IN THE GARDEN

Taranaki Daily News, 15 August 1931, Page 27 (Supplement)

IN THE GARDEN

WORK FOR THE WEEK. THE FLOWER GARDEN. Take advantage of fine days to get borders dug and manured. And dahlias not lifted should be lifted at once. Any gladioli bulbs left in the ground should be lifted at once. Lupins, delphiniums, and phlox can be planted. Herbaceous plants can be lifted and divided. Manure and dig over herbaceous borders. When planting in old herbaceous borders, add a few spadesful of new coil. Fork over ground when very weedy. Seedlings can be planted out, if weather conditions improve. Prune roses. Collect aiid burn the prunings. Spray roses.' Manure and dig the beds. Tie in shoots of climbing, roses..

THE VEGETABLE' GARDEN.

Dig over vacant plots. Fork over weedy ground between crops. Prepare onion ground. Planting can be Commenced. Box potato sets to sprout. Potatoes can be planted once soil is suitable. Make a cowing of. dwarf peas. Seeds eown must be protected from birds. , ; Sow seeds shallow at this time of the year. ... Draining by means, of pipes and open ditches is the best help in the growing vegetables. Sow tomatoes for early planting. Protection of some kind is essential. Plant new fruit trees. Prune fruit .trees, collect and burn prunings. Spray fruit trees. It is the early sprayings that are the most effective. Spraying is a preventive—there is no cure for a damaged leaf.

MAKING A ROSE BED. No matter what the nature o f the soil may be, trenching is of the utmost importance. It is not easy on any land to make the soil too rich for roses. Some happy individuals are so situated that it is only necessary to plant their roses in the original soil to get a good return of bloom, but even in such a case trenching is beneficial. If the soil on which it is intended to plant' roses be good old pasture (that is, virgin soil), for the first season nothing will be necessary beyond a dressing of good manure; but where the grower has the exhibition table in view, or where the very b'e6't«'w ! e^u()^cd = ,f O . l b l 601116 a PPI I S’?C. tion of other foods willliave to be applied. PERPETUAL CARNATIONS. Cuttings of these may be taken at any time now. The cuttings are really the tender points of shoots, which are pulled out about three inches in length. Remove a. few of their lower leaves and Insert them in well-drained pots or shallow boxes filled with pure sand. A little sifted loam and leaf soil can be added, but the mixture must ot be at all rich or the cuttings may damp off wholesale. Place the pots in a propagator and keep them shaded from the sun. They should root readily, and they should go singly into small pots in

, O O v< a a compoet of two parte of light loam to one part of leaf soil and sand in equal proportions. The temperature of an ordinary greenhouse suite them. NOTES ON ASPARAGUS. Few vegetables are more highly esteemed than asparagus, and a well-cared-for bed gives good returns. Yet you will often find the beds allowed to remain in an uncared for condition until it is time to commence gathering the crop. To be successful the beds should be at all times kept free from weeds and a high standard of cultivation adopted, and although it is only in the best kept gardens that a weedless bed may be seen during that period when most of us find the work more pressing, there is no reason why it should not be got in good order before severer weather comes. Not only do the weeds come up more readily, but the danger of spoiling countless heads through the injudicious use of the weeding tool is not nearly as likely now ;.s when the cleaning off is deferred until spring.

SMALL SHRUBS FOR BORDERS. Erica pyramidalis is one of the most useful for this purpose. It is evergreen, begins to open its blossom in April, just at the time when early frosts cut dahlias, and other summer flowering plants, and is at its best during June and July, when flowers are very scarce and the border is very dull. Another bright plant is the Jesamine Nudiflorum. This flowers all through the winter and early spring, and its bright yellow flowers are very cheerful during the dullest season in the garden. The Japonica (Cydonia) make good shrubs for this purpose, flowering during July and August and September. Forsythia Suspensa is another fine plant for tins purpose. With a little attention it ean be kept quite dwarf, from three to four feet high. It begins to flower in August, and makes a great show for about six , weeks. In the autumn its leaves give splendid tints in brown, red, cream and gold. It must be distinctly understood that these shrubs must not be planted close to each other, as the object is to break the bare appearance of the border during the winter and early spring months, when the herbaceous plants are leafless; taking their winter rest. SOLOMON’S SEAL. This plant, at one time a great favourite, has fallen much in favour, probably because it is very often seen in a poor, exhausted condition. To grow this plant to perfection, it requires I frequent division, and to be planted in light, rich soil. When it is left to become overcrowded the soil soon becomes exhausted by its vigorous growth and rapid increase of stems. It is, however, a plant that is specially amenable to the effects of cultivation. The stems rise from ISin. to 3ft. or more, and to see such tall plants clothed with fine foliage from base to summit, and their graceful bending stems furnished with numbers of drooping white seals, is one of the most pleasing sight to be seen among flowers. ■ It la pleasing when 'grown as a pot plant and when potted ■'Ujt 'any time during winter it rnay ■ be ■ forced into flower With a moderate heat. ’

CHRYSANTHEMUMS. Cuttings that were inserted early should be examined to ascertain if roots have been formed. When roots arc 6een, the plants should be taken out of the progapating case and placed as near the glass as possible, in order that from the first they may produce strong and healthy growth. Cuttings to produce large blooms may still be put in, and should, if it can be so managed, be put in singly in thumb | ots. When treated so the little plants are not so much disturbed when being potted on.

TREATMENT OF FORCED BULBS.

Often, after being subjected to a forcing temperature, bulbs are thrown away as useless. . They are certainly.weakened, but if given good treatment . they will, recover their strength in a- few years. If planted out in- a piece of ground where they, can remain undisturbed for a few years, the bulbs will once more grow naturally and produce flowers. Do not attempt to dry off rhe bulbs prematurely, when in pots they soon appear to ripen off if watering is not attended to. Select a suitable position, and as soon as the bulbs have finished flowering, turn them out of the pot or vase and plant them, retaining as many of the roots as possible

PEACHES AND NECTARINES. These carry their fruit on wood made the wood to leave is the young shoots last 6ea<son, consequently in pruning, with plump buds. The majority of these are on the ends of the older wood and on the outer portion of the tree. When these young shoots are strong and over Sin. long they can be cut back half their length, if necessary, but it is by no means essential, depending up n the shape and size of tree. Leave sufficient of these shoots to carry a crop, and as evenly distributed over the tree as possible. When cutting back a shcot, remember that the idea is to produce shoote that will carry fruit the following season. If the tree is allowed to keep on producing these'fruiting ehoots by the growing of the top bude the result is that the fruit is on the ends of thin branches that are thrashed by the wind. One of the chief aims of pruning is the production of good fruitbearing wood in the right position,. and as near to a good strong brand as possible, eo that threshing is reduced to a minimum. HERBACEOUS BORDERS. Where herbaceous be<Ls ami borders have to be arranged, the work should “SF-pifshed on as fast as possible. The long spells of mild w’eathei- will encourage some plants to make-an...early_ growth, and all transplanting should be finished as soon ae possible. Many of the herbaceous plants increase so fast that it is necessary to transplant them every second season. Retain the outeide portions, and discard the centre. The arrangement of plants is one that affords great scope for taste. In large borders the best results are obtained from bold groups of the different kinds. The system of one plant only of one kind is not a good one if there are a number available. Another mistake is to arrange the plants so that all the tall kinds are at the back, and all the dwarf at the front. This is too formal

and stiff. A bold group of delphi. iums quite near tbe front is very effective, and clumps of another subject at a little distance, with more dwarf kinds between, is more natural and much more effective. Another important point is to so distribute the kinds over the border as to have some in flower nearly all the season. Dig deep, and work in plent/ of welldecayed manure. In large borders it is well to put in a shrub or two that flower in winter and early spring—to relieve the bareness of the border during these seasons. HINTS ON PLANTING ROSES. When planting dwarf cv climbing roses, all of which are budded close to the ground, the point of union should bejjust below the surface. Make the hole large enough to lay the roots out their full length in a natural way. There is no need to be mathematically correct, all that is needed is to lay out the roots without any twists, and see that two or three are not bundled to-

gether. Another matter to attend to is to cut back any damaged roots. Do i.ot be afraid, cut them off with a sharp , knife or secateurs. Where there is a ragged end to a root, which ha<s had the end broken off, trim this also. This seems a bad practice to an aina- . teur with a badly bruised plant, i have to cut nearly all the roots away, but it should be done without exception, for often these bruised places give rise to suckers, and there is nothing more rubbishy and distasteful than a suckering plant. It is only fit and curable by being put on. the fire heap. After the rose is in position fill in the soil carefully over the roots, and make very firm by treading. Add no manure at the time of planting. If none has been added to the soil, and some is needed, add it when the plant has commenced to grow, PLUMS. These carry their fruit on short shoots known as spurs that are produced from the lower limbs. When the trees are small the pruning during the first three years should aim at producing a strong framework of branches evenly distributed. The tendency of the plum, if planted in good soil, is to run to long whiplike growths produced from the. uppermost buds. It will often be found that continued pruning only aggravates the evil, and the only way to deal with it is to prune for the first f three years to produce a well-shaped tree and then -to let it go; without pruning it will be found that the tree, having reached an average height, will commence to form fruit spurs the whole length of the branches. It must also, be noted in regard to plums that many of the varieties are not self-fertile, and the result of many trees flowering and not bearing is due to this cause. Pruning will never cure, this trouble; the only cure is the introduction near at hand of another variety which will bloom at the same time. Once a plum tree is in full bearing, thinning out branches: to prevent overcrowding and cutting back laterals to three or four ’ buds is all the pruning that is needed.

WINDOW PLANTS. Even those who do not possess a scrap of ground that can be conveniently set apart for plant cultivation may decorate their windows with flowers. This method of culture has always been popular, especially in towns. Pots, boxes and tins can all be used to hold the plants, and the selection of plants is almost legion. Tall plants should be avoided, as they are too buky, requiring too much room and too likely to be knocked over to be convenient. Fuchsias are particularly good, and the care with which the cottagers used to grow them trained on light wooden frames showed they were really most fitting as window plants. Geraniums, palargoniums, heliotrope are all fitting for this work. Petunias, verbenas, mignonette, lobelia, dwarf varieties of nasturtiums are all useful, and. adapt themselves to thi,s work. Musk,-that old-fashioned object of recent interest because someone found that it had no scent, used to be largely grown and trained on light wooden frames in cottage windows. Is

there a reason for the lack of scent to be found in the fact that it has ceased to be grown in a. pot in a humble cottage window? There it had a congenial and dairly dry atmosphere, no rough climatic conditions to contend with, just sufficient water and food to keep it going, incapable of gross growth due to unlimited room, abundance of food and moisture. Grown in a room, it had a constricted area to diffuse its scent over, outside it is unlimited, and lastly but not least it was propagated asexually by small pieces handed on from one season to another, seeding practically unknown. If some enthusiasts will try out the old method of growing musk as.a window plant, they may be able, to invito their friends to afternoon tea In a drawing room and to enjoy the perfume of- the musk plant. Epiphyllums, begonias, weltonensis and some of the fibrous rooted varieties, Cam-, panula .isophylla .and,.its- varieties have also i proved-, awful as window plants. No doubt thw phase, of gardening, has

} its restrictions, and in this country, with few closely-built areas, it is not so essential, but with the increase of population, especially in cities, it will become more common. PLANTING FRUIT TREES. In planting fruit trees the lighter and drier the soil the deeper .you can plant, and the heavier and wetter the situation the shallower the planting should be. In light, sandy soils the roots ean have a covering of 6 to 9 inches, whereas on heavy eoils a covering of 4 inches will be sufficient. Make the holes as wide at the bottom as at the top, and rather deeper at the sides than in tho centre, so that when, the ,roots are covered they will have a downward tendency. When filling in,- scatter some fine soil first. Always have the hoi® . sufficiently. large to allow the roots to lay straight. Never double them back. In small gardens the trees can be plant- , cd 10 to 12 feet apart, but in orchards 10 to 20 feet should be allowed. SAND AND CHARCOAL. Sand is necessary for the rooting; of cuttinge because it lies very compa’ctly round the stem of the cutting. Although it lies close it still remains porous enough for drainage. Sand is also free of any fermenting material, and is comparatively free of fungus spores. Road grit, if it is 'put in a tub and water run on it, and washed, makes a good coarse earn!. Charcoal is used for potting purposes, because it acts as a filtering material. It absorbs ammonia and holds it in store for the roots, yielding it up when the plant is able to assimilate it. A handful of coarse lumps placed over the drainage, when palms or any plants that are to remain for a length of time in the same pot, helps the drainage. Charcoal dust is useful in seed pans or boxes. It can he mixed with the seed before sow* Ing or,. scattered on .the top soil hefbr# sowing. the fieed.