GARDEN NOTES
(By "Kowhni.") PvOUTINE WORK. V.'u had a uiuie nut \vi'tii» vi the .gales thai uhii way cwi-.vi'ai mis urnu ol l-iiu , year, ..iiuu an piuius unit were not ca.roiimy iiiiu niiiuituy biiu;ed wore utterly niim'U. in tome jiarts oi my garden uw Bail , , m us iury, lure away tiaKea and an, uuil a nromiting bed ol cosmos looited next morning as u a- lew ciepnanta liiki sat ii]i«u ii. since theji thu weather liau been lairly cujnt,. ana has given us a chance to repair or Hide this damage linuc, anil to strength™ our wen l< spote against a further onslauglit. In every pan of the- garden uunicrous tccdlint'B are springing up. t'orget/me-nots, aatirrliinumß, Rquiicgia-9, sivcet ecabioue. migiiouette, paiißiee, violas, and many other plants are crowding up l'rom the' damp earth In theshelter of the parent plania. The very fliglit of these sturdy youngatcrs brings joy to ilia Piithnsmstii: gardener, for witii it (iome visions of a flno display of beautiful flowers early in'tho fleaton. As booh as tho seedlings are big.enough to handle they should be transferred to. their, flowering quarters, bo that they may. becomeestablished before cold weather sets in. Narcissi nro last punhing their way abovo the ground. ■ Ketu- the soil about tliem well stirred with the hand fork, and keep them clear of weeds, and eclf r ßown Beedlings.-Grape hyancinths (muscari) ar-i very forward, and the chance should bo taken now to plant a, few. seedlings of for-get-me-not among the;n. . Tho effect, l-i tho spring, will be charm.ing. Gladiolus tristis is so far forward an to need staking and tying up. ' • •'' : ' As one w:alks along the garden paths, occasional whiffs cf the- ew»et. scent of violets- tells one that tho plants are already at work. Care-should be taken to keep them healthy and growing well. ■ Anemones have luado very strong growth. In a' few weeks bow—parly in- Jllay—for-ward-plants will begin ;to (lower. . Prick a little bonodust into the soil" about tho plants, and water them occasionally with soot ivater. Soot is a-fine fertiliser, and one most easily ol tainet. Anemonee must bekept well supplied with .water should the weather be dry. Ftir the soil about tlio nlants freciuently, and 'keep weeds j pulled out. ... - - ■• i ' .Roses have taken.a new lease of life, and everywhere •■• bushes are- covered with healthy new foliage and fast-swelling buds Itegutar doses of iiquul manurb should be given, and'--where thero is the least traco of milder tho bushes should be dusted with flowers of sulphur. Tho beet time to do this is early in - the lnorniug, while', the foliage ie still v.'ot n-ith'dow. Keep a sharp lookout for caterpillars. ■ From the first sawing, of sweet peas, a finei'healthy, lot. of seedlings are already up. ■' No'w'is the'Hime that sparrows and slugs attack thorn, and bring despair to the • gardener vho Is counting on an early-display of bloom. Under favourable conditions tho-plants fronvihis , early towing should flower in September, if not earlier, p.nd so every effort should Dβ made to keep them growing.: sturdily and without check.'.- : Threads of black cotton stretched across will keep., eparrowa at bay; for slugs thore; seems to be ijoth'iig but diligent watchfulness, and . regular ' CTening visits with : a lantern ; . and a pair, of Bcissors. Keep .the soil well stirred, and remove anything within the neijrhboprhood of tho seedlings that'might harbour slugs. Borders" of p'ahsies and.-violas, may bo planted now. Old lilants have niade strong now groivth tliat is moet .suitable for new borders. With care, each ' shoot may ho pulled away with-a-few fine '-roots'!'and'if planted firmly and Kept tnhiat will: soon begin to grow. To lie -really .successful with these flowers,: one should- dig the ground to a, depth of at least' 1J inches, and ehould work in a good' quantity of well-decayed manure. A littlo bonedust may be worked in with encli little plant. Borders that arc prepared now will be gay with flowers quite early in the spring. CHRYSANTHEMUMS. ■ The buds am forming so quiclfty on chrysanthemum plants, that disbudding has become part of the daily In the case of early-lloweriiig varieties very iiulti uudtting is necessary. Tliu plauls, if left to themselves; with just a little necessary .thinning o.Ht of. the biids, will develop wondcriul epra-yB- of blossom. Single-llowerjng ehrye'anthcmuiuß.-are mbst effective when treated in the same way. It is possible then, with well-grown plant 3, ; to pick beautiful, epriiys of bloom fjro or three feet in longth. In the garden, too, the plants make a fine display whon they are not disbudded too' severely. Caterpillars are making the most of their 6pjiortunitiee, and working tremendous mischief wher.o' thoy are left unmolested; Hand picking is the only reliable way of getting'rid of them. : Now lli'at -tho bude aro beginning to swell,- a littlo liquid manure should bo given to tho plants. Half an ounce of guano or one ounce of superphosphate dissolved ;u a gallon o| water will help tho plants to swell their buds good dowers. Uso lain water if possible Cold artesian water ehould be exposed to tho sun lor several hours'before being- used. . .. Plants of tho later-flowering varieties that have been pinched-back, two-or three times will bj- this time.have made flue .bushy growth, and. will be making their torminal buSs. A well-pinched plant has, as a rule, many shoote. and may bo disbudded to one tud to each shoot. The central bud of each cluster is generally tho largest and the best one to retain. Carefully remove all othcre. Where flowers aro wnn'ted only to make a great display in tho garden, the central bud of each cluster is sometimes removed, and cither two or three of the outside buds, well removed frov; t.ne another, aro left. This method of disbudding givea-two or three Bmallcr flowers forming a cluster or. a spray on each shoot, and makes a great mass of bloom in the garden. But for houso decoration these clusters are far too heavy. i>'or this purpose the plan of leaving the. central bud and removing all others gives one. medium-sized ilowcrs on nico long iilcins. Tloworing'shoots should be tied as naturally as possible to carefully concealed stakes. liemove- any shoots that begin to form »t tho base of the stems. Prom now onwards ayenrt strictly to watering, mulching, feeding, disbudding, tying-np dowerIng shoots, and exterminating.caterpillars. .TB-ITONIA. GROOATA. The floncre of this beautiful, bulbous plant are very like sparaxis. Their colour is orange-scarlet, and a few good clumps malio a great show in tho late spring. They are very easily grown, and may be left, in tho ground uutii the cornin become overcrowded. When this is the case, corms may bo seen peeping through the surface of the soil or even quite on top of it. They may be lifted now aud planted back at once in well-dug-soil, to which has been added plenty of ieaf soil, or well decayed vegetation, sand, and a littlo honediist. Plant tho cenne three inches deep. ' VEGETABLES. BfiOAl) BEANS. Mako a small sowing ol bnoad beans. Sow them in ground that has already beou manured this autumn. Tread the ground well to mako it firm, ami then hoe the surface before making the drills for the seeds. Choose n rart of the vegetable garden for broad beans-thai gets all tho winter's sun, as this sowing in to produce beans for use in the spring. A larger sowing may bo mado iater on. Tho ■ seeds should bo ilye or rix iiichus apart, ana the rows two feet apart. . • Harlington Windsor is a good variety to Oau'liflowers havo a habit, of maturing all together. For the email householder this is a tragedy. Borne of them may- bo kept, back bv bending a-leaf over tho Halfcrown 'flower. Matured'cauliflowers, it pulled up by the roots and hung head, downwards from the roof of a shod, will keep for two or three weeks. ■•• • Keep growing plants well syringed witii j clear water. Open out tho leaves anil P.yringo the growing flower, thoroughly. In using tho syringe don't drive the plßton all tho way homo at one push. IMS produces such a strong rush of water that leaves and plants aro- bruised, and beiitby it. Kmply tho. syringe by. ft. bbnus of short sharp pushes. Constant syringing helps to l;ecp iiway insect posts. j Put soino soot in bag of roarse material . (sugar bag) ami stand; 11 in. water- for a, few davs. When using the liquid, for manure" dilute it with olca-r water till it is the colour of weak tea. .Not qnly is Ms a pood manure, but also jt 1R a splenaid wash with which, to byringo the Ipavos "Vrrots* onions, and turnips are allheno- j fitwl bv apntetio/* of wo«l< snot water, j A/al-as. rhododendrons,. -camellias, enr-nat-nns nnd violets nll.-l.kc it. It » .<•)«> "i enfondirt manure for pnt.plante. Root dusted round plants helps> keep away flluge -'""1 wireworms Garden Notes next w.eU will contain fea-! sonablc note? about Shirley pop-1 ptaUxias. pot plants for tho winter, ana i vegetables. ■ ■ ■ :
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Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 163, 30 March 1918, Page 13
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1,493GARDEN NOTES Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 163, 30 March 1918, Page 13
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