GARDENING NOTES.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 6 January 1926, Page 3

GARDENING NOTES.

Flower Stalks on. Rhubarb. Flower stalks are freely produced on rhubarb at this time of the year. These should be instantly removed, for they have a very' weakening effect, upon the roots and are a. useless fax upon the resources of the plant, and are often the cause of small sticks. * * • * Shading of Carnations. The present season will provide plenty of work for the grower amongst, his perpetual carnations. Careful attention should be given to a proper amount of shading for the flowering stock. Some varieties fade very rapidly when exposed to the snn, Enchantress and all 'the blush pinks in particular. There are many means of shading, but in my opinion there is none .to 1 be compared to using a good sun blind, which can be drawn up 'and down at will, so that on sunless days the blind being up the plants will get the full benefit of the modified light. 'Where it is impossible to fit blinds, thin lime wash may be brushed or .sprayed on the glass, but care must be taken not to put on too thick a coat. W • • «» flotation of Crops. In deciding the rotation of crops', a goo (1 rule to be observed is It hat the crops should he varied as much as possible, and that on no account -should plants of one family follow another. For instance, late potatoes should not follow early one ,and i.o member of the -brassiest (cabbage) tribe should follow each other in direct succession-. To avoid such a position, it is as well', whenever possible, to decide that a root crop -shall follow, a. leaf or sient crop, and' vice versa. This is not" a lmtd and fast rule, for one ol: the finest rotations is to make a sowing of stump-rooted carrots or turnip-rooted beet on the site from which early potatoes .have just been cleared. A good following crop is n late planting of cabbage. This is an instance of three crops on the same site in one year, and three crops which can be well rotated. Surface Tillage. “Tickle the soil with tillage and it will kui'.h with, fatness,” is a truism f hat many gardeners are apt to ignore. V/ifh many the sole reason for using the hoods the destruction of weeds, and i..en only when they have become prominent and their removal :s impeaative. The destruction of weeds is .one good reason for using the hoe, but it is bv no means the only one. By keeping the surface sail well stirred, a fair mulch of earth is secured, and rapid evaporation of moisture is thereby prevented. In soils that crack quickly, surface tillage by means of 'the hoe is of verj great value. Air is admitted to . the rout.*, the sun warms the soil, and the nitrifying bacteria perform their work withi renewed energy, thereby providing more available plant, food. Every crop in- the garden will benefit considerably by constant surface tillage, but'none more so than fruit frees and bushes. When it is- not possible to get sufficient- manure fo mulch- the soil over their roots, they .benefit greatly by keeping the ground •constantly loosened. Many neglect the fruit qusuteis while paying more or leas'attention to the vegetables. The results of surface tillage will be apparent in healthier growth and better crops: that- is, of course, if attention is paid to other cultural details, and the trees are kept clean.

With tlic hoe In constant use, many •■rubs are brought to the surfa.ee, to be devoured by birds if they escape the eye of the gardener. It is not unusual, where the crane-iiy or daddy long-leg-is plentiful, to unearth dozens of the grubs in a short time, especially if one is working on tlie beds on the lawn. They are generally found near the grass edge. . What more need be said m favoui of surface tillage ' Now that .the chief sowing season has passed, let us employ our time in the garden in using the Dutch hoe to the benefit of every cultivated plant. It. may be pointed out to the inexperienced that tire soil should not be wet when the work is being done. Although after heavy rain the soil 'should be .stirred, it is not advisable to got to work before the soul is fairly dry. It should not stick lo the hoe. Only the. surface soil should be moved; no roots must be interfered with. The handle oh the lioe should be kept as hear as possible at the same angle, in order to secure a uniform depth of loose .soil, say about one inch. Liquid Manure. Cow manure, sheep, horse, fowl, pigeon, pig, sulphate of ammonia, nitrate of soda, blood dust, lehtcmic guano, house slops, are all valuable as manures if properly applied. The animal manures, of course, can be applied to the ground at the time of digging, but it fs when the plants are growing and need feeding that many people fail to make the most use of what is about them or often easily obtained. Put one bucket each of the animal manures in a coarse canvas sack; tie the mouth; place it in a large barrel, and till wi'.'i water. In 24 hours it will be ready for use. Dilute to eight oil water to one of liquid. When tire barrel is us d up, refill and stir up. -Repeat this several times; then apply fresh manure: One liuelect each of fowl and pigeo", dilute to 12 to 1; sulphate of ammonia and nitrate of soda, one tablespoonful each of four gallons of water; Jvh; slops, six to one; lelitenr.c giaa.no, "imbed dry on surface, according to directions on tins; blood and bone or meat manure lib per 12 .square, feet. It should be remembered that all thes > manures contain valuable constituents

Fruit, Flowers and Vegetables,

that are very soluble in water, and hence if one is to have first-class value they must be kept dry, and should never be allowed to lie out in the rain. A few hours' rain on any of them is -sufficient to lower their value 50 per cent. • • « • Thinning Fruit. This is one of the details of fruit tree management which should have considerably more thought -and attention from amateurs than it is accorded at the present time. There is arl 'Unfortunate craving on the part of many people who plant trees and bushes to secure the biggest possible quantity of fruit at the earliest possible moment, and to that end they allow a two or .three-year-old tree to carry every fruit that sets; and as for thinning out the fruits on an ‘established tree, they would never dream of it. These are serious errors. They entail a strain upon the young trees' that they are not equal to, and their useful life history is prejudiced front the start. The fruits are inferior in size and quality, and immensely exhaust She old tree, commonly fo .the extent that it has no power left to build up perfect fruit buds for the ensuing year, and we have the irritating fat and lean seasous. Wise thinning ought to be regarded as of paramount importance, and it should always be adjusted to the age .vigour and variety of the tree. The earliest.years after planting should go mainly to proper root establishment, and hiving tin admirable branch foundation. Take one or two fruits on, a. vigorous specimen, but never so- nrany .that exhaustion is inevitable. The later years should go to profitable production and regularity of bearing handsome examples of the full size and correct shape of the particular variety, which are better worth producing than bushels of the halfsized, ill-.shnped fruits'. The time to commence the, removal of fruits is immediately after it can be seen clearly which are perfectly set and which tire not. and the imperfect ones- should go* first if -Nutlire does not. do the thinning by casting them. When the fruits are about one-quarter developed they should be thinned again, removing the orst in shape and position, and then i thers ns needed. When the fruits arc about half-grown they should be finally thinned, when ail superfluous fruit .should be taken off. • * * * , Propagating Pinks. Bulks -are easy to propagate in a cold frame, either directly in a bed of sandy soil and lcafinou'ld, cr in ]>ot«, according to the quantity required. Dianthus Allwoodii may -be treated in a similar way. If taken during December and January they will be ready to plant out in March. The frame must be shaded for the first fortnight or three weeks, to prevent the cuttings- wilting. As soon as the cuttings commence to grow the shading can be removed and ventilation should be given to prevent them getting drawn. Keep the soil watered as it becomes dry to promote the formation of roots. flip. r J lie iris may be regarded as a pres-ent-day creation, mid the amount of attention which is being given fo them shows that in the future there, will be much more, heard and seen of them. With the iris, as with so many other flowers, we have to thank the able nion who have worked hard to improve them. Home of the newer varieties are vi ry scarce, and consequently expensive; but there are plenty of others, very beautiful in themselves, which can lie bought quite cheaply. Some irises are bulbous-rooted, others send out keeping root stocks called rhizomes. These rhizomes are thick, fleshy stems which' extend along the ground, and from them descend the true roots. Rhizomes arc not roots, though some people talk of them as if they were. When planting these irises, the rhizomes must not be buried under the soil, but the roots should be allowed to go down perpendicularly. A good time to plant is- after the flowers have faded, but it -can. be done at other times. As the plant does not need lifting for ia. few years, it is well to- dig the soil properly and -add some manure or le-afm-ould to it. Irises like a welldrained soil containing plenty of humus, and -a sunny position.