IN THE GARDEN

Taranaki Daily News, 27 September 1930, Page 15 (Supplement)

IN THE GARDEN

WORK FOR THE WEEK. THE FLOWER GARDEN. Plant Acacia, Eucalyptus, Jacaranda, Luculiia and other tender pot-grown trcpfS.. Complete the planting of Lilies. They are best planted in circular groups in the border or in beds. Cannas can now* be lifted, divided and replanted. Chrysanthemum cuttings can be inserted. Use a. sandy compost and keep close till rooted.'but. give ventilation as soon as rooted. The old roots of Dahlias should be brought out of store and stood on a bed of soil to start. ,’ Complete any further planting of ornamental trees and shrubs or hedg: plants. Plant Gladioli bulbs. Use no manure except it is a little slag or bonedust. Make sowings of hardy annuals, such as Ponpies, Ciarkia, Godetias, Linums, Eschscholtzia. Plant Richardia Elliotiana, the yellow Arum Lily. Dig in any soiling crops, such as oats, vetches, clover, in readiness for planting. , THE VEGETABLE GARDEN. A sowing of Peas can be made to keep up a succession. Potatoes can be planted; those that are up should be. sprayed and earthed 11 pMake sowings of Spinach, Beet, Turnips, Lettuce and Radish. Lettuce is best sown thinly and allowed to develop. Those pulled out to thin the row- can be uncd. Rhubarb can be planted. Well manured soil is required. Draw the soil up to the steins of Peas and Cabbage. Autumn sown Onions can bo plantec.. A firm soil is required. Onion need can be sown. A line soil and firm, with shallow drills, gives the best results. Seedling plants will need careful watching to preserve them from slugs and birds. , i-i Take everv opportunity when the soil is workable to stir between growing crops. If very weedy, skim with' a spade 01 fork the weeds under. . Spray Peach and other stone fruit as the buds show pink to control brown rot and leaf curl. If trees are in flower wait until petals fall, then spray. Spray for scale oh Apples as the buds begin to show a green tip. REPOTTING ASPIDISTRAS. Aspidistras are best divided in 'spring, but the actual time depends on the facilities available. If there is a warm greenhouse, repotting and division may be done from March onwards; but failing artificial warmth, it is better to wait until Mav, when the natural conditions will be more favourable. Any. rrood soil will suit for Aspidistras, it should not be too heavy. If it has to be made up, two parts loam, one part leaf-mould, and a dash of sand will do nicely.. Turn the old plant out of the pot and shake away the soil. Put plenty of crocks in a clean pot, half fill it with soil, and put a stake in, to keep the plant in position while the rest of the eoil is filled in and worked well around the roots. Later on, when the plant has established itself, it will not need this stake, which can be withdrawn. The roots will be found to consist of creeping stems (rhizomes), with leaves arising on the upper side and roots on the under side. These rhizomes can be cut with a sharp knife (see that each piece has three or four leaves), and potted up separately if desired. Do not use too large a size of pot. meat versus vegetables. The substitution of vegetables for meab as articles of food would have been a counsel of perfection in the sixteenth century, the price of vegetables being then, in many cases, prohibitive. There were no kitchen gardens in England at that time. Only in 1500 were carrots and turnips first imported from Flanders,' while the cauliflower was unknown until 1588, when it was introduced from Egypt. Turnips, however, were well known by the end of the sixteenth century, and those grown at Hackney became celebrated. The potato w'as also introduced about the same time, but cost Is a lb. SWEET PEA TRIALS. The Horticulture Advertiser says: There were ninety trials this year, eight of which received awards, and although the committee thought it well to warn us that the trials were judged in a strong wind, we do not think that their decisions will be quite so heavily criticised as. in the pant, lhe following n u m bers rece i ved a wards: Gold medal, No. 38, Ambition (Thos. Cullen), a very large lavender, or lavender mauve, when growing naturally; a very good pea, but scarcely distinct enough for such a high award. Award of merit, No. 5b (Ireland and Hitchcock), a mid-blue, showing little of the objectionable mauve tint, with very large frilled blooms, well placed in fours; a good exhibition pea afid very floriferous. No. 13, Damask Rose (Thos. Cullen), brilliant carmine rose, deepening almost to crimson in the older blooms; very free. No. 29, Burpee, a cream pink, witn a salmon ro<se flush; flower well placed, with duplex duple standards; very gopd varietv. No. 39 (C. C. Morse), greyish lavender, flushed reddish mauve in the standard The large blooms were as frilled as those of the ruffled type, but well placed in fours on a long , stem, with duplex standardly on all four blooms, and we consider this the greatest advance in sweet pea development in the trials. Although it contained a lavender rogue it was allowed to receive an award°under the new rule. No. 62. Orange Flare (Carter), a distinct shade of deep orange, which is difficult to describe exactly; the plants carried a remarkable crop of bloom. No. 65, Pink Glow (E. W. King), a laro-e flower, delicately flushed with pale orange, tinted with pink; a very pretty flower, especially for table decoration. No. 69a, a white of Constant Hinton tvpe, but most of the sprays carried fivd blooms, and we counted several with six. There were many other intercisting varieties which did not receive awards. No. 35 (E. IV. King), was a fine stronggrowing cream, and No. 36, a aven er sent in bv an amateur (Major Baiton), attracted’a lot of attention. Messrs. Hurst, sent in a very distinct variety, No 31, with the outside of the wings and standard bright salmon scarlet and the inside flushed with the same colour on a white ground. No. 17 (Morse), was a good pale ceritse. and there weie two very beautiful varieties which dif-

fered very slightly from the fawn. It was very satisfactory to those interested in the sweet pea to see so many varieties, which mark an advance in sweet pea. development, and to find the trials so splendidly grown. EARLY POTATO GROWING. A series of potato -growing experiments carried out in the Pukekohe district by the Department of Agriculture resulted in the following rceommendatioiirs in regard to manuring: —(I) Lse a mixture of 12 to 15ewt. superphosphate and 4 (o 6cwt. sulphate of ammonia per acre; or (2) 4 to 6cwt. diammonphos per acre (the respective prices of these fertilisers should determine which is to be used). (3) The inclusion of about 2ewt. potash per acre is an established practice In the experiments conducted the potash wa<s of no value in increasing yield and there was no evidence to show it conferred other benefits. Further experiments are necessary before the Department is prepared' to advocate the exclusion of potash. (4) Do not distribute the manure too widely in the rows, the indications are that it is better to put it in a narrow strip a few inches in width along the row of sets. It mu<>t be ‘clearly understood that these recommendations may be subject- to modification as further evidence is gained from experiment. MIGNONETTE. No garden should be without a patch of mignonette. The flowers are so very sweet scented and they greet one with a delightful whiff of fragrance at all times of the day and night. The soil where mignonette, is to be grown should be well dug and should have a little leaf mould and plenty of coarse sand mixed with it. The roots of mignonette seem to appreciate the presence of plenty of gritty matter in the soil. If the ground i<s dry soak it thoroughly with water about'an hour before sowing the seed. Prick into the surface soil a sprinkling of bonedust just before sowing the seed. .Just cover the seed with a. little earth and as soon as the seedlings are big enough thin them out till they arc 3in. or 4in. apart each way, and' nip off the tips of the plants left. TUBEROUS BEGONIAS. Fine new varieties of tuberous begonias can be obtained from 6ceds, which should be sown early so as to get good plants that will flower out of doors during the summer. By this means a larger batch can be grown than if they are all grown in pots. During the summer the outstanding varieties can be picked out for pot cultivation the following season. CARNATIONS FROM SEED. Growing carnations from seeds is very fascinating, and may be. carried out in the small garden. They are quite hardy, and may be grown outside without any shelter whatever. The seed should be sown in spring. It is best to sow in pots or boxes of light soil. Well drain the box by having plenty of holes in the bottom, and covering them with pieces of broken pots or scoria. Use good soil, not heavily manured, but a<s fresh as possible. The soil should be firmed, the surface smoothed over, and the seeds sown one at. a time about an inch pressing them into the soil with the tip of the finger about a quarter of an inch deep. A pinch of fine soil on each will be enough covering. Cover with a piece of glass to throw off any heavy rains. Very little water will be ’ needed if the boxes are put in the shade till the plants are up. When the seedlings are large enough they can be planted 12 inches apart, into a bed to flower. A certain proportion will be single, and can be pulled up as soon as seen. Others may be double, and, although not good enough for naming, will give blooms for cutting. The seedlings make large plants, and give abundance of blooms. Any that are worth saving should be marked for layering when the t'ime comes. Although many flower the first summer it is often the second year before some of the seedlings bloom. OUTDOOR VINES. The average vine growing outside is treated to little care, and is usually found growing in a more or less half wild condition. If regularly pruned and the growths tied and regulated in summer, they will provide some good Wholesome fruit. Spraying will be necessary to keep down mildew, and this is best done bv using wettablc or atomic sulphur. The spraying should be done at intervals, depending somewhat on weather conditions, but about every three weeks is sufficient. No spraying should be done while the vine<? arc in flower. The pruning consists of cutting back the lateral growths to one or two good eyes close to the main rod or branches if more than 'one has been allowed to grow. However, too many branches should not be allowed, as the vine, will carry a heavy crop on a small area of branches. 'See that the ties aie substantial and will keep the rods secure throughout the season. Do not forget that vigorous growth and heavy crops cannot be had if the soil is at all pool. A mulching of cow or horse manure is good, but failing that, give a dressing of super now, and one or two applications of blood; and bone during the •growing season. Keep the surface soil well broken’and do not attempt to grow flowers or vegetables close up to the stem if you are expecting to have a crop of grapes. Seeing what the ideal shape of a vine is like, remove some uf the voting growths that will appear so as to throw the energies of the plant into the laterals, which will carry next season's fruit. PRUNING ROSES. The correct pruning of newly-planted roses is often a puzzle to beginners. They read perhaps in the grower s catalogue that it is best to think of the future growth of the plant and to prune away all growth to within an inch or so of the ground. Such treatment helps in the production of fibrous roots, for the whole energy of the plant is turned in that direction. Then when it is well furnished in its underground quarters it will begin pushing out young shoots, whic . grow with extraordinary rapidity. All this is so logical that no gardener with any experience would dare to contradict ‘it, but it takes no account of those who would like to see a. few flowers the first year after planting. To them we would say prune the strongest shoots back one-third of their length, the medium to two-thirds of their length and the weakest away altogether. By doing this you will not subject the newly-planted tree to too much strain, and it will be able to maintain an even balance between roots and branches. Flowers there will certainly be the following year, although not in such quantities a«s to interfere with the production of new growth. All ramblers flower on shoots made the previous year,'and they should be

enocuraged during the growing season. We never consider ours are doing well unless they are crowded with flowers above, and yet producing those sturdy shoots from the base which are the promise of a further harvest in the following year. And when in our walks about the garden in the late spring we do not see them we commence to feed the trees regularly- each week with liquid manure until they appear. Sometimes. however, they will not appear, usually in a dry spell, and then you must leave the old stems on your arch or pergola, and just cut back the actual shoots which have borne the flowers. Ramblers should be pruned just as soon as they have finished flowering; the way to do it is to cut through all the ties and spread the growth out on the ground. Then take your seccateurs or knife and remove the old stems as close to the ground as possible and. later tie the young shoots of this year’s growth in their place.