THE FARM AND GARDEN.

Dunstan Times, Issue 407, 4 February 1870, Page 3

THE FARM AND GARDEN.

FEBRUARY. Harvesting operations have now well advanced. In many warm and favorable situations the crops have already been gathered, new oats having b-en in the market this fortnight past. Sown potatoe oats will he in very early. We saw a party thrashing some out at Lake Hayes’ on the 10th of last month. To cut green for horse-feed, for hay, or to supply tho market early this should he a profitable crop to sow. lii farms of any extent the reaping machine has quite superceded hand labor. Machine cutting is not only more economical but a great saving of grain is effected. The process is so rapid and the straw is so little shaken that the ears are preserved intact, and when grain is shaken out it is well known that the best is always lost. Farmers that use machines say that it is better to pay for having a crop cut with a machine than to have one cut by hand for nothing. 'I he loss of grain and straw by baud entth’g more than pays the maes-.ine. Tho pr scut charge for cutting is from Ss. to 10a. per acre. The backdelivery tilting machine has been found to he the best. Tho self-delivery acts well on an even crop and when there is no wind, but it is very difficult to obtain one or be free from the other. In choosing a reaping machine select a strong one, and with as few working parts as possible or you will lie everlastingly at the blacksmith’s. When the sheaves are ready stack as early a; possible and thatch. Found stacks will he found to be the handiest, but if the straw is wanted for chaff and the grain is to be kept for some time, a good large oblong stack is preferable as less straw will get discolored from exposure to the weather. Both hero and at the Lakes crops of grain are as a rule light, even whore the straw is heavy the grain is small, the hot weather and drying winds having brought fhe harvest forward at least a month earlier than usual, and it was impossible that the grain cou’d properly swell. Unless there is a favorable change in tho flour market fke prices for wheat cannot exceed those of last year. The competition between the mills at Lake Hayes’ and Frnnkton will no doubt cause parcels to he readily saleable for cash without discount, but it can have little effect in enhancing prices generally unless there is a rise in Dunedin. Unfortunately for tho Dunstan wo have no mill here yet, and tho operations of our farmers are necessarily much restricted, and hundreds of acres of suitable land for growing wheat, instead of supporting and finding employment for numbers of industrious families, are only a browsing ground for sheep—without which much worshipped animals tho squatters would lead us to believe tho world could not get along. People will never start to grow wheat unless there is a mill to grind it into flour. In this case- the cart most be before

the horse, and the enterprise of our mcr- j

chants should surely supply this want. -The country under tho Uunst.m Ranges and at Coal Creek and Bald Hill Flat would grow splondi I wheat. It is argued by many that before wb grow wheat wo should produce sufficient oats for the consumption of tho district, but this is an absurd way of reasoning. In the first place the production of this cereal must be limited entirely to local consumption. We could send it away unless under most extraordinary circumstances, and where there over production, or even the market fully supplied, prices would fall so low that it would not pay for grow ing. Farming will not pay now-a-days when only one description of grain is saleable. Barley may help us to some extent now that wc have a brewery at Alexandra lint supposing— ami wo will look at the matter in the most favorable lightsix thousand bushels annual y would make all the malt that could possibly he required with the number of our present population, if would not so very materially' assist the agriculturist, and who, to become a very prosperous class, must he able to devote their principal attention to the production of the “ staff of life.” Wheat is readily convertahle into money, and this* is not the case with any other grain or root, except to a very limited extent.

Kitchen Garden.—ln tLis arid climate of ours considarahlo attention should be directed towards next season’s crop. The spring months being always so excessively • 'ry, and tho earth possessing so little moisture, autumn sowings of vegetable for table uso become therefore necessary, a largo portion of which will be fount to successfully withstand the frosts of winter. No time, as ground becomes vacant, should therefore be lost in the preparation of seed beds. It should be roughly dug at once, and exposed to the influence of the sun and wind, which will he found cquall as beneficial, if not more so, than the frosts of winter. After the first fall of rain that is sufficient to moisten the earth give a good coating of well-rotted manure ; dig in, and then sow (the situation being a sheltered one) cabbage, cauliflower, and broeoli seed. These will spring up readily, wall bo free from blight, ami he ready for planting out iu July and August. Cow-dung, sheep-clung, or manure from the pig-stye will ho found the best, being less favorable to the production of aphides than horse-dung. Beds may also bo similarly prepared with stable manure for crops of onions and early peas, to be sown in April. Oniors so sown will transplant successfully iu spring, and will attain a larger size, On good soil, and where there is sufficient moisture to cause tho seed to germinate, sowings of early sorts of turnips should he made for winter uso. Early sorts will ho found the best, as their growth is most rapid, and, having lorge tops, they will protect themselves from the effects of frost until wanted for use. Sowings of raddishes and lettuce may lie made, as also of mustard and cress. In warm situations lettuce plants will stand the winter, and if thinned out and planted they will come in very early. To obtain very early cabbages put about three seeds where you would like a plant to grow, and, when they have attained a sufficient size, thin out, letting one plant remain. Fillup vacancies in rows with the thinnings ; hoe, and earth up. Always bear in mind that a rapid growth, and the sooner a cabbage' can be induced to head before the approach of very warm weather, the less chance there is of blight. By attention to these r dcs it is easy to grow cabbages as big as a bucket, and keep them free from blight without watering until Christmas. The same holds good with cauliflowers. Always keek tho ground between the plants constantly stirred, so as to permit a rapid growth. Where carrots, parsnips, and other root crops are not doing wall, or their growth has been checked by drought, stir the earth between (ho rows, even if there is no rain, and it will be found to he wonderfully effective. We are not advocates for irrigation, unless it can bo done systematically. A good drenching may he permitted now an I then, hut it must he always borne in mind that, where there is no subsoil to drench ground with, water is almost equivalent to taking a crop off it. Amateur gardeners should uso plenty of manure and dig often. A coating of black soil from damp gullies in the bills will he very effective, and supply the place of manure. We have seen this done with great success in Australia, and the same result would attend the process here. Break down the necks cf onions where they require it, and clear earth from the bulbs if covered. This is good for buth onions and turnips. Plant cellcry in well manured trenches, an I water liberally if the situation is dry. Celery may be planted upon an even surface in a moist place, and earthed upas it grows; hut tho trenches will he found to be the best in most places The rows should be at least three feet apart. Leeks should also ho planted out, when about the size of a quill, in rows two feet apart and nine inches between tho plants. Place the heads pretty deeply into the ground, and earth up as they grow, to ensure a long white leek. 1 hey will remain good all the winter, and can he dug up as required for use. Remove flowering stems from sage, thyme, marjoram, and other herbs, so as to induce a bushy growth before winter. Carefully loosen the soil round rhubarb plants, and, where possible, apply a little liquid manure, and then, should the weather pVove warm and moist, a second growth, almost equal to that of spring, may be induced. No garden can have too much rhubarb. It is always acceptable in either pastry or jam, and, with the a Iditiou of a little isinglass, it could be successfully preserved for winter use.

Flower Garden.— Now that the earth has hoen somewhat coaled by showers, aud the dewa of evening aro becoming heavier, tho diligent floriculturist may, vith a little trouble aud attention, give- his garden, quite.

a spring-like appearance. This may be greatly promote 1 by a vigorous cutting down of busby horbaeious plants. The same process will also hobl good with most annuals. This should be attended to at once, as a number of flowering stalks will be speedily thrown out by the plant, and the blossoms, though small, will be preferable to none at all. As a general rule, the more .that flowers are cut, the longer will they last and bloom. A nosegay is always a welcome present, and docs good to both giver- and receiver. Bi-unuuals that have not yet flowered should be planted out in moist weather. With ordinary care this can be done safely, an I the plants will recover themselves sufficiently to flower early in spring. To secure later blossoms transplant iu spring. Seeds, as they ripen, should he gathered, but, where the ground is well loosened and not hkely to be disturbed by digging, the plan of lotting seeds sow themselves is a good one if plants are wanted. Everybody who owns a garden, particularly about the Duustan, is well aware of the difficulty and ‘uncertainty attending the raising of small seeds. This does not arise, as is generally suppose I, from the fault of the seeds themselves; hut the cause of failure is climatic influences, and also the unfavorable nature of the soil, which contains so much lime and adhesive matter that the rain or watering causes a hard crust to form over the surface, which defies all the efforts of the young plants, to force themselves through, and should they even succeed in doing so the weather is generally so dry as to cause the death of the plant, or it is oaten down by insects which crawl about in every direction. If seed be permitted to she I the young plants can he readily removed either singly or in clumps with a bail of earth attached to them and placed where it is desired they should grow. Sowing small seeds under a frame or covering the bed in which they arc sown with a wet gunny bag during the day until they germinate are the only plans likely to produce success. Perennials which are propagated by cuttings or by (li\ iding the roots should ho always selected for our gardens When possible. They appear to suit both climate and soil best. They blossom well and give little trouble to the grower. Such plants usually blossom early, but when desired they may be encckcdhy transnlanting, and so procure a succession. A vigorous cutting down of the first flowers will also produce a similar effect. Many of the native shrubs arc magnificent ornaments to the garden; they are always fresh and green, and cannot be equalled hv foreign importations. They can he transplanted readily during winter and early spring. A splendid variety may be obtained along the shores of Lake Wokatip, kit wo will say more about this subject on a future occasion.