THE HOME GARDEN

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 53, Issue 3795, 14 August 1936, Page 10

THE HOME GARDEN

WORK FOR THE WpEK. THE FLOWER GARDEN Now is the best time to plant Japanese Irises. All perennials should be planted as early as possible. Propagate chrysanthetoSma from stickers when they are three or four inches high. Hardy annuals can now be planted out. Examine bearded irises for rhizome rot. Remove decaying foliage and prick a little superphosphate into the soil. Shrubs which flower in spring should be planted at 'the first opportunity. Plant all herbaceous subjects and divide old clumps. Roses should be planted out at the first opportunity. AH deciduous trees and shrubs can be safely planted now. Plant out polyanthuses, cinerarias, ! Iceland poppies, nemesias, stocks, antirrhinums, pansies, violas and anemones. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. Prepare potato sets for plahting in August. Earth up growing cabbage and cauliflower. o'EIS Early peas can now be sown. Sow broad beans and onions. Cabbage that are well forward will benefit by a light application of nitrate of soda. Dig all vacant plots and leave them exposed to the sweetening action of frosts. Make another sowing of.onions for pulling as greens in early summer. Plant out cabbage, cauliflower, asparagus, rhubarb and garlic. Sow lettuce under glass and transplant when big enough to handle. Root cuttings of gooseberries and black currents by inserting them in moist soil mixed with sharp sand. Plant fruit trees and prune. Stone fruits come into bearing earlier than pip fruits and therefore need earlier attention. Weed all seedling crops and keep thinning them out as growth increasTIMELY TOPICS. REMINDERS FOR JULY. Newly - planted loganberries ana raspberries should be cut hard down, er they may prove unsatisfactory for several years. Useless stumps of any of the cabbage family should be cleared early, if they impoverish the soil Dead tree stumps can be made attractive/ by planting clematis to climb over them. When plants of garden peas show through the soil, run strands of black cotton along the rows to guard against birds. Seeds sown in drills are more easily kept free from weeds than those sown broadcast. Cuttings which are rooted in pure sand must be potted immediately they have formed roots. For pronioting the growth of fine grasses and eliminating moss growth, powdered charcoal is extremely, valuable. In dry weather the charcoal absorbs moisture from the atmosphere and the grass in turn benefits from this moist material near its roots. Charcoal is perfectly harmless to plants of any kind. The material is simply carbon deposited on a framework of mineral matter and repeated washing by rain enables the plant to benefit from this mineral substance. FOR AUTUMN COLOURS. PLANT JAPANESE MAPLES. The pleasing tones of autumn, red, gold, russet and yellow, always appeal to the lover of colour, but few gardeners make any effort to grow the shrubs which provide this brilliant leafage. Gardens that are sheltered from strong winds can be made very eolo.irful in summer and autumn if the Japanese maples are planted. There are many varieties of outstanding merit now obtainable in New Zealand, and among them we recommend: — Acer atropurpureum, which produces dark red to red foliage throughout spring, summer and autumn. Acer Davidii, a Chinese species with large, glossy leaves—green in summer, crimson in autumn. Acor dissectum atropurpureum, a dainty shrub of weeping habit. Red leaves. Acer griseum. One of the newer introductions. Has attractive or-tngc-coloured bark. Red and orange foliage. Acer seigen. This variety has brilliant red stems which stand out in striking contrast when planted among evergreens. CONSERVE SPACE. IN THE KITCHEN GARDEN Where space in the vegetable garden, is restricted, catch cropping or

inter-cropping may be practised to obtain the’ maximum amount of produce. The spaces between the rows cf. main crops are sown or planted with quick-growing kinds, which mature and are cleared off before the chief crops require the space. Between rows of peas there is usually a sp&e of several feet which can be utilised for lettuce, french teans, globe beetroot, spinach or radish. These catch crops can be sown a* the same time as the peas, or even later, when the pea seedlings are well above the ground. The shade afforded by the haulm of the peas is greatly appreciated, especially by lettuce and beetroot which develop quicker and are more tender and crisp than when grown in full sunlight.

Ridges between rows of celery may also be used for french beans and other early crops. The spaces between these crops often remain vacant until the end of summer, whereas they can be used for producing valuable salad plants. Brussels sprouts, kale, etc., are often planted between the rows of potatoes. Where this method is adopted, it is best, to plant between every other row, so that the potato haulm can be pushed away, from the catch-crop. In some districts broad beans are planted between main crop potatoes; the beans are. then gathered before the ready to dig.