GARDENING NOTES

New Zealand Tablet, 24 February 1916, Page 51

GARDENING NOTES

(By Mb J. Joyce, Landscape Gardener, Chmtchurch.)

v f THE HYACINTH. r ; These are very old favorites, and always very welcome spring visitors. They are most interesting plants to raise for indoor decoration, as they can be grown in water or moss, and in pots and other suitable receptacles for placing in the windows, either inside or outside. We do not see the hyacinth now occupying the place of honor that it used to in the past. Nothing could be more pleasing to look at than a good bed of well-grown* double hyacinths. But to look well, they must be v well grown, and then' they will repay the extra attention which a bed or plot requires before they are planted in it. When a bed is well made at the start, there is very little trouble needed for some years afterwards, until it becomes crowded, and the bulbs require to be taken up and the surplus distributed elsewhere. Before choosing a site for a bed, care should be used in the selection of a favorable position in the garden, where they will have plenty of , shelter from cold winds and inclement weather. A good bed is worth a little protection in severe weather, as they are early bloomers. They may be planted any time from March until the end of May. It is not wise to keep them too long out of the ground, as they will begin to make their growth when the seasonable time is at hand; when they begin to start sprouting is a sure sign that they ought to be planted. In making a bed for hyacinths measure out the intended shape and size, then, with the spade, throw out two feet of the soil and wheel it away, and dig up the bottom a good spade deep. Procure some good, well-rotted, turfy loam out of a paddock which has not been cropped, if such is not at hand in the garden compost heap. It should be free from worms. Take about half of this soil and equal parts of sea sand, coarse sand will do, of very old rotten cow manure, and leaf mould, or other material from the garden refuse heap] All should be thoroughly rotted. Mix the whole well, and, before filling into the bed, mace some rough material at the bottom for drainage if necessary. Then fill in the bed with the mixed material. It will need filling up a little. extra to allow for the soil settling down. The bed, when settled down, should be still higher than the ground around it, raised towards the centre, and gently sloping to the sides. After a fortnight or so the bulbs may be planted.. Before doing so the bed ought to have a coating of sand, and the bulbs then placed neatly in lines about a foot apart, and six to nine inches in .the row. They can be planted with a stout dibble to fit the bulbs, and with at least three inches of soil above the crowns. It is recommended, when planting, to drop in the hole a small quantity of sand before inserting the bulb. Make the hole deep and wide enough, so that there will be room enough, for the sand without raising the bulb too high. Also put some more sand around the bulb when placed in its position, and as a finishing touch cover the bed over with a nice mixture of sandy composition. Keep the bed well stirred during the growing season, and free from weeds, and, as I said before, a little protection in bad weather will be v.ery desirable. The hyacinths may remain in the same place for a few years, but the bed should be forked over each winter, and a little top-dressing added at the same time. When they get over-crowded they can be taken up, separated, and planted: out as

-before.* When. they,are done flowering the flower stalks should be cut off, and not let go to seed, as this weakens the bulb, but on no account must the green leaves be cut away they must be left to die down of their own accord. . The leaves nourish the bulb, and if injured the bulb suffers:■ if it has not grown into maturity. -Holland is the home of the hyacinth, where hundreds of acres are grown, and exported all over the world. The soil there is mainly composed of sea sand and peat, which suit the hyacinth, and on that account Holland commands the trade of the world for bulbs of all kinds.; Growing Hyacinths in Glasses. There are glasses made for growing the hyacinth in water. It is very interesting to grow them in this manner. Procure a few glasses, say about a dozen, fill them up with clear rain water, if possible, placing a piece of charcoal in the bottle to keep the water pure. Put the bulb in the glass, just touching the water, and place the glass in a dark situation for three or four weeks. Avoid a damp atmosphere. When the roots have grown a couple of inches remove about half an inch of the water, so that the base of the bulb will not touch it. The roots should not be meddled '. with. Never change the water while it remains pure. They may also be grown in rustic or ornamental dishes, filled with sand. - The bulbs are placed in these dishes, covered over with nice green moss, and watered occasionally. They look very pretty when grown in this way. When the flowering season is over, the bulbs should be planted out, as . they will not be of much use for flowering again for a year or two.