THE GARDEN

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16875, 27 October 1922, Page 11

THE GARDEN

[a) Help and Hints for Amateur# !§

kitchen garden. Seeds to Sow —Beans, beet, broccon, i cabbage. capsicum, cauliflower, carrot, I celery, cress, cucumber, lettuce, par- [ -.nip. peas, radish, savoy, spinach, i tomato, turnip, vegetable marrow, j 'What to Plant.—Brussels sprouts, ! cabbage, cauliflower. Lettuce, potatoes. | The strong winds have been very j severe on seedling crops that have recently been thinned. In some gardens j plants have been twisted about so much ! L 1.'., - L no others have been broken off and .nVuiN shaken quit- loose. It would i avMst all voting seedling crops if some • soil were drawn up to them on each j Side. This would keep them firm until | their roots get a firmer hold ot the i =OIL i prepare trenches for celery as soon as possible to give time for the soil to settle down before the plants are PU Sea n Kale. Go over the old plants and remove all the growths but one } oji each root. If all the grow ths are I left thev will be too crowded and the J heads will be very small for cutting i next spring. Promptly remove all flower spikes j from rhubarb. If these are allowed to ! flower and mature seeds the plants | suffer and the stalks will be smaller j j:cxi season. Crowns that were trans- ! planted during the past season will I need water during dry weather. T ho Ini ore moisture they got the stronger they grow. Asparagus. -Take care to cease cutting in good time, to allow the plants I to develop strong crowns for next seaI son's crop. Give the bed a good I dressing with salt, and some time dur- | ir.fr November give it a good souking with water. HARDY FRUITS. I Apple and pear trees should be j sprayed with » solution to destroy tho first brood of codlin moth. On© | spraying will not keep the fruits free | lroni Mr Codlin. Several sprayings ; ..re needed during the summer, accord- | ing to the activities of this pest. ■ Go over the young trees that were j transplanted during last winter and pinch off all young shoots that are ! growing in the wi'»*ig direction. These, i i, left on the trees all the growing sea- * j sou. would ha vo to be removed next winter. Therefore why not cut them i out now and let all the strength of ! each tree be concentrated on those ! shoots that are to form the fruiting | bra holies? j Raspberries are sending up a lot of ! new growth. Select as many as will ! be wanted, and cut the others away j to permit plenty of light aud air to ! circulate /reely among the fruiting j canes and the young shoots. Those i sucker growths are very persistent and j will need cutting several times during | the summer. Gooseberries.—Gather the largest as t j scon as possible. In many gardens j i there is a very heavy crop, end every [ i pound of fruit removed relieves the i bushes. Strawberries will begin to send out ‘ their runners. If young plants are not required cut the- runners off as soon as possible FLOWER GARDEN. All gardeners are very busy just now. and if one wishes to get the best possible results long hours must be work ed. When setting out plants, put those from pots out during flic heat- of the day, and those from boxes after the sun begins to lose its power. Take care that the surface soil i- moist when Hflgfridyg. in beds or borders. It

the surface is dry. the roots are put into this dry soil, because the surface soil is sure to fall into the hole and the dry soil is covered over. Wo hardly 4 over give enough water to sink below 1 the roots. To avoid leaving dry soil I against the roots, do not All the hole 1 quite up with soil, but carefully pres- I th'e roots firm, and only fill the holes 1 two thirds. Then well water each hole, and after t-lie water hn- soaked away fill the holes with soil, leaving it rather loose. This will conserve the moisture - about the roots, and the plants will soon take hold of their new position. Perhaps the greatest ami most com rnoii error in attending to plants just set out is the frequent damping of the surface, while tho soil about and the Roots is quite dry. The roots are thus encouraged to strike upwards, instead of down, and as soon ns the sun evaporates the moisture from the surface. the plants flag, and every time n plant flags, it suffers. Therefore tvv and make the soil damn below the roots, and keep the surface loose bv frequent booings. This will secure much better results. Carnations are sending un their flower stems. .This is the time to feed, them with artificial manure or manure water. To often this assistance is' given too late, and very little benefit: is obtained. If manure water is not ’ available, put a liberal mulch of half decayed manure around the plants. Then thoroughly soak them and thev will soon show an improvement. By giving light support to the flower spikes, to keep-them erect, the blossoms will be more effective in the garden and of greater decorative value for > house decoration. Keep a sharp lon* out for caterpillars. These soon spoil i l many buds. They must he hunted, be- - cause they secrete themselves in tho ; foliage and stem. Green fly can be destroyed by spraying the plants with hot water. The grass grub moth is on the wing 3 looking for a nice dry spot to deposit 3 its larvae. As the moths avoid damp 3 positions, if it is possible, wet the la.wr. 3 Into in the day. This will tend to keep s them from laying their eggs in the - grass plants. Large numbers of mothcan he destroyed by making a rope, of a iinv material. soaking it in kerosene and suspending it on two stakes ten <>r B twelve inches from the ground Light it about eight p.m.. and the moths wi'i fly into the flames.