietory brands of napthaline to kill grub and other insect pests. Later the ground can be manured and thrown up rough ready for. breaking down and replanting wi.h new stocks in the autumn. For mildew on apples and other fruit trees spray with colloidal sulphur, being sure to wet all. surfaces. The pear slug which attacks the leaves of both pears and cherries is best kept in check by spraying with arsenate of lead, a stomach poison. Greenfly on small fruit trees must be kept down by spraying with any nicotine compound.

SHOW PANSIES THEIR EARLY HISTORY. The late William Dean, of Birmingham, was probably one of the first cultivators of the pansy, and, writing in 1893, he says (the following being taken from Mr Simkin’s book, ‘The Pansy and How to Grow It,’ published in 1889):—-“I have (writes an old florist under the signature of “Dahl”) been an amateur for more than 50 years, and can well remember the introduction of the Heartsease, which, though a native of Britain, was never cultivated in order to render it a florists’ flower until taken in hand by Mr Thompson, of Tver, Bucks, and by him brought into cultivation, and from his original stock have all the beautiful varieties of this flower been produced.” He wrote this in 1863. Mr Thompson was gardener to the late Lord Gambier, who resided at Iver, near Uxbridge, and in 1813 Lord Gambier brought him a few plants collected in the fields near his mansion. They w’ere the yellow and white wild variety, and Lord Gambier requested him to cultivate these plants. This having been done, it was soon discovered that a great improvement was effected. In three or four years many seedlings had been raised, and one which took Lord Gambier’s fancy was named Lady Gambier, another George the IV., and a third Ajaz. The first seedling which showed improved form was named Thompson’s King. At that time the only markings about the eye of the improved forms were a few dark lines. Early Growers. In Harrison’s ‘Floricultural Cabinet,’ published about 1830, the names of about 75 varieties are given, all raised in England, and in a later catalogue of the year 1844 as many as 102 varieties are named, raised by the then famous growers, Widnal, of Cambridge, Brown, of Slough, Thompson, and others, all of English origin excepting three varieties raised by the late Mr Handasyde, of Musselburgh, and these seem to be the first varieties sent out from Scotland. Other growers who soon followed on the trail of the pbove raisers were Messrs Montjoy, of Ealing, Bragg, of Slough, Hale of Usbridge, and a few others. The late Mr Charles Turner, of Slough, was for many years a most successful exhibitor and grower, and sent out many of the very fine varieties raised by Hale and others, and very old pansy men still have pleasant memories of the superb batches sent out by Mr- Turner in 1854 and 1856, consisting of Admiral Napier, Constellation, Crimson Perfection, Sir Walter Scott, Monarch, Emperor, and Charles Turner. What an impetus these varieties gave to the pansy! So much so that it looked as though the pansy threatened to become the national flower of Scotland. Continuing the interesting subject, Dahl finally says: “Our Scottish friends have a more congenial climate for the pansy than the Southrons, and the late Mr C. Turner had to give up the pansy because it gave him -up. The southern, heat and dryness tells terribly upon these plants, and it is in consequence of this, and not from any lack of interest in the pansy, that so few fine varieties are sent out from the south, and the cultivation of the show section is indeed small. Truly the pansy and its lovely sister, the bedding violas, are now in the ascendant, and may they long continue so. To some of us the days, of further enjoyment of them are short, and we leave as a legacy to them a continuation of our work and our hearty good wishes.” FOR CHRYSANTHEMUM GROWERS The time has arrived for chrysanthemums to be settled in their quarters for the summer. Whether this period is to be spent in pots or in the ojoen ground, from which the plants will be lifted in April, is a matter for each grower to decide for himself. The fact that the planting out method yields a wealth of flowers for decoration with a minimum of trouble is an argument in its favour which must weigh with the busy man. The exhibitor, however, and all those who are satisfied with nothing less than the best, must grow their plants throughout in pots. Especially does this apply to the ’big Japs, the large-flowered singles, and the cream of late decoratives. Not only is a check to growth the natural sequence of lifting, but all these types demand a higher standard of living than the rest of the race to enable them to show their qualities to the best advantage. Mid-season decoratives and spray singles are not quite so exacting in their needs, and there is nothing to be said against planting out a generous batch, where the system would be a convenience. The sooner planting out can be done now the better, so that the roots may obtain a good hold before the hot weather arrives. As far as possible select an open place for the plants,”as they never do so well if shaded in any way. The plot should be treated liber-

ally. Any shortage of stable manure may be augmented with the advertised hop manures. Mark out rows, about three feet apart, and along these sprinkle liberally some chrysanthemum fertiliser or fish manure, and fork in. Tire argument for the use of either of these fertilizing agents is the fact that chrysanthemums are only shallow-rooted plants. At the same time the soil must be firm, therefore it is a good plan, where it is very light, to tread firmly after forking. Set out the plants alternately in double rows, two feet apart lengthways, and one foot across, and exercise all possible care to avoid excessive injury to the roots of those which have to be taken from bexes. Generally speaking, plants grown on those lines do well if stopped twice, the first time early in October, and the second abdut the first week in December. The final potting of exhibition and other varieties is not a task that can very well be rushed through, like planting out, for the conditions in pots of rich, firm soil are very different from those in the open' ground. Before any plant can be placed in an eight or nine-inch pot, it must first "have well filled its previous receptacle with roots. A start can be made immediately with the strongest batch of plants, which were potted into five-inch pots some time in September, while those potted later may not warrant a move for another fortnight or three weeks. Every effort should be made to complete potting early in December for, until the big pots are full of roots, feeding is of no value, and, where this has to be deferred until late in the season, results are not likely to be first-class. Soils differ considerably in texture and quality, and the various ingredients which go to make up the ideal compost cannot be added merely by rule of thumb. But one detail applies equally all round, namely, that there is nothing better to form the foundation of the compost than good, thick sods cut from an old pasture and stacked some six months beforehand. At the end of that time they can be chopped down and pulled apart to about the size of a tennis ball, which is quite small enough for the final potting. Taking loam of this kind to be of average texture, a good mixture for the purpose in question may be arrived at by adding to every four parts one of well-rotted manure from a spent hotbed (if this is not available, prepared hops are a good substitute), and enough coarse sand or old mortar rubble to ensure porosity, which generally means about an eighth part. Rubble is always better than sand, for it counteracts any acidity there may be in old loam, which may not have been limed for a long time. To every barrowload of these ingredients add a six-inch pot of bonemeal and one of fish manure, or one of the proprietary chrysanthemum fertilizers. Throw the whole into a heap, and turn three times to ensure equal distribution throughout. As a rule, a stack of turf is moist’ enough at this time of the year for potting, and it only remains to protect the mixture from weather. For most early-rooted exhibition Japs nine-inch pots are best, although even in this matter there are no hard-and-fast rules, and many use slightly larger or smaller pots with good results. Incurves and singles will always do with a size less than Japs, as they are not so vigorous in root action, and late decoratives pre best not overpotted. Let the pots be neatly drained with oyster shells or potsherds. A few nice pieces arranged hollow-side downwards are better than double the quantity thrown in haphazard. To keep these drainage crocks intact, use the rougher particles of the compost as their immediate covering, employing the blunt end of the rammer to make a firm layer. A handful or two of the finer mixture is added to this, and the pot is ready to receive the plant. Before knocking any of these out of their pots, see that the root ball is moist throughout, otherwise there is always danger of it breaking, and damage resulting to some of the best roots. In view of the importance of giving light top-dressing of rich soil in February and March, the precaution should be taken during potting to place the ball so that when the operation is completed there remains an inch and a-half or so of space below the rim.—“F.T.C.” in Amateur Garden-* ing.

A RED IRIS A NEW ZEALAND NOVELTY. The aim of iris breders for many years past has been to create a true red variety. It is very pleasing to know that we have in our Dominion plant hybridisers who are working away quietly and patiently in producing new novelties of a varied nature. Miss Jean Burgess, of Waikanae, who has been hybridising irises on scientific lines for the past 10 years, has now achieved her lifetime ambition—a red iris. A seedling developed from the same race which gave her the prize-winning “Destiny,” “Wellington,” and other outstanding types, flowered just recently; and it is a new and striking shade of red. The pollen of this outstanding novelty is to be used to develop still further crosses, all aiming at the improvement of red tones—the rarest iris colours.