CARE OF SEEDLINGS

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 195, 3 September 1937, Page 13

CARE OF SEEDLINGS

Many thousands of seedlings are lost every year thTOugh not knowing hotv to treat them, and many more are not grown successfully; that is, not brought to that state of perfection to which. every plant is entitled in order to show off its fullest beauty. The following few hints may help to give them a good start in life, which in the case of annuals means everything between success and failure, as their season is comparatively short. All seedlings will not grow in the same position. They all want, and must have, their own particular placo in the garden and in order to grow successfully, and eveutually show off their individual charm. In other words, they must be made comfortable. While the poppy, with its gaudy flowers, will deligbt in the full sunshine, a cineraria revels in a cool, shady position, so also do polyanthus and the primrose family. Pan'sies love a position sbaded from the cnid-day sun, so do forget-me-not, lobellias, the pretty mauve primula malacoides, and columbines. On the other hand, antirrihinums, asters, stocks, salvias, sweet peas, delphiniums, geums, guillardias, petunias, phlox, marigolds, sinnias, delight in any open situation. At the same tioie, strong winds should always be guarded against; the plants get bToken and blooms are easily broken. Care should always be taken to avoid planting a dwarf-growing variety behind a taller one, thus hiding it from view. Such plants as lobelia, myosotis (forget-me-not), poppies, primulas, polyanthus, pansies, violas, etc., should always be well in front. Carry in the mind's eye the approximato height of the varieties being planted, and, abovc all, do not over-crowd. Massing does |,not mean crowding the plants; far I from it, Plants such as salvias, snaj>-

dragons, stocks, asters, and petunias show to cnuch greater advantage if planted in mass formation, but care must be taken in regard to the background. For instance, salvias should never be planted against a red brick wall; the xeason is obvious, the colours will clash. Rather choose a bed in the lawn, or border with a hedge as background. The same thing will apply to other plants; blend the colours nicely and you will have more satisfaction when they come into flower. Soil in flower beds will naturally be of a more or less consistent nature, and, therefore, will not suit all classes of seedlings. While such plants as stocks, dianthus, carnations and wullfiowers revel in a good dressing of lime, pansies, delphiniums, violas, etc., require a liberal supply of well-rotted manure (cow manure for pref erence) ; antirrhinuais and pcppies dislike it, unless aplied sometime before planting — at least three months. Asters will often go blind if heavy application of manures are used. Mignonette and sweet peas, to be grown well, require very rich soil indeed, large quantities of good cow manure being absolute necessary, whereas phlox drummondi will succeed in any garden soil. So, that( summed up, it is well to try to give to each variety of seedlings just what they really like, a simple matter, especially if th'e varieties are grown in masses. In all cases the beds or borders must be well and deeply dug beforehand, bringing the surface soil to a fine tilth. It is courting disaster to attempt to plant seedlings in rough ground, as their roots are very fine and require a fiue soil in order to grow quickly and make strong plants. It is, therefore, time well spent to properly prepare the soil. We make our homes comfortable to live in, why not make our seedlings' home comfortable, too.