SPRAYING IS A NECESSITY

Te Ao Hou, May 1957, Page 58

SPRAYING IS A NECESSITY Spraying programmes should be strictly adhered to. Unfortunately gardeners start off in the spring with very good intentions, but after spraying their crops and orchards two or three times, they refrain from continuing the good work until such times as infection is apparent. Always remember that spraying is a preventative method and not a cure. Spraying materials are very costly and must be used continuously, otherwise their effectiveness is useless. Therefore, for late crops of tomatoes, potatoes, and the later varieties of peaches, apples and pears, continue to apply a covering protective. Where potatoes have been harvested from the garden, continue to sow carrots for winter use. If the previous crop has been well manured, refrain from using any further fertilizer. Sow onion seeds for transplanting later in the year. A sowing of cabbage, cauliflower and lettuce can now be made at intervals, so that a complete succession of the crop may be utilized later in the season. The variety of cauliflower known as Phenomonal Early can be strongly recommended. When planting out, always remember to fertilize with a nitrogenous manure such as blood and bone, and plant on ridges allowing three feet between the rows and eighteen inches between the plant. As spring grown crops mature, harvest carefully and avoid bruising so that the crops will not deteriorate during storage. All proportions of the garden not required for other use should now be sown down with a cover crop. Blue lupin is a most suitable type of crop for digging in at a later date. Owing to the fact that in most home gardens there is a need for continuous and usually intensive cropping, it is very important to dig in all available organic material. All rubbish and trash which has not been infected by insect pests and fungoid disease, should be returned to the soil either by composting or dug directly into the land. As a rule the home gardener is never likely to have more organic material available than his garden will require.