Gardening Notes

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 59, Issue 4220, 6 December 1939, Page 10

Gardening Notes

, FLOWERS. The more tender bedding plants, sucji as dahlias, salvias, zinnias, fuchsias, tuberous rooted begonias, cosmea, and heliotropes may now be plaited with safety. Mulch azaleas, rhododendrons and kalmias with lawn clippings, well decayed manure or sawdust. Remove all spent flowers. To allow the seed to mature is a drain on the vitality of the plant. Cut out and burn any dead branches on flowering shrubs or trees. Polyanthus, primroses and auriculas may now be lifted, divided and planted in a shaded position in the reserve garden. Sow polyanthus, primroses and auriculas to produce plants for next spring’s display. Complete the planting of all bedding plants as soon as possible. Cut back cerastium, aubrietia and arabis as soon as it has finished its display. Pot grown hydrangeas may still be planted. Disbud roses 4f special blooms are desired. Hoe the rose bed frequently. Plant chrysanthemums and dahlias, geraniums and cannas. VEGETABLES. At present there is much to be done in the vegetable department. Where ground has been recently dug give it time to settle before planting or sowing. Plants will not take root or seeds germinate when the soil is full of air pockets. Make the soil firm and the seeds will germinate much better. Pay attention to early thinning of all crops that need it. Experience has proved that if each plant does not obtain enough root and leaf space in its seedling stages it never comes to its full development. Prepare position and sow vegetable marrows, pumpkins, squash and cucumbers. Plant cabbage and lettuce plants. Sow a line of parsley. Sow French, butter and runner beans. Dust hortnap deep down through the soil where French and butter beans are to be £rown. These plants are liable to a fungus disease. Hortnap will prevent this from developing. Sow salsify and scorzonera. Give

these an open position. Sow main crop beet and carrots. Sow also, for succession, carrots, peas, spinach, lettuce, radish, turnips and beet . Plant out tomatoes, but before doing so give the', ground a dressing of lime. These plants like a sweet soil. Sow now for autumn and winter crops, savoys, kale, broccoli and cabbage. It is time now to make a sowing of maize should it be needed. Do not make the ground too rich for this crop. FRUIT. Mulch strawberries with straw litter to keep the fruit clean. Spray apples, pears and quinces with arsenate of lead to control the codlin moth grub. Use this at the rate of loz to 4 gallons of water. WAR ON PESTS AND DISEASES. In every garden the gardener must wage a continual war against pests and diseases. He must not wait until they make their appearance, but preventive measures must be taken, and if pests do appear or disease is present immediate action must be taken, for both insect pests and diseases spread rapidly. In some cases where these enemies of the gardener have a good .hold com-

plete eradication is difficult, but they can be driven out and controlled by constant applications of various insecticides and solutions.

Pests may be divided roughly into two classes. There are those that feed on the foliage, fruit and flowers, and there are sucking insects.

For the insects that fee'd on the foliage, etc., a poisonous spray is necessary, so that the insect is poisoned when feeding. Arsenate of lead may be used successfully for these pests. Use either in paste or powder form. Arsenate of lead can also be used combined with lime or sulphur solution to make complete insect and fungus spray. For sucking insects such as scale, aphides, thrip, red spider, mites, etc. a contact spray may be used, such as lime and sulphur solution, nicotine and tobacco water. For delicate foliage plants the best remedy is tobacco water with a little soft soap mixed in. Fungus diseases are prevalent in some gardens, and black spot, mildew, rust and leaf curl are the most common. They can be controlled only by repeated applications of lime and sulphur solution or potassium sulphurate (liver af sulphur). For blight on potatoes or grapes use Bordeaux mixture. Waxy scale may be cleaned from trees by spraying with a soapy mixture. ROSES. The rose, in common with all garden plants, is subject to attack by disease and numerous insect pests, from which considerable damage can be done. The most important point in the eradication of disease or pests is to attack in the early stages when the first signs appear. Most insect pests increase very rapidly, and disease spreads quickly, but if steps are taken early for eradication the gardener should meet with success; it is only when well established that difficulty is experienced. Mildew, one of the most common diseases of the rose, is caused by continued dryness of the plants, variations of heat and cold, or overcrowded growing conditions. An easily applied remedy is flowers of sulphur. This should be dusted on the leaves and steps when they are damp. Black spot is sometimes troublesome. With this disease black or purplish blotches are formed on the leaves, and their premature fall results. aGther up and burn all leave's or pieces of the plant that fall, and spray with Bordeaux mixture.

Rose rust is a serious disease if allowed to become established. Remove and burn all affected foliage, and spray with potassium sulphide. “Gumming” causes considerable worry at times. Usually plants most affected are those which produce large, full blooms. The buds appear in large numbers, but. they remain tightly closed or wither and fall off. If possible, plants so affected should be moved to a new position, or the soil in the immediate vicinity of the plant should be top dressed with good artificial manure, or a weekly application of liquid manure water may be given. Hard pruning and heavy disbudding will help to check the tendency to drop the buds. Of insect pests green fly or rose aphis is perhaps the most troublesome. The pests increase with lightning rapidity; each insect will give birth to about 25 young each day' and these young in their turn when there days old are similarly prolific. One of the most satisfactory methods of eradication is to spray the affected plants

with a solution of soft soap and quassia. Red spider and scale usually make their appearance when the plants are grown under unfavourable conditions. Spraying the plants with insecticide will prove effective. HINTS FOR THE WEEK. Sow your lettuce seeds where the plants are to grow. They must be kept moist and protected from the heat of the mid-day sun. After repotting bush house plants see that the benches are well cleaned before replacing the pots. If the pots are on shelves in ashes these should be cleared away and replaced with fresh ashes. Before using old stakes stand them in boiling water to thoroughly cleanse from pests. Carrots germinate quicker at this time of the year than at any other period. Sow very thinly in rows. The shorthorn variety is the best for the average gardener. It matures quickly if kept well watered, and the hoe used frequently between the rows. Pentstemon cuttings, struck during the autumn, should be transplanted into their permanent beds. If properly treated delphiniums will have a second blooming. The flower spikes should be cut down close to the ground as soon as the blooms have faded. Then the plant should be thoroughly watered, and as soon as new growth is active liquid manure may be given, and the mulching renewed. THE GLADIOLUS. SOIL AND FOOD REQUIREMENTS. Gladiolus can be planted until midJanuary. They take an average of 100 to 110 days to flower from the time of planting, so plant according to the time you would like them to bloom. If it can be easily avoided, it is best not to plant gladiolus in the same soil year after year, for this encourages disease. But if care be taken that only sound bulbs be planted gladiolus can be grown on the same land year after year without seriously depleting the soil, for the gladiolus is not as hard on the land as are some crops. A rich, deep soil is to be preferred, and deep ploughing or digging will help it; many growers prefer a sandy loam, but almost any type of soil may be used with good success.

Generally speaking, soils that will grow good corn, garden vegetables or flowers will suit the gladiolus quite well. Despite the opinions of many growers and fanciers to the contrary, gladiolus are not heavy feeders and require only moderate fertilising. Well decayed cow manure, sheep manure, ground none, bone flour and wood ashes are mild fertilisers and may be used at any time; or a good chemical fertiliser suitable for potatoes may be worked into the soil and thoroughly mixed with the earth before planting. If chemical fertilisers are used, do not use too much, and above all, see that the fertiliser particles do not come into contact with the planted corms. About 11b to the 100 feet of row is sufficient application of a high grade fertiliser.