Work in the Home Garden in January

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 95, Issue 6, 16 December 1957, Page 567

Work in the Home Garden in January

By

A. G. KENNELLY,

Horticultural Instructor, Department of Agriculture, Dunedin

I, , , „ , . i i , . ... i. ii I. N January the well-managed garden should yield rich returns in vegetables, which should be available in both quantity and quality. The most urgent jobs in most home gardens during the month include the destruction of weeds and the establishment of vegetables uu.ii.y ® xl -i ll l !• i-xi il j l i such as savoy or other winter cabbages, broccoli or mowers. eeks, and kale or borecole for late autumn, winter, or spring use. Successional sowing of crops such as borecole for late autumn, winter, or spring use. SuccessionaJ sowing of crops such as lettuce, onions for salad use, radish, and turnips is also important. Where conditions are dry, irrigation and mulching may be needed.

USUALLY the difficulty in the smaller gardens is to find the space to make summer sowings and winter plantings as well, because by Mid-January most home gardens are fully planted with such vegetables as dwarf and climbing beans, carrots, potatoes, shallots, peas, spinach, onions, turnips lettuces radishes and various kinds of beet, all of which are easily aown for harvesting at this time of grown or harvesting at this time- of year. Pumpkins, marrows, cucumbers, tomatoes, and sweet corn should also be ready for harvesting toward the end of the month in most districts.

Continuity of supply should be the aim of every home gardener, and failure to plant winter greens during December or January may in many districts result in a break in supply durin S winter or early spring. Where crops such as savoy cabbages, broccoli or winter cauliflowers, curly kale, brussels sprouts, and leeks have no .t be ® n set °? t the pl ? nting ° f a suitable selection to provide supplies from i ae autumn until the PP new season’s crops have matured in late spring should, in all except the most favoured districts, be done during the month.

Staked varieties of tomatoes should be pruned regularly and tied up as they develop. In the more humid districts plants should be sprayed with a suitable certified fungicide, combined, where caterpillars are troublesome, with DDT or lindane. Successional sowings of salad vegetables should be made and celery set out. Members of the cabbage family, including swedes, turnips, and kohl rabi, should be dusted or sprayed where necessary with an insecticide to give protection against caterpillars or sprayed with nicotine sulphate 'or lindane to kill aphids. Potatoes should be earthed up and, in the more humid or higher rainfall districts, sprayed regularly with a certified fungicide against late blight. Ground that will not be required for some time should be sown with a cover crop such as lupins, mustard, barley, or oats. Plant foods are then less likely to be leached out of the soil and its ■ organic content can be built up. The hoe should be kept sharp and used often and vigorously

in January to remove weeds, which are easily killed in the comparatively dry conditions which are usual then.

Liquid manure can be applied with advantage to most crops in soil lacking plant food and, where necessary, watering or irrigation should be attended to. A satisfactory supply of water is particularly important to the growth and setting of beans; to the growth of lettuce and celery, and to only a slightly less extent to that of other greens. Celery should be sprayed with captan or bordeaux mixture or a suitable certified substitute, even before leaf spot appears. Raising Seedlings Many of the seedling plants sold late in the season by seedsmen are of poor quality, often undersized, and held so long in bundles that the lower leaves have yellowed and many of the fine roots have died. Where a suitable situation and soil are available and the size of the garden warrants it a good plan is to raise seedlings of such plants as lettuce, leeks, cabbage, cauliflower, brussels sprouts and kale by sowing seed of suitable varieties or sowing successionally so that a • succession can be assured and the seedlings will have grown to a suitable size when conditions are favourable for planting out. •

The. plants can be wrenched a little before the expected time of setting out by cutting the outer and the deeper roots with a sharp spade. This is a particularly useful practice if planting must be delayed owing to unfavourable weather or soil conditions or because time cannot be spared for the work of preparing land and planting out.

The usual method is to force a sharp spade at an angle into the soil along both sides of the seedling rows so that the outer and deeper roots -are cut. The cuts from each side meet under the plants and sever the ends of the tap roots. This forces the • roots to branch, and when seedlings ate lifted, usually a week or two later, they have a; dense, fine mass of roots, which enables them to be lifted with a good ball of roots and soil and transplanted with little check. Plants for winter greens, such' as kale, cabbages, broccoli, and brussels sprouts," can be grown well only where soil and cultural conditions are good. Mildew on Peas Powdery mildew is often serious, on pea crops in dry weather. Peas should be grown only where good cultural conditions can be maintained; that is, in moist, well-drained soils of good humus content. Powdery mildew is difficult to control where conditions favour the disease, but dusting with finely ground sulphur or spraying. with colloidal sulphur usually gives' good results.

Mustard Greens Mustard greens are hardy, useful, and easily grown forms of greens, that deserve to be more widely grown in home gardens. Though they are not commonly grown, they are not new. Alternative names for mustard greens are Chinese mustard and mustard spinach, and the improved strains are now available and the modern appreciation of the value of fresh vegetables have made them , better known. . There are several kinds of mustard greens loose-leaved, broad-leaved, and curled types. The variety Tendergreen, which is also known as mustard spinach’ is particularly fine. It has dark green, rather thick, fairly smooth, spoon-shaped leaves and combines the flavours of mustard and spinach. As it is slow to seed, its sowing in the hotter, drier districts need not be confined to. spring and autumn, as is advisable with some of the other varieties. A hearting variety (Hearting, Chinese Mustard) is also sold by some . seedsmen. , The leaves grow 12in. to 14in. long and the hearts, which are? about 6im to' Bin. across, blanch well. The flavour -of most varieties is mild.

Though some varieties will grow fairly well in the poorer soils, for best results it is advisable to grow them in rich, moist soils and in moderately cool conditions. The open varieties particularly, are an excellent substitute for spinach and should be gathered in the same way, though the leaves are larger than the largest spinach leaves. Thinnings should be pulled first and used: with the roots cut off. . Later when the remaining plants are large enough a few of the largest leaves can be taken off as they develop. They can be removed with. the fingers or scissors and should . be used when young and tender; they can be cooked like spinach or used in salads. Seed should be sown jin. deep in rows 15in. apart. Seedlings of the open-leaved kind should be thinned to 6in. apart in the rows and of the hearting kind to at least 9in. apart under favourable conditions. The crop should be ready for use in from 35 to 45 days from seed sowing. Parsnips Though parsnips are not usually lifted until early winter, it is now rather late - for them to be sown in most southern districts. . They can still

be sown where, as in many northern districts, the autumn is sufficiently long to enable the plants to develop fully before winter stops growth. Hollow Crown is a popular variety. Radishes Small successional sowings of radish should be made as required. Cultural requirements are similar to those of carrots and beet, but as the crop matures much more quickly, it is more sensitive to adverse conditions. The soil should be well drained and the top 6in. cultivated to a very fine tilth. It should be very rich in fine, wellrotted organic matter; well-rotted compost is excellent. Seeds should be sown thinly (12 to 15 per foot of row) j-in. deep in rows which need be only 4in. to 6in. apart. The soil should be gently firmed after sowing, as the roots do not bulb well in loose soil. Seed can also be sown broadcast, but weeding is then more difficult. The roots should never dry . out and in mid-summer shelter from the sun is advisable. This is best achieved by sowing in the shade of a taller crop. The value of radishes lies in their fresh crispness and mild pungency. Pungency and fibre are, however, so greatly increased by slow growth or checks that in adverse conditions radishes are likely to be hot, pithy, and . indigestible.

Radishes can be sown at any time of the year in well-drained soil, provided there is . sufficient moisture' and soil temperature is high enough. Salad Vegetables Largely because they are eaten raw, salad vegetables are almost without exception a useful source of vitamins. In the well-planned garden an adequate supply should be available each year for as long as the weather permits. Plants used in salads include beetroot, celery, chicory, chives, cress, cucumbers, endive, lettuces, mustard, nasturtium, onions, . shallots, and tomatoes. Lettuces, Radishes, Spring Onions If ground conditions are favourable, small successional sowings of lettuces, radishes, and spring onions may be made. These vegetables remain in the best condition for only a limited time and should be used when young, and fresh. - A well-drained, deeply cultivated soil rich in humus is necessary, as quick, vigorous growth is essential for crisp, succulent produce. The soil for' lettuce particularly should be in good condition and adequately supplied with nitrogenous matter. Shallots The harvesting of shallots can be begun as soon as the bulbs are mature

and the roots have started to rot. Proper drying off of the bulbs is important and if the weather is unfavourable, they should be laid under cover in trays in a dry shed. Swede Turnips In growing conditions that suit them swede turnips mature in from 55 to 90 days, but growth and yield are greatly influenced by climate. Varieties that require a long growing season thrive best in. a cool, moist climate with neither dry periods nor very heavy rain. Sunshine is not important; in fact, because of the moister conditions longer-maturing varieties generally do best in late autumn, when sunshine is reduced. Good swedes are a very useful addition to the home garden, particularly in the far south, where conditions enhance their quality and flavour. Swedes are high yielding and, like turnips, do not require special soil, provided drainage. is good and there is adequate moisture. They respond well to a soil moderately rich in wellrotted organic matter. A dressing of superphosphate at loz. to 2oz. a square yard is advantageous on many soils. In the home garden swedes are usually grown for late autumn and winter use. In southern districts a sowing can be made in November or December; further , north December or

January is favoured. In very mild districts even February is not too late. Suitable varieties can be sown earlier where there is sufficient moisture for growth. However, as there is rarely much demand for swedes until late autumn, and cool conditions are required for producing the best roots, it is usually advisable to delay sowing, provided the roots are able to make most of their growth before winter.

In some districts swedes are affected by an internal breakdown known as brown heart. It can be detected first when the plant is - about 2in. in diameter. If the root is cut deeply so that a right-angle piece is removed, a clearly defined zone will be seen near the centre with areas mottled greyish, brownish, and glassy, usually concentrically or radially. Leaves may be curled and brittle and the bulbs woody with a bitter taste.

Brown heart is caused by a deficiency of the element boron. It can be overcome by the application of ordinary borax, though in the home garden liberal dressings of organic manure will usually correct the deficiency. The ground should not be limed when this trouble occurs. Good varieties of swedes for the home garden include Laing’s Garden and Superlative Table. Tomato Troubles Few crops are subject to as many diseases as the tomato, and plants should be watched for virus disease. Plants that show any symptoms of virus infection, for which there is no cure, should be destroyed at once. Distortion of the young leaves or mosaic mottling may indicate infection with this type of disease, different types and combinations of which vary in their effect on plants.

Plants which develop narrow, often distorted, fern-like leaves or have a stunted appearance usually produce little if any crop and should be removed and. burnt. Those infested with spotted wilt, recognisable in the early stages by a bronzing (often very fine) of the foliage with a pattern of brown

spots toward the base of the top leaflets and usually later by a stunted appearance and a rolling and bunching of the top leaves, should also be burnt. Spotted wilt is one of the most serious diseases with which the tomato grower has to contend. It is commonly spread from diseased to healthy plants by thrips, which are minute, dark, cigarshaped insects with fine, hair-like, or brush-like wings; . the . grubs are usually yellowish green. Many garden plants such as Iceland poppy, chrysanthemum, lettuce, nasturtium, aster, dahlia, and zinnia are subject to spotted wilt and also serve to carry over the disease from season to season. Thrips are sometimes difficult to control, as they have such a wide range of host plants and in the warm, sheltered conditions which suit tomatoes they are prolific breeders.

Regular spraying with DDT is usually effective against thrips, as it is against stem-borer caterpillar and looper caterpillar, two other common pests of tomatoes. Where potato blight is troublesome bordeaux mixture or a suitable Gov-ernment-certified substitute should also be applied regularly to tomatoes. The first spray should be applied about 7 to 10 days after planting out, and thereafter spraying should be repeated every 2 to 4 weeks according to the weather and the extent to which the disease is troublesome.