WORK FORJTHE WEEK.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 6120, 5 March 1898, Page 2

WORK FORJTHE WEEK.

TO GARDENERS. Kitchen <a •- j&-a. --• Woods are Hie plague of (' . O7erwufi ; koil and the idle vjaivene". :iud >.r -my "n:ive buen allowed to sjed diu-injr '"<• fast summer} suoh seed will soon come in in yroafc force; tbe rains we have had lately will bring thm on fast. Three weeds urn it be kept down, or they will not; only choice tbe cropi of seedling vegetables just coming up, •md make Iho garden look urilidy, ' ijut they.: will keep the ground damp. and :ol<3. Whore ' there . are a lot' of weeds growing tlio autumn -snu is 'prevented. Fromdryingaudwarmirig the ground, and the crops of vegetables suffer.. ,To avoid this we would urge . our' veadors.tQ. use -the hoe promptly and energetically.and destroy bho weedsatoneß,becausethe damp autumn weather may coma on us at any time now. Where due attention has . been given to watering and feeding, late supplies of summer vegetables will be coming forward now in good condihon aud quality ; but a sudden and complete change of weather may be looked for at any time. Even after we have had almost summer heat during the day, the temperature often . falls during this month . down iO freezing point through the night, pnring the past .week we experienced one of these sudden changes. Such being the case, he who would preserve French beans md vegetable marrows must be up and aoing, as those are at , all times valuable. Most gardeners know that it takes but' little frost to render these vegetables quite useless, yet it is surprising how mush frost a thin covering of canvas will resist. The canvas sliould be put on as late in the evening as possible, and taken off in the morning about eight o'clock. Continue to, clear all crops of vegetables that are past bping'usef ul, and plant the. ground . :with winter; greens,.., or. row spinach, .. Too, much spinach can scarcely "be : sown, even if if caunot all ' be used • there ,is no better nianiire "for the land thaii a crop .of |jj)ce#n sjrinach dug in when the plants are about six inches high. Contimie to plant oujj cabbages as advised last month. Late sown carrots must be thinned and kept free from weeds, while the early crop may bo takeu up and stored in sand or ashes. Celery must be earthed up as often as needful, to secure a regular Bupply of well bhiuched heads. Select a fine day for this operation ; tie the leaves up early in the morning, breaking off any suokers that may have formed, arid taking away any decaying leaves there may be on the plants j leave „ the plants for a few hours to get : quite dry before any earth is drawn up to the stalks. A little and often is the best method to adopt in earthing up celery. Potatoes should be taken up and, stored as fast as they mature; remember all second early variotie3 will grow out fast now if they are left in the ground.. Flower Garden.— There is plenty of work in this department during this month, and, as advised in the preceding note, weeds must be kept down. It is not. wise to keep narcissus bulbs dry any longer than is absolutely, necessary. If it is intended to purchase any, or move any from one part of the garden to another, no time should lie lost. Even now many of the Ajax family have made roots six inches long ; this should teach the gardener that it is quite late enough to move these bulbs. In planting these beautiful flowers they should be arranged so as to look as natural as possible ; a straight line, or a single bulb here and there, does not produce the effect that these are capable of doing. They should bo planted in masses, say five or seven bulbs of one variety, at those spots where they would look at home — flay, under deciduous trees or shrubs. When narcissus are transplanted, all the small bulbs should be planted in a nursery bed in the kitchen garden as a reserve, to afford a store for cutting purposes. Narcissuß should be planted about six inches deep. Carnations, as soon, as rooted, should be taken from the old stools, and either potted or planted out ; if this operation is delayed too long _ the plants do not have sufficient time, to get established in their new quarters before .... the cold weather sets in. Prick out wallflowers and other spring flowering planta, to enable them to get plenty of roots before tha month of May, arrives. Refer to notes in back numbers, upon the propagation of garden flowers, nnd.,.,get plenty of cuttings in during the first two weeks of this mouth. Greenhouse. — While bulbs are not yet put into the greenhouse, they must be prepared at once for that purpose by being potted and otherwise attended to. Hyacinths are perhaps the most popular of spring flowering bulbs. They are easily grown, and can be managed by anyone who will give them a little attention No matter whether they are to be grown in pots or in vases, they should be potted or put in the vases at once. Prepare the pots by well washing them if they have been used before, or soaking them iF they are new. The most suitable compost is a light rich friable one, consisting of three parts turfy loam, well decayed, one part rotted manure, and enough sand or black ashes to keep the compost open ; a little boned ust or other fertiliser can be added. Secure a good drainage for each pot ; not so much by putting a lot of broken potsherds at the bottom, but by well placing a few pieces over the hole ; upon these crooks .put a thin layer of moss or. other fibre to prevent the soil from getting between the crocks and obstructing the free exit of water ; then fill the pots full with the soil, take a small quantity of sand and put it in the centre of the soil, then place the bottom of the bulb on the sand and press the bulb down fairly firm, . so that about one third of it is above the top of the pot, and preßS the soil firmly against the bulb. Take care not to press the bulb too firmly in, as if this is done the roots will not easily enter the soil when they begin to grow, but will lift the bulb up and bo leave a hollow space under it. Having pottedjand watered the bulbs they must be put away, and covered with about six inches of ashes, sand, or any such material. The object of covering the bulbs thus is to prevent, or cheok, top growth until the pots are well filled with roots. After they have been potted seven or eight week3 they must be examined and all that have made a good lot of roots should ba removed to a cold frame. Prom here they can be taken into either the greenhouse or the dwelling house, a few at a time as required. In potting hyaointliß select early, inid-Beason, and late varieties, thuß providing ft good supply over a long , season. To enable those who may not know the different varieties,, we give a list of eighteen : — Early — Grand vanqueur pure white, double ; General Havelook, purple, single; Grand Lilus, porcelain blue, single ; Groot Vorst, blush white, single; Panorama, piuk, double. Mid Season— Charles Dickens, violet, single ; Blocksburg. porcelain blue, double ; Bird of Passage, primrose, single ; Elfnda, pure -n-Kite, single ; Ida, cream, single ; Pl'ima Donna, red, single. Mam, bluish white, single ; John Stuart Mill, vellow, single,- Haydn, mauve, single; L'Ornament de La Nature, pink, single, , Madame Ristori, pink, single ; Vesuvius, carmine, single.