HARDY PERENNIALS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 816, 9 November 1929, Page 30

HARDY PERENNIALS

Well established borders or herbacious beds will now be in danger of growing into a dense tangle. This must be avoided, even if portions of the spreading plants have to be sacrificed. Bach plant should be kept to its proper limits and care must be taken that the stronger ones are not crowding out the weaker. The work of staking helps to prevent injury and confusion, and should be promptly attended to. Where staking was done early, an additional tie near the top of the sticks may be necessary, particularly in the case of dahlias, now attaining their full height, Michaelmas daisies, rudbeckias and heleniums. With these latter it is frequently found that, although they will stand upright during most of the summer without the support of stakes, when their flowering season arrives they bend nearly to the ground, converting their quarters into a wilderness. It is worth remembering that Michaelmas daisies and phloxes often produce finer flowers when the shoots are reduced in number and an occasional application of nitrate of soda should be given every 10 days. All the above varieties are gross feeders and respond to such treatment.