HOME GARDEN NOTES

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 71, Issue 4, 15 October 1945, Page 415

HOME GARDEN NOTES

Work for November

NOW that the home gardener is busy with the season’s vegetable production, the general tendency is to grow more of one variety than is necessary to meet household requirements. To do this means waste of seeds, . time, labour, manure, and fertiliser, and space in the garden, which, when not occupied by an edible crop, could be growing a useful soil-improv-ing green manure crop for digging in. It is not possible to take more out of the soil than is put into it; hence the plentiful supply or scarcity of plant food in the soil must be reflected in the quality of the produce grown. If a few handfuls of oats are broadcast over a piece of newly-dug ground, flattened with the back of a spade, and then just turned over to a depth of 2in., birds will be prevented from getting the seed, and a good quantity of material to turn under will generally be yielded. A grade Garton oats may be dug in at any period of growth.

LATE AUTUMN AND WINTER VEGETABLES.

During November initial steps should be taken to ensure vegetable supplies for late autumn and winter.

Cauliflower

To secure mature heads of cauliflower before the advent of wintry weather seed should be sown as early as convenient. When the seedlings are 2in. high it is advisable to prick them out, allowing 1| to 2in. each way between the plants. On being removed the young plants should be handled carefully and as much soil as possible taken with them in order to prevent the plants from obtaining a setback after transplanting. Plenty of water is essential, but drainage should be good. Varieties recommended are Phenomenal Early, and Phenomenal Medium.

Broccoli

Recommendations made above for cauliflower are suitable for broccoli, except that whereas cauliflower, which are not bred to stand severely cold "weather conditions, will be rendered unfit for human consumption by frost, broccoli will stand throughout winter without injury. Seed of different varieties may be obtained which, sown at the same time, will mature in succeeding months from May to October.

Brussels Sprouts is another desirable late autumn and winter vegetable, seed for which may be sown during November.

Leeks

For best results sowing of leek seed should not be delayed beyond mid-November. London Flag and Musselburgh are recommended.

Parsnips

To allow time for the full development of parsnip roots/ which will keep well either in the soil or in storage, seed should be sown during November in most parts of the Dominion. Hollow Crown is the variety recommended. It should be sown in the same way as carrot seed, but much more thickly. As the thin, flat seeds soon lose their vitality, only fresh seed not more than one year old should be used.

Swedes

In the colder parts of the Dominion seed of swede turnip may be sown in mid-October, but November is generally the month when most of the garden swedes are sown. Varieties recommended are Laing’s Garden and Superlative.

Carrots

Where it is practicable, and in areas affected with the carrot rust-fly, it is not advisable to sow main-crop carrot seed till mid- January, or later, which will assist in saving the crop from the depredations of this soil pest. •

Sweet Corn

In districts favourable for the production of sweet corn seed can be sown with safety in November. It is a very tender plant and highly susceptible to injury by frost. Where well-rotted stable or farmyard manure can be dug in superphosphate, 3oz. to each hill, is all the fertiliser which may be required. In the absence of stable manure, blood and bone at’ the above rate, combined with a light dressing of potash, should suffice. Six to eight seeds planted on hills, 30 to 36in. apart, and the resultant plants thinned to —the most vigorous—is the usual garden method of production.

Beans (Climbing)

In households where beans are desired over a lengthy period a climb-

ing variety should be grown. Three or four long stakes can be placed to form a triangle or a square, and the plants trained to grow up and around these. The stakes should be not less than 3ft. apart at the base and securely fastened at the top. As many seeds as considered necessary may be set round the bottom of each stoke. After germination the plants may be thinned to 3 or 4, which can then be trained to the stakes. It is sometimes advisable to give the young tendrils a start by the use of a temporary fastening. These plants can also be trained up wire-netting or on a wire fence. Broad Windsor and Early Long Pod are suitable varieties.

Cabbage (Summer)

Summer cabbage is a very useful crop in the garden, and, because it is developing through a good growing period of the season, should not be neglected. It does not require a great deal of attention, but weed control should be rigorous. If dry weather is experienced, give the plants a thorough soaking. This is the proper method of watering, and is preferable to frequent superficial applications.

Pumpkins, Squash, etc.

The above recommendations about watering are very applicable to all members of the gourd family, including cucumbers. If seeds of the varieties mentioned have not yet been sown, those specially recommended are: Pumpkins—Triamble and Queensland Blue; Squash—Golden Hubbard. The growing plants should be kept clear of weeds until .the vines begin to spread, when no more hoeing will be required.

Tomatoes

While the soil in which tomato plants are growing should not be permitted to become too dry, caution should be exercised with the use of water. Over-watering, particularly during periods of dull weather and high humidity, will have a tendency to produce tender growth, which will be highly susceptible to disease attacks. Regular hoeing round the plants will do much to assist in conserving soil moisture and thus avoid the necessity for heavy applications of water. When a variety is being grown which will be trained up and fastened to stakes these should have been placed in position before setting the plants. If this has not been done, the stakes should be driven into the soil as near the plant as practicable without delay. Driving stakes close to the plant after it has grown sufficiently to be ready for tying cannot be recommended.

Peas

During November the two most important matters in pea culture which should be attended to are watering and keeping the top growth upright. Permitting water to saturate the soil between the rows is the best way of satisfying the requirements of a pea crop. Adequate drainage is, however, necessary if . this practice is adopted. When growth seems to be lagging an application of blood and bone manure, 2oz. per yard of row, is a safe method of inducing growth. Great as may be the temptation, it is inadvisable to use any special nitrogenous fertiliser for pea production.

Celery

November will be late enough to sow celery seed, if maturity is expected before very cold weather begins. Solid White, White Pascal, and Winter Queen (a green variety) will keep well during winter months, but must be well grown.

Good celery plants should now be available from pricked-out seedlings, and these should be set out as soon as convenient. Trenches in which celery is to be grown should not be less than 12in. deep. A good dressing of well-rotted stable manure should be dug into the bottom and covered

with 3in. of soil, into which the plants can be set and watered immediately after. A spacing distance of 8 to 9in. between the plants will be . sufficient.

Celery can be successfully grown in a bed without resorting to a trench. A mixture of 4 parts blood and bone manure with 2 parts superphosphate 3hd 1 part potash, j-lb. per sq. yd., should be broadcast over the bed after digging and well worked into the soil before planting. Plants grown in this way may be spaced 12in. apart. The bed can be of two or more rows, between which there should 'be the same spacing as between the plants.

Lettuce

A small sowing of lettuce seed may still be made to obtain seedlings for transplanting. After _ re-setting the plants should be kept well watered, because dry weather conditions are sometimes experienced during November.

Endive

Endive is an excellent substitute for lettuce, and may be grown in the same way. To bring out the full flavour of endive as a salad vegetable it should be blanched by loosely tying the leaves at the top when full grown.

Radish

When growing celery by the trench method, the soil which is used to build up the sides can be sown with radish seed, which is forceful in germination, and the roots so quick in growth that the crop will be cleared before the celery is fully grown. Seed, however, should not be sown so near the edge of the trench that the growing celery plants will be shaded by the radish foliage. .

Onions

Onion plants set out in August should now be making satisfactory growth. Weeds permitted to grow among the , bulbs will have a serious retarding effect on bulb development. Hoeing between the rows should be carefully carried out' because of the danger of damaging the bulbs, thus rendering them unfit for storage. While the use of liquid manure made from organic substance may be permissible, ho inorganic nitrogenous fertiliser should be used. Applications of water should be made regularly during dry weather so that bulb growth may proceed uninterrupted.

Potatoes

During periods of humid weather late blight is likely to develop among potatoes, especially where the haulm is well grown. To prevent this it is necessary to have all the top growth well sprayed with Bordeaux mixture. Spraying properly is not a question of merely putting the liquid on the leaves. Surface covering only is just so much time, money, and labour wasted, as the under-side of the leaves is usually the first to be attacked by the fungus which starts blight. In order to make spraying easier, the plants should first be banked with soil hoed from between the rows, which will permit of better use of the spraying outfit. If a full crop of tubers is to be harvested, protection by spraying the whole plant above soil level is necessary, and it cannot be too strongly emphasised that spraying with Bordeaux mixture is a preventive, not a remedy.

Kutnaras

The principal attention kumara plants will require during November is hoeing to keep down weed growth. Each time this operation is carried out it is advisable to draw some soil towards the top of the ridge on which the slips have been set. When the vines begin to creep in the rows the foliage smothers weeds, which cease to become troublesome. —D. K. PRITCHARD, Instructor in Vegetable Culture, Wellington.