Gardening Notes.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 19 September 1928, Page 6

Gardening Notes.

Annuals. Do not neglect the pricking out of the various annuals, especially if they were sown a little thicker than advisable. Use a fairly light sandy soil, and put a good layer of rougher siftings in the bottom of the boxes. Make the soil firm in the boxes, and shade the plants for a day or so after transplanting. Once they commence to grow, give abundance of ventilation and keep the soil moist. * * * * Love Lies Bleeding. The seeds of this popular annual, Amaranrhus eondatus, should be sown early. A frame or greenhouse is necessary to raise them. Sow the seeds now, and plant the seedlings in a fairly rich soil about the end of October. The plants grow three feet or more in height. The long drooping crimson flower spikes arc very effective in the mixed border. * * * * Watering Plants. The successful cultivation of plants in pots is largely a matter of the proper management of the water supply. Many are killed or injured by being given too little in summer or too much in winter, than by all the other causes put together. At this season the majority of plants are beginning to grow, and forming new roots: in many cases the plants have recently been newly potted, and therefore do not require much water, only just sufficient to compensate for loss by evaporation, and to prevent shrivelling of the tissues.

Cultivation of the Garden. Plants require from the soil, air, water and food. To obtain these the soil must be cultivated and manured. Thorough, deep and constant cultivation give to the roots access to supplies of air, moisture and food. The addition of artificial, stable and other manures helps in this direction, but cultivation is more important even than manuring, for garden soils, well cultivated, will give fair crops without manuring, but insufficiently cultisoils will only give poor crops oven though they are manured. * * * * * Fowl and Pigeon Manure. This can be turned to good account in the growing of potatoes, onions, leeks, celery, etc. Keep it dry till required, and then use 4oz to the squat c yard. It is more easily and evenly distributed If rubbed through a small mesh sieve. *• * * * Propagating Dahlias by Cuttings. The propagation of dahlias by means of cuttings is not difficult, provided the necessary warmth is available. liemove the roots from their winter quarters and place them in a frame or on. a greenhouse bench, in a light position. If bottom heat is possible it will advance the cuttings, but an indicated structure will do if no other is available. The roots may be placed close together, but see that the varieties do not become mixed. Fill the space between the roots with light, sandy soil, up to, but not covering, the crowns. If the soil is dry a watering through a rose will be necessary. After this it will only be necessary to damp with the syringe daily. Toung growths will soon be seen, and it is advisable to take the cuttings 'as soon as ready, otherwise they soon become long and thin. Immediately a shoot forms two joints it may be severed just beneath the lower pair of leaves, which will afterwards be trimmed off. Place each cutting separately in a small pot; the soil must be light and very sandy. Label each cutting as inserted, and after watering, place them in a close propagating frame. They* will soon root, when they may be removed from the frame and hardened off: prior to planting out. * * * * Delphiniums. The delphinium stands by itself as a summer-flowering herbaceous plant. The beautiful shades of blue, unexcelled by any other section of plants, the stately candelabra-like spikes of flowers make it a necessary plant to have in every border, and in fact every garden. They need very rich, well manured soil, and abundance of water when growing, and feeding with liquid manure, when the spikes are showing. They are just now sending up their growths, and when these are a few inches high is a good time to lift and divide them. Although they will do without lifting for several years, the clumps have a habit of decaying in the centre, and the system of lifting, dividing and replanting every two or three years is preferable. When dividing them, it must be done carefully, and they should be cut with a knife, as the roots and young growths are very brittle, and it is very easy to break off the shoots and leave the roots. They r should be planted up as soon as possible after lifting, so as not to keep them out long enough ’for the growths to wilt. Where it is not possible to lift and divide the roots, the soil Should be lifitly forked over, and a coating of stable manure given, or it this is not available, give a dressing of blood and bone manure. Slugs are exceptionally fond of the- young o-rowths, and to keep them off, place a rimr of broken shell or coarse ashes round the clumps; the slugs will not pass over this. J * * * * Zinnias. Zinnias should never be sown too early, for while they do not like a high temperature ,thcy equally resent a low one, and most of all one that

Flowers and Vegetables.

fluctuates to any extent. The beginning of October in a cold frame suits their requirements to perfection. A rich compost is essential from the start. Two parts loam to one of wellrotted manure and one of coarse sand is a suitable compost. Fill a seed box about three inches deep with this and dispose the seeds evenly and thinly over the surface, afterwards covering lightly with more compost. Water through a fine-rosed can and place in the frame. The scedings soon make their appearance and must be kept damp, but not wet. While air must be admitted on the opposite side to that from which the wind is blowing. Sturdy, healthy growth must be the aim from the outset, yellowing of the foliage usually resulting from either over-watering or a cold draught. Harden carefully and do not hurry the planting out until the weather is really settled. The soil can scarcely be made too rich, and a sunny bed, sheltered from cold winds, is also advisable. Allow about fifteen inches between each plant and well firm the soil around the roots. A little soot should be scattered round the plants as a precaution against slugs. Fun the hoe between them after rain to keep the surface loose and open, and water copiously twice a week during times of drought. Continuous removal of fading flowers must be practised, and where this is done the plants are continuous and floriferous subjects.

Potting Perpetual Carnations. Every plant has Its own peculiarities, and it is only by studying these that success can be obtained. It must have its own conditions complied with. With many it is knowing what they do not want, more so than what they require. .Nothing Is more exacting than a living plant, and the higher the order the more exacting its demands-. This is particularly so with the growing of perpetual flowering, carnations. The compost, potting and conditions must be right before the actual work of production begins, One of the principal causes of failure in obtaining a Continuous supply of blooms throughout the autumn and winter is the neglect to take in hand the work of potting the plants into their flowering pots at an early date. The best--results can only be obtained from plants established in their flowering pots before January. The actual size of flowering pots varies somewhat according to the variety, but a 7in. pot is sufficiently large for an early rooted cutting, whilst a sin. pot is large enough for later ones. The compost should be .of a good semi-sandy loam, whic-h allows of a free drainage, but is capable of retaining available plant fod and moisture. The ideal compost is three parts fibrous loam, half a part dr ycow manure, a quarter-part wod ashes, and an eighth part of sand, and the same of lime rubble. Do not pass the compost through a sieve, but break them up with the fingers and -mix them well. If the loam is at all poor, add a yin. pot of bonedust to each barro wload of the compost a few days before using.

Cutting Seed Potatoes. Opinions differ upon the advisability or not of cutting potato sots. Undoubtedly a lot depends upon the size of the sets, and in many cases, as the size is beyond the control of the planter, owing to having to buy sets, and in consequence take what Is offered, it may not be out of place to say a few words upon this subject. By experiments it has been proved that large sets cut, yield a better crop than small sets, so far as usable tubers are concerned. It is, therefore, better to use large sets, and to cut them, than to use small uncut sets. If large sets are to be used, they should be sprouted previously, so that the strongest eves can be seen. As to how many sets one potato can be cut into depends largely upon the number of eyes; but it is not often possible to get more than four good sets from one potato, and in many eases only two sets can be obtained. W hat is considered a fair-sized potato to plant whole, and what to cut? It is a mistake to use a smaller tuber than two inches in diameter for planting, and unless the supply is short, tubers of this size should not be cut. If the tuber is over three inches in diameter it should be cut, providing it has strong roots showing. Practically there is no limit to the size of the tuber which can be cut. When cutting a tuber remember that the strength of the shoot will largely depend upon the amount of food that it has behind it in the tuber, for it depends upon this stored-up food during the first period of its existence, hence it is necessary to be careful not to cut the pieces too small. Tho cut sets should average about one and a-half or tw-o ounces in weight. * * * * Onions. Onions require a rich, well-worked soil. A few days after planting use as a top-dressing, kainit, 3 parts; nitrate of soda, 3 parts; superphosphate, 5 parts. Well mix and use at the rate of about half a nounco to the square yard. Soot and wood ashes are also beneficial, and should be mixed and used at the rate of two ounces to the square yard.