THE GARDEN.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 370, 22 May 1889, Page 3

THE GARDEN.

(By Hortus.)

Kitchen Garden. The rain which we received so bountifully during the latter portion of last week will have promoted a much better growth in all winter crops. The soil will now be in a much better state for either planting or sowing later crops. Asparagus beds should now receive their regular winter dressing. All the dehrU of old stems should be cut back and cleared away to the rot heap. The beds should then receive a good dressing with coarse salt, and a liberal quantity of well-rotted manure should also be placed at convenient distances on the beds. (Where sea-woed can be easily procured it should be used instead of the salt and manure). Those should be forked into the soil, taking care to giye a liberal dressing. Seakale beds should also be treated in the same manner. Rhubarb: Lift the old plants and place in a shed for two months or so before planting again. Whero new asparagus, seakale and rhubarb beds are required the beds should now be made by trenching the soil at least two feet deep. While the trenching is proceeding place in the botjom of each trench quantities of decayed and decaying vegetable debris. You cannot use too mush of these materials, as the bed for those vegetables cannot be made too rich inplantfood. Thin out alladvancing crops as they become large enough. Stir the surface soil between the rows so as to keep weeds under. Cabbages and cauliflowers : Plant a few about once a fortnight now so as to keep a succession coming on. Prick out another patch of lettuce : tie up advance plants for blanching. Sow a fresh patch of raddishes and mustard and cres?. Celery :• Earth up as may be required. Where -the plants are to receive the final earthinsr up slightly beat with the spade the sides otthe ridges. This will compress the soil and give better facilities for the water to run off during the heavy winter rains. Onions : The usual autumn sowing can now be made. Sow in a small bed so as to prick out next spring. Potato onions can also now be planted out, and also put out a small bed of shallots. Recollect that all the above crops require rich soil to make them a success. In warm, dry situations sow a few peas. Select the earliest varieties. Sweet potatoes, or kumeras, should now be lifted and stored past for winter use. The best way to keep them is in boxes of dry sand, from which a few can be taken at a time. All vacant pieces of ground should be dug at once, and if not required for winter crops sow down with oats, as this will either supply good green feed, or if not required as such makes a capital manure if dug down before it attains a height of over two feet.

Flower Garden. As soon as possible all the border should be dug and well manured. It is always preferable to do this work before the web season sets in. I have often seen a great deal of injury done to the soil in a border by it being dug in wet weather. This applies especially to stiff, retentive soils. By labouring them while in a wet state, the soil, instead of being free and open during the winter, gets solid and sodden, and the following summer bakes hard like bricks. Here I would remark that some of the light sandy or light volcanic soils are better off if turned over while they are wet, as it help* to consolidate them. While the digging and manuring of the borders is proceeding, lift, re-arrange and reduce as may be required the different herbaceous plants. These can now be lifted and replanted with perfect safety. Gladiolus : Late flowering bulbs should now be ripe. Lift at once, as the moisture in the ground will be almost sure to start them. A few of the common varieties should now be planted so as to give early spring flowers. Lilium bulbs can now be lifted and transferred to other situations. C4ive them plenty of manure when putting them in fcheir new positions. After the digging is completed, hardy annuals can either be sown or planted out. Winter and spring flowering bulbs and tubers through the ground require the surface soil stirredabout them, and occasionally give them a little liquid manure. Plant out the balance of late flowering bulbs. It is better to give them a start now. Camellias : Mulch \uith well-rotted manure, or water with liquid manure. Where fine large flowers are required, thin off a large number of the flower buds. This will cause the strength destined for those buds to flow towards the others and thus greatly improve them. Azaleas and rhododendrons : Also give liquid manure to these. All rubbish from the beds and border.s should be placed in a heap to rot. Ib will make splendid manure next autumn. Where only a few trees or shrubs aretobeplanted and theroots will only be exposed for a short time to the action of the air, the planting can now take place with perfect safety without the use of water, as the soil is now in most places moist enough. All improvements in design or formation should also be pushed on with vigour so as to get them finished before the winter properly sets in. All lawns should be top-dressed at once and the grass seed sown so as to give it a fair chance.

Greenhouse. The house and plants should now receive a thorough overhaul. All the pots should be washed on the outside, the surface soil slightly stirred, and some of the soil taken out and replaced with a compost suitable to each plant. All the paint work of the house should be thoroughly scrubbed and cleaned, and, where required, re-painted. The staging shelves, etc.. should also receive similar treatmsnt. The proper cleaning out of a house two or three times a year is one of the best preventives for keeping insects under. In the vinery, where possible, all the canes should be taken out into the open. They will then be subjected to a greater degree of cold and atmospheric action, which will ripen them off quicker and better than if left inside. Where it is not possible to take them out give the house as much air as possible.

Chrysanthemum Society. A Chrysanthemum Socieby has now been Bfcarfced. -The aimsof this Socieby at presenb are solely with that flower. The promoters do not intend to take up with any other horticultural branch, and it will be. hove the lovere of winter and spring flowers to try and do something so as to get up a good show of camellias, etc. , in the spring. On every side I am told that the Royal Horticultural Sociefcv will be wound up as soon as possible. Therefore any new departure must be taken in hand at once, so as to bring about a successful result, At the same time I am sorry that there is n«fc much prospect of a new socieby at present taking the usual spring and autumn shows next season in Auckland. Perhaps if new life were infused into the Auckland Horticultural Society, which is still in existence, something might be done which would place horticulturists in a better position. It might be a good time now for the' gentlemen composing that Society to call a meeting and try and do something for next season. I wish the new Chrysanthemum Society every success, and I think they would make horticulturists quite happy" if they could only see their way, to take up the camellia show this eprir.g, ,