IN THE GARDEN

Taranaki Daily News, 3 October 1929, Page 18

IN THE GARDEN

THE WEEK’S WORK. THE FLOWER GARDEN. Camellias, azaleas, rhododendrons, and and. any pot-grown shrubs, can be planted out. Early flowering shrubs, such as abutillons, bouvardias, daphnes, lasiandras, should, be pruned as soon as they begin to make new growth. Many of these choico and less tender subjects are spoilt for the sake of a little timely pruning; if left unpruned they become leggy and untidy. Seeds of many hardy annuals can be sown outside; do not cover deeply, and watch for birds and other pests. Newly planted trees and shrubs should have surface soil stirred, and in many cases staking will bo necessary to support them against high winds. Bedding plants of most kinds can be planted now. The soil is now in perfeet condition for planting. Sow seeds of . salvia, petunias, schizanthus, balsams, celosias, and other tender subjects, under glass. Chrysanthemums will now be pushing up cuttings, and as soon as a couple of inches high they should be taken off and rooted in sandy soil. Old stools of chrysanthemums can be lifted, and the offsets broken off and planted up. Prepare the ground for planting chrysanthemums; a rich soil is necessary, but as they are shallow rooting plants, do not put tho manuro down deep. . Gannas that have been left in the ground, and have made large clumps, should be taken up and divided every year. Michaelmas daisies and perennial phlox , should bo and single offsets planted. Grown in a similar manner to chrysanthemums, the results are better than when the clumps are left year after year. Roses are growing freely. Watch for aphis, and at first signs give a spray o’f nicotine. Roses are gross feeders, and respond well to applications of liquid manure. Prepare the ground for asters. The wilt disease has been so prevalent of late years that it will be advisable to treat tho soil with some fumigant. Cinerarias that are beginning to flower . must be watched for. aphis. A spray witli nicotine given in time will check the pest before it gets a chance to damage the plants. Anemones are flowering freely. Keep the old blooms closely cut. If seed is required, save only one or two of tho best flowers. Carnations are growing freely, and the plants should be cleaned and the surface soil - stirred. An application of bohediist stirred into the soil will benefit them. As soon as the flower shoots of carnations begin to run ,up, the plants should bo staked., The ideal carna- .. tion support is yet to be invented, and three or four stakes placed round the plant with, strands of raffia tied round at intervals is still as satisfactory as any method.. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. Since the improved weather conditions there has been no end of work in this department. Potato planting can be continued. Early planted crops should be sprayed and moulded up. When moulding up the potatoes the first time sprinkle a little nitrate of soda alongside tho rows. Jerusalem artichokes can be planted. These can be used as a screen for un- ■ tidy corners, although in a well kept garden there should, be no untidy corners. . Autumn sown onions can be planted. . Shorten back the tops and roots. Firm ground is necessary, but avoid deep planting. ,- Weed and thin out seedling crops. Where tho space between the rows is very weedy turn it over with the garden fork. The best' protection against - slugs and snails is clean ground. Avoid heaps of weeds and rubbish; open a trench, dump in all rubbish, and cover up every week. New asparagus beds can be. planted. The established beds should be given a little nitrate of soda. Afterwards mulch with short manure or seaweed. Rhubarb beds can be planted. A deeply [ - trenched and manured soil is required for the best results. I Sowings of' lettuce, radish, should be i made to keep up supplies of saladings. Sowing of parsnips should be made without delay. Broccoli and Brussel sprouts Also need to be sown early. ' Make plantings of cauliflowers, cabbage, leeks, beetroot, lettuce. Further sowing of peas can be made. The earlier sown should be moulded up, and also have sticks placed to ' them. Tomato plants should be well hardened off prior to planting out. The weather is such that it will induce many to plant tomatoes in the open. Should . present conditions hold it will be all right, but a few cold, stormy days will spoil tho chances. Where ample protection, or in warm, sheltered positions, tomatoes can be planted, but in the average garden next month is soon enough. Sowings of marrows and pumpkins,-can bo made. Make provision for protection in case bad. weather comes. MANURES FOR POTATOES. In cases where stable manure is difficult to procure, beneficial results have

been obtained by the use of sulphate of ammonia and agricultural salt as a fertiliser. The two ingredients are mixed together in the proportion of three parts salt to one of sulphate of ammonia. The mixture is then broadcasted over the ground, after the tubers aro planted, at the rate of 2oz to the square yard. DANDELIONS. To destroy dandelions cut the tops off iii tlio spring and place a pinch of salt or a little gas-tar on the fresh wound. The root of the dandelion, when boiled, makes an excellent tonic, especially useful in liver, complaints. Further, the young shoots of the dandelion are delicious in salads. The flower itself makes excellent wine, picked in full bloom in dry weather. The juice from the stem is very good for warts on the hands. TYING UP COS LETTUCE. These are not grown a great deal, but there are some who prefer them. When well.. grown they have no equal for flavour and crispness. Many fail in not knowing exactly when to tie up the leaves to properly blanch the hearts. They should not *be tied until nearly full size. Tying should Hot be done, tightly. The material used for tying should be soft wool or raffia. The plants should never be tied, except when quite dry. The ties should be put nearly to the top of the leaves, just now enough to get a grip of the leaves. THE BEST WAY TO STICK PEAS. Oftentimes sticks, are put in upright, and the peas fall through between then!. Always lean the sticks by going along one side of the row and back the other. One row of sticks may lean up the row, and the other down the row. Keep the sticks as wide at the top as at the bottom. Use small twigs to fill in any holes in the bottom. Peas done in this way very seldom fall through the sticks. . TO GROW CARROTS IN CLAY SOIL. ■ The best, way to grow carrots on a clay soil is to grow them on ridges. The ground should be forked over early in spring, and made as friable as possible; then . set out a line, and, with a drawhoe, draw the soil up into a mound one foot high and the same at the base. Make it straight and even, then, holding tho tool horizontally, press the . handle into the top of the ridge to the depth of an inch. This forms a drill. Sprinkle the seed in gently, and break over the top of the edges of the drill. When the carrots are through, and about an inch high, thin them, and do not forget to press tho soil close round the young plants left. This will • keep, away the carrot-fly. By this method a good crop of clean carrots can be grown, but not good enough to rely om for exhibition. Some may think the carrots may suffer from tho ridges becoming dry, but this is not so, especially if the seed is sown when tho soil is thoroughly moist, for then soon the good foliage shades the ridges. > A COMPLETE MANURE. . . A complete artificial manure must contain the three elements — nitrogen, phosphoric acid, and potash. The effect of the'first is to increase leaf production and growth, retarding the ripening of wood; phosphates, on the other hand, hasten the ripening of the plant, and so restrict the production of foliage; potash is .largely utilised by-the rose, and is said to give “quality” to. the flowers. TRANSPLANTING ONIONS. To save time in all garden work in spring is essential, and the following method is very useful in transplanting autumn-sown onions from seed-boxes. Draw drills as you would sow the seed. Take tho seedlings from the box, part .them, and lay the roots along the bottom of .the drill. Fill in a. little soil and tread down on tho rpots lightly-foot by foot. Then level back the remainder of the soil and proceed to. plant in the next drill. .USEFUL TOOL-RACK. The following idea will be found useful for handing gardening tools in the garden shed. Procure a length of wood about threequarters of an inch thick, and some threoinch nails. . Hammer the nails in about one inch from each other, about halfway into the timber; the tools will hang between the nails, making an excellent tool - rack. Each pair of nails should be about four or five inches from the next pair, allowing room for the different tools. Tho tool rack should then bo fixed to tho wall of tho garden :shed, and tho sight of-the tools packed neatly upon the rack, will more than reward you for the small trouble involved. TOMATO PLANTING. Suitable manuring and rotation of crops are most important; Though plants differ in tho way of producing their respective products, experience has taught us that it is not wise to plant these in successive years. • Tomato fruits above the ground and potatoes are borne on the roots, but they are so allied to each other in their growth that trouble with disease ‘has often occurred where one has been planted in a plot where the other had been grown.

{ Though many growers make rotation of crops as study, some of them do not consider it of such importance, it is a well-known fact that ground that has been planted for successive years with the same class of crop will be depleted in the certain class of plant food required to develop that crop. BEETROOT. SUMMER CULTIVATION. There are three different types of beetroot grown by the vegetable grower —the familiar turnip rooted variety, the long carrot rooted varieties and the varieties know as silver beet, which arc grown for their leaves. . TIME TO SOW. Though tho time to sow. the main crop is in tho autumn months, beetroot can be sown at almost any time. The best time to make a sowing of seed for the summer crop is August and September. If several different varieties aro sown of both the turnip and carrot rooted sorts, this will also help to prolong tho season. The silver beet can be grown at any time and pushed along in the same way as lettuce, with fertilisers, etc., so as to stimulate leaf growth. The green of the leaves is used as spinach and the ribs as celery —quite a useful sort of vegetable. SOIL AND MANURE. A good, rich, sandy soil gives the best results, and particularly for the long varieties, the deeper the soil the better. If the soil is but shallow the turnip rooted varieties only should be tried. Like all root crops, beetroot should never be grown on freshly manured ground, as any fresh manure in the soil tends to make the roots “fork,” and it is often found that there is not a well-shaped root in a whole bed. A plot of ground which has already been well manured' for a previous crop as lettuce or some' other leaf crop, will suit beetroot admirably. If you aro going to 'try the long-rooted varieties, then give the ground a thorough trenching, as this will give the roots plenty of loose soil in which to develop to the best advantage. In this ease manuro may be buried deep down in the trench, say, about 12 to 15 inches from tho surface. SOW SEED. Beet seed is cheap and so tfio seeds should always be sown where they are to mature, not sown in a seed bed and transplanted. One of the principal causes of failure with most amateur gardeners is the habit of transplanting beet, the plants probably purchased from a seed store and subject to much illtreatment before they obtain a grip on tho soil. -Sow the seed in drills, and, as the plants grow, thin out the weaklings ■ carefully . till your selected plants stand about three to four inches apart in the rows. Tho rows should be 18 inches apart at least. MULCH IN, WARM WEATHER. Keep tho weeds down between the rows as tho -plants develop, and never forget to watei* the plants. As the' summer conies near a mulching with wellrotted cow or stable manure will help in the maturing of well-formed roots. An occasional watering with sulphate of potash, loz in a gallon of water, will also go to tho making of large solid roots. ' When tho plants are ready to pull the largest should be pulled first; usually the roots stand well out of the soil, but if they happen to be buried to the shoulders, the soil may be scraped aw r ay from all in turn till a good size one is discovered ready for use.