GARDENING FOR JULY.

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 6 July 1916, Page 3

GARDENING FOR JULY.

KITCHEN GARDEN

Operations in the kitchen garden during this month will be almost at a standstill, as the ground is cold and generally very wet. Embrace all favourable opportunities of looking after growing crops, in the way of weeding, thinning, and keeping down insects. Earth up potatoonions. Provided the weather is favourable, towards the end of the month a few more early potatoes may be planted in a dry,lwarm and sheltered situation. Make successional sowings of broad beans and early peas. A small sowing of parsnips may also be made; sow in drills about 15ins apart so as to allow the surface of the soil to be stirred by hoeing between. Sow for earliest planting a little tomato seed, in seed pans or pot, and place in cool house or frame, with hotbeds of stable manure. Rhubarb roots can now be planted out in rows four feet apart by three. To grow rhubarb to perfection, the best soil in the garden should be selected, and prepared during the autumn by being deeply trenched and well manured. Never sow seeds when the soil is wet and adheres to the foot, or when in a sour or uti" genial state; better wait even for another month before sowing, as one good crop is worth two or three bad ones. Gooseberries and raspberries may be pruned, dug between and manured; also old beds of strawberries. Attend to those lately planted. Slugs will now be very troublesome, and frequent dustings of lime should be given in the evening after dark.

FLOWER GARDEN.

Daphnes should find a place in every garden, however small, as they produce their beautiful sweet-scented flowers very freely during the winter. The sweet violet commences to flower early and continues throughout the winter and spring months. Proceed with the planting of hardy shrubs, trees, etc., paying par-

ticular attention to the arrangement of heights and colours. Plant roses and other hardy plants. Keep the soil well stirred around all bulbs above ground. Plant a few hardy gladiolus bulbs for early flowering. Box edgings may now be laid.

THE ORCHARD.

Plant apples, pears, plums, cherries, quinces, medlars, chestnuts, walnuts, mulberries, filberts, almonds, peaches, apricots, nectarines, gooseberries, currants, raspberries, and Loganberries when weather and ground is favourable. In choosing a site for an orchard, if there are any doubts as to the natural drainage dig a hole three feet deep, and if, after some hours have elapsed, water has collected in it otherwise than from rain, some means must be devised for draining the ground. Prune all the trees above mentioned, but avoid doing this work in severe frosty weather. Grafts can now be taken, especially those of plums or cherries, which succeed better if cut off early. After the graits are cut off, put their ends in soil in a sheltered situation, out of the rays of the sun, until the grafting season comes on. Now is the time to cut back old trees intended to be grafted, for if—left until the sap begins to move, the bark round the part where the limbs have been sawn off is apt to die back and thus produce canker, Cut off s the heads of budded stocks; those; of the quince should be cut off early in the month. Clean between strawberry rows and mulch with long dun§,

FARM.

Skim-plough grass land that is required for turnips. Plough turnip land as fed off ready for oats or wheat. Ewes will now be coming forward for early lambing, and will want careful looking after. Look out for f0,0,t----rot, paring and dressing feet where necessary-, $a not keep ewes in lamb qrj turnip entirely, abortions being often due to so doing. Do not forget such winter work as stubbing up briars and furze along the sides of fields, and to put up a new gate where it would be convenient, etc