Gardening Notes

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 20150, 19 May 1928, Page 6 (Supplement)

Gardening Notes

(BY

ALKANET)

KITCHEN CARDEN | The kitchen garden at present is dormant and docs not need a great deal ’ of attention. iVlost of the crops are' for later use and should be very care-1 fully handled. As the ground from now on will be rather cold and wet, I the plants should be given every chance to grow as much as possible. One 1 ol ten secs good plants spoiled by being choked with weeds. This should not be allowed. A little attention now aodj again will prevent it. Gardening like' most work, is not made a success by j putting an immense amount of work into it for a couple of weeks and then neglecting it. It must have constant attention. Not perhaps every week, but whenever it is necessary. As in any other work management is a very important part, of the work. Plants respond very readily to favourable conditions whether natural or made for them. dust now the mam things to enduce growth is to keep the weeds down and get the ground as dry as possible. The hoe and rake should therefore be used frequently, but when using them the soil should not be trodden down any more, than is necessary. This, especially on heavy laud, prevents evaporation and keeps the sod wet and cold during the winter. 'Select dry days for using the hoe and rake. If weeds get too forward they may be turned in with a spade. Weeds make good manure as long as they ire not seeding. If they are they should be collected and burned. Late sown carrots should be spaced out or they will not come to any size. Lettuce may be sown, but only in dry, warm land. It is quite elsy t.o grow a few lettuce under a frame during the winter. The soil should be lifted 6 to 12 inches above the surrounding soil and if not naturally light should be made so. The plants should be allowed Gin of space all round. Some allow less space, but it is very doubtful if this is profitable as they will be cramped and rather small. A four inch pot under each corner of the frame will keep it off the plants. It is advisable to have the frame in a place where it is protected from strong winds or damage may be done. The top end of the frame should be 2 or 3 inches above the bottom so that the rain will run straight off and not lay in puddles. Make sure, that there arc no leaks in the frame. It may be ' necessary to water occasionally, but it must not be overdone. Turnips may be sown anywhere except in very wet localities. Silver beet may now be planted or sown. If the land is light, early onions should go in now.

THE ORCHARD

The time for planting fruit trees is [ here again and if the land i.s light, this is the best time to plant shell er for the orchard. It is rather difficult to get. trees an I shrubs, especially evergreens, to grow on very dry land. They should go iu’ early and be planted very carefully. The macrocarpa is the best lasting shelter tree, we have and is one of the most difficult to transplant unless it is treated just right. On a very sunny or exposed place 2-year-okl trees are the best for planting. They should however have 3 parts of their tops taken off. A macrocarpa planted in a very exposed place with the whole of its top on has very little chance ot recovery. Another point to remember or ginger beer, or pickles. No hard crusts with sharp eidfges to scratch the delicate skin that is trying to form stumps must be drawn, and a simple mouthwash must be frequently used. So you see th£re are different kinds of ulcer of the tongue. One is a local condition of the mouth and is due to neglect, another is really dependent on the condition of the stomach, and attention is directed not so much to the tongue itself as to the digestive organs. A third variety may be called the dental ulcer, because, it is caused by a tooth. Miners’ Nystagmus. There is an affection of the eyes known as miners’ nystagmus. Nystagmus is characterised by a rapid, jerky movement of the eyeballs from side to side, or sometimes up and down. There arc many diseases with which this condition of the eyes is associated. Sometimes this incessant jerking is the result of a defect in the vision, an. l ! a pair of glasses may help to cure it. In other cases a general disease of the nervous system is present.! But the complaint is particularly common among coal-miners. It comes on in apparently .healthy men, and many hundreds have been permanctly incapacitated from following their employment through this complaint. For years tho actual cause was hididen, but through the researches of a doctor who lived and worked among miners for many years, a good deal has been learned about it. The most important result of the doctor’s inquiries is the discovery that the better the light with w.hich the miner works the less likely is he to suffer from nystagmus. There art* different kinds of minors’ lamps, some giving a brilliant illumination and some giving a comparatively poor light. In the case of a miner working with a poor light, a great strain is thrown on the eyes, anti w.hon this strain is continued for a l°ng time this distressing and uncontrollable jerking*of the eyes sets in. When once nystagmus has started it is difficult to cure. Our aim should bo to prevent it by using as brilliant, a light as can be obtained. 1

I when planting macrocarpas is that their roots should never be allowed to get dry. The roots should not be uncovered until they are to be planted. Do not lay them out on the soil waiting to be planted or the results will be . very poor. j Where the locality is very xposed, single balled plants are preferable. i They may be holed in in a place where they are not in a draught and planted ' out in mid winter or early spring. Each plant should be allowed at least Gin of space. j The planting iu itself is comparative--I]y simple. The plants should be put iin a little deeper than they were before they were lifted. No elaborate holes need to be dug, but once the soil is put in it should be tramped down very firmly. This is very important both in light and heavy land. Whercever planted, macrocarpas should have not less than half of their tops cut off. Nearly all hedge plants should have half their tops cut off to give them a good start. There is, however, one very notable exception. The eapressus lawsoniana need not be trimmed down. It transplants very freely, but it has one weakness. It will not stand salt spray and is therefore unsuitable for planting too near the coast. Elsewhere it takes a lot of beating. It may be slow but it is sure. Weak growing hedge plants such as ake ake, varigated privett, obclia llorabunda and taupata may not need much trimming, , but strong growers such as ngaio, bud- i ; lea, cleagnes laurel, etc., need cutting back when planted. The ornamental garden is beginning to put on its autumn or winter coat.; The oaks and maples as well as other shrubs arc beginning to tint. This is i the latest they have been for some years. The usual time for autumn : tints is from the last week in April or the first week in May but this year it will be from the third week in May and the colours even then will not be much to speak of. A good many of the trees that usually colour beautifully may this year drop their leaves without colouring at all. It has boon a very unusual autumn and the flowering shrubs have been very line. The lasiandras especially have made a very fine show.

FLOWER GARDEN

'ihi/ mild, moist weather should the bulbs up well, but it is advisable to fork the ground over if they have not appeared yet. The plant tug season is wit h u.s agaiu and preparations for adding to or altering the garden will claim attention, i’ropei planting is very essential. If they arc not properly planted the trees or shrubs are handicapped badly. ( lb'ses arc planted every year in far larger numbers than any other shrubs. This is not to be wondered at as the rose is the most conspicuous flowering shrub we have. The percentage of roses that do not do well is far too higd and the biggest part of the failures is due either to wrong planting or over attention, which kills far more plants than disea.se. Roses are usually worked (grafted) on stock. This means on a rose very insignificant in itself, but a very strong grower. Stock roses arc usually harder in texture than most ornamental roses, although there are some exceptions. The rose plant one year after grafting has a root and thick stem from 4 to 8 in length. The stem may be longer, it does not make any difference to the roses but it makes the plant look ugly if it is too lung. There are usually two or three branches coming out. from the main stem. When planting the root the thick stem and at, least three inches of the branches should be beneath the soil. With strong growers two inches more than this would be better still. Roses will grow without being planted so deep and in fact arc often planted much more shallow. Frequently just the root and the thick stem are covered and sometimes not that much. As mentioned before the stock rose is hariUr than the ornamental one and if it is not well covered it does not. expand as it should do. A good many of the failures of such roses as golden emblem, Madam lieriot and Los Angeles are <luc to shallow planting. There are other reasons of course, but that is the most common. Such roses as Hugh Dickson, George Dickson, red letter day, General McAuther, frau carl druschi, are as hardy as the stock, but the so-called pernetianias are not so and should be planted carefully to give them a good start. This strain is brought into nearly all the uew roses and they arc certainly gorgeous roses. They are quite, satisfactory if planted right and treated properly, but proper planting is absolutely essential as once they are planted they are there to stay. Moving roses after they have become established very often has disappointing results. The mild weather has extended thu planting season of spring flowering annuals. Primulas, pansies, violas, anemones, and nemosias will still have a good chance of blooming early if planted now. Ten week and beauty stock may be sown and planted now. The danger of the cabbage fly is over now. Lawns should be made ready for f op-dressing. Gravel should be renewed where paths are becoming worn. All hardy yannuals may now be planted. Chrysanthemums should have their tops removed as soon as the blooms are spent, to enable the plant to make fresh growth for new plants for next* I season.