THE BUSY MAN’S CORNER

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 732, 3 August 1929, Page 28

THE BUSY MAN’S CORNER

WEEK’S WORK AT A GLANCE AMONG THE FLOWERS CHRYSANTHEMUMS. —Cuttings of your choice varieties of ‘'mums” may now be taken from the base of the old stools and struck in pots or boxes of sandy soil. If the boxes can be placed under a frame or glassed-in verandah, so much the better. Do not overwater during the wet weather until the cuttings have taken sufficient hold of the soil. HEDGES. —Gardeners contemplating planting hedges must do so now. The ground should be opened up in a long trench and subsoil broken up. Rotted vegetation placed along the bottom will act as a stimulating manure. Place the plants along the row at proper measured distances and fill in with good loam. For frosty districts, olearia, pittosporum and small-leafed privet are suitable. For seaside places, coprosma, hakea and tecoma are all quickgrowing varieties. CYCLAMEN AND PRIMULAS. —Pot-grown plants of the above are now beginning to flower freely. Care must be taken not to overwater, otherwise the stalks may rot at the base. Withered flowers of cyclamen should be removed at once. A weak application of liquid manure will help prolong flowering. When removing flowers of cyclamen, twist the stalks oft from the base, never cut SPRING PLANTS FROM SEED. —Gardeners wishing to grow their own plants from seed should sow now' in shallow boxes and cover with a sheet of glass. Hardy and easily grown varieties for sowing now. are as follow: Stocks, antirrhinums, verbena, phlox, pansy, nemesia, calliopsis. gaillardia, larkspur and viola. SET SHRUBS NOW. —Why delay further? They must brplanted before the winter is out. Ornamental and flowering shrubs are easily looked after and are a perpetual ornament to the home. Roses, climbing and dwarf, should be planted before the sap starts to rise. Climbing plants and shelter trees all await your attention and the sooner planted the quicker established. URGENT WORK. —Watch those roses, pruning where necessary and removing all dead wood. Keep the hoe continually moving through the surface of the soil. Lift and divide all perennial herbaceous plants. Heavily manure the ground if replanting in the same soil. Replant only the young side-shoots, discarding the old centres. Cut back and prune flow'ering shrubs that have finished blossoming. AMONG THE VEGETABLES f WEATHER CONDITIONS. —The weather is still against gar- B dening work generally and enthusiasts must satisfy themselves 9 with heavier work such as digging, trenching and opening the J ground generally. Lime may be freely used and the sods of soil 1 left to be pulverised by rains and frost. Fine days should be seized I upon to hoe along the rows of now established crops. g ASPARAGUS AND RHUBARB. —Established beds of asparagus should be weeded and the soil lightly forked over between the j rows. The ground should be top-dressed with rock salt, nitrate of soda or kainit. New beds may be put down at once, while the roots are dormant. Old rhubarb crowns should be lifted and divided, replanting in freshly manured ground. Younger roots may be forced into growth by placing a flower-pot upside down over the crown, FRUIT TREE ADVICE. —Are you planting any trees this f season? If so, start at once before the sap rises. All deciduous varieties such as apples, plums, nectarines and pears will soon be showing spring growth and it is essential that they be planted. 5 Lemons and oranges may be left, if desired, until better weather 1 conditions prevail. § Established trees should receive their winter pruning and bo $ thoroughly sprayed against the many pests that frequent the f orchard. $ THINGS TO PLANT. —EarIy potatoes should now be laid out i to shoot before setting. Seedlings of cabbage and cauliflower may [ be planted out. Seeds of tomatoes may be sown in boxes for raising early plants. Choko fruits should be placed in a warm corner to shoot. Loganberry and gooseberry bushes should be trimmed back to produce new wood. SEEDS TO SOW. —In ground lying on a gentle, well-drained slope, a few early peas may be sown. Shorthorn carrots and a pinch of lettuce may be set for early crops. Onion seedlings may now be planted in ground rich in potash .