Farm and Garden.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, 27 August 1903, Page 7

Farm and Garden.

OBIGINAL ARTICLES. CULTIVATION OP BOSES. SEN response to inquiries asking how to # g*ow rosea successfully and what to iek do with eiok boshes, we desire to say that the usual cause o£ failure with roses is due to a lack of understanding in' respect to their seeds. In the first placa Kmes delight in a rich soil inclining to heavy, although they will do. well in. any . good garden soil. , They must have good drainage and plenty of water. , Every autumn the ground about them should be covered from two to four inches deep with well rotted stable manure. That should be dug in the'following spring. Bone -meal is also very helpful to the rose trees. Boses should be set in beds from two to three feet apart and kept well pruned,, in order to secure the most satisfactory results in bloom, j They Bhorld bo grown on their own root? when possible, and - strong two-year-old plants set. If root cuttingß are obtained they Bhould be grown a year in a separate bed. Early in spring all weak wood should be out out and the strong Bhoots cut back to a lew eyes. Prune severely those varieties of weak growth, and moderately so those of vigorous growth.„SyringiDjr the rose trees is essential for the production of fine * blo:ma in order to prevent attacks oft insects. I : .' i. '1 : u I i r■. .".'•"?. FWhite hellebore powder is generally recognised as the beßt substance to use for preventing the ravages of insects, and it should be applied "ao loon:'-aai fc'he leaves'' ' begin to unfold in spring, and as frequently as new leaves appear. It must be applied to the underside of the leavec. In making cuttings, well ripened wood is . selected aad cut into lengths containing three or four budp. Those are set in sand, and if available on a moderate hot bed, until rsofca form, when they may be placed out. Propagation of hardy roses is commonly done by suckeriag.. A bank of earth is thrown up around the plant, and in a few months, after the shoots which have started have formed roots, the earth is removed, Those shoots are then removed and set <ut. But unless one is willing to give plenty of fertiliser acd syringing it is needless to expect the finest, blooms. '; ~ • ; , RELATIVE WORTH IN SUGaB BEET TOPPING. The proper topping of bceta is too often neglected. It has been demon* strated by analysis that normally grown beets—that is, those having but a slight portion of the root exposed above ground —should be cut t£E at the lowest green leaf stock. Baeta having very large tops should be cut off well down to the ground , line. The weights and contents of the various parts of the beet vary very much, as provad by analysis. It appears that - the portion of beet protiuiing above the soil is very poor in sugar, and low in purity, and that it is advisable in topping to cut eff much of this part of the root. That causes a double loss, which can be avoided by.leaving the beets but little exposed above ground. The section of the root grown immediately beneath the surface of the soil is u mally richest in sugar. FEEDING PUMPKINS TO COWS. The seeds? should be removed from pumpkins before feeding them to cows, inasmuch as the sesds are purgative aad neutialise the good to be derived from the feeding; the experience of many farmers has confirmed this. Wherever such a course not been adopted it has been found that the cows lost flesh and that the milk tupply decreased, but when the seeds have been removed the cows improve! both in flesh and the flow of milk.