IN THE GARDEN

Taranaki Daily News, 30 January 1930, Page 14

IN THE GARDEN

THE WEEK’S WORK. THE FLOWER GARDEN-,. Layering of border carnations. can be Rose budding cah. be commenced now. Chrysanthemums are making good ‘growth, but it is inclined to'be soft, - .and spraying will be necessary. . Keep the .plants securely tied.' The first . bud” will be forming, and in / .most oases should be removed, and the ■.: next dr, “second -crown”, taken. Only, allow .those shoots to’ develop that ' • }are to carry blooms. , .' Dahlias are growing -well, and a little " manure, such as superphosphate, jvill . . help the plants. The rampant growth has tend.ed to pro-, '^uceleaves- instead of -flowers, and nitrogenous manures should be . . avoided, . • ! - Remove some of the heedless inside ,’'/fihoota. It is ho use allowing the plant to develop into a thick mass of ..weak growths. By keeping, the plants , to a reasonable . size they' are much easier to hold up ; with;thevstakes. Bulbs'are now ready for lifting./ The ' ground for '-planting should be prespared. ' - ’ ' ’ ' *•; ' Roses have, done exceedingly weir this , season, and are now making a second .-.flowering. ■ The planting of many autumn flowering ■subjects can ' still be done. Polyanthus, cyclamen, primulas, Iceland ’ .'poppies, delphiniums, carnations, prim...roses can be sown mow. Continuous damp weather has made, constant hoeing necessary to keep weeds down. THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. There has' been no shortage, of vegetables so far; al! kinds have done remakably well. Further sowings of peas and beans can ■ ' be made. ( ' 4 .. - '■.’ ■■ ~ Cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and such like can be planted.' Ground that has carried a crop of potatoes can be planted with cabbage, etc., , without further digging. Clean off all spent crops and dig in ajl weeds to prevent- seeding. AH diseased potato or- pea haulm should • be burned. Do not place it on the rubbish heap to spread the disease. Tomatoes promised well, but the wet weather has caused a great loss owing to the spread of disease. Once the disease has a good hold little can be done to save the plants. Be careful to destroy by burning all diseased parts of.stems and fruits. Those that have managed the plants until now should keep them well sprayed and all lateral growths picked off. Add arsenate of lead to the spray mixture to keep off caterpillars. Lift the tops of the kumara plants to prevent them rooting at the joints. Keep the soil well stirred round the plants. . Lettuce can be sown. This season one of the easiest things to grow has been lettuce. Usually at this time of the year it means a lot of watering, etc. Cucumbers, marrows, pumpkins, are (growing fairly well, but need more warm sun to fruit properly. LAYERING HEATHS. ''These plants, amongst some of the finest hardy plants we have, are not very easily propagated. The above method is .one which- is often successful, especially where time or appliances are short. Some of the varieties of ericas are of lax, weak growth, and in these cases layering can be quite successfully done, but with the tall, erect, growing sorts care must be taken when bending them down that the stems are not broken, for the heath will not stand much breaking. Some good, finely-sifted sandy soil should be procured, and should be put round or close to the plant so that the pieces to be layered can be drawn down easily. The branches to be layered should, be very slightly cut with a knife, but it should only be a mere scratch. They should then be drawn down into the sandy compost, and held there by wooden pegs or by having stones placed on top. Thia latter method ia good, and one often used, as it tends to shade and keep the layers cool and moist. When well rooted the layers may bo severed and removed, -but it takes from twelve months to two years before a layer is ready to be moved, the latter period being the best to allow for. Unless a heath has plenty of roots, it- Is no good. WINTER TURNIPS. To ensure a good crop for winter use rather a large sowing of turnips should be made about the present time. They are best sown in shallow drills twelve inches apart. On very light soils durinn- a prolonged drought it is a good plan to draw drills three inches deep, putting two inches of a mixture of rotten manure, burnt refuse and a little bonemeal in the bottom and a half inch of soil on the top. Sow the seeds on this and cover at once. Should the weather come dry, give a watering in the evenings, afterwards dusting tnem with lime or°soot to ward off the fly. Directly the rough leaf forms thin them to six inches tpart. LATE GREENS. Vegetables are usually Very acccpteblri iurirm winter and early spring, and to supply thio want all vacant ground should be planted up so as to got a fall

return from - the cultivated ground. Ground, previously-. occupied • by early . potatoes, ; pnions and early. peas can be utilised for broccpli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, rborecole, savoys, etc. Beyond clearing off weeds and breaking the surface, no further preparation is- needed, as .such soils are well manured and prepared for the-previous crop. ' ' ■; GENTIANS. .. The. gentians . vary .'■ greatly in character, and success in their cultivation depends on situation as -much as soil. /Gentiana lutea. is, two or three feet high, has .very, broad -leaves, and J reduces many whorls of • yellow flower s. t will grow in' full exposure if planted in grass that is - not cut short. The blue-flowered-swallow.-tailed gentian (G. asclepidaea) like moisture, and this 'is .easy, to provide .by planting it in the shade. One .of the easiest to .grow is G. eeptemfida which has large blue flowers. It is six inches high, and will thrive upon a rockery ,or on a border iii any good soil that does not, get. dust dry: in summer. On the rockery a pocket .cap. be made for it with sandy soil and leaf mould. The gentianella (G, .acaulis) ds only two; or three inches high, arid has larger blue -flowers than the others, It may be. grown in an open' situation if the . soil is', trodden firm. The brilliant blue, G. verua, ’ thrives best in short grass on the margin of a, pond or tank, where the . water oozes into the turf. The lovely G. farreri, with large sky-blue flowers and a white throat,, is worthy- of cultivation in pots or small pans in a greenhouse, at- least through the winter. ' CARNATIONS. : ' ■ ■ / ; ■./ '• While carnations raised from seed do ■not reproduce the'exact characteristics of the plants which-produced the seeds, many very ‘ charming varieties can be raised in this way, and there is always . the possibility, of securing a really valuable sort, Carnations need a good and loamy soil, freely admixed with rotten manure. A desirable compost is pre-., pared by adding equal parts of sifted loam and sand, with a little'thoroughly decayed dung/. Sow the seeds now,. I placing them - half an inch apart on a firm surface in. well-drained pots in a close cold frame or oh a sheltered,border, and lay sheets of glass over the pots to check evaporation until the seeds have germinated. Pick out the seedlings two inches apart in: pans directly they are large enough to handle and stand them in a cold greenhouse, frame or pit. When about three., inches high prick them out, about four inches apart, into beds. MIGNONETTE. A. few well-grown pots of mignonette form’.a delightful addition to the greenhouse during winter. The best way is to sow a few seeds in a 4in pot,- filled with ordinary soil, with the addition of some . lime rubble. Thin out. the seedlings early to three or four to each pot, and. keep in a light, airy position. When the . flower heads begin to show, liquid manure will be an advantage. RESURRECTION PLANTS. Periodically horticultural novelties are offered in the way of so-ealle<i.re-surrection plants. The one that is having a run at- the present moment is Selaginella lepidophylla, the resurrection bulb moss, a close ally of the ferns. It is a native of South America, Texas and Peru. The cultivation is similar to other Selaginellas, needing a light open soil, plenty of moisture and shadeThere is another so-called resurrection plant, or Rose of Jericho, which probably has more right to the name, and that is Anastatica hierochuntina. This is an annual and native of. Syria, Palestine, and is said to be the “rolling thing before the wind” mentioned by Isaiah. It is a curious and interesting I annual, the leaves of which fall off from the plant after flowering. The branches and branchlete then become dry, hard and ligneous, rise upwards, and bend inwards- at their points. This plant has the remarkable property of resuming vitality after being kept in a dry state for many years. It can be grown from seeds, when such are obtainable, and the plants either grow in pots or in the open ground. As usually offered, it resembles a round rose-shaped ball of dry, dead Beck wood twigs, hence the name “Rose of Jericho.” In this case “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet” doei not apply.