Work in the Garden

Lake County Mail, Issue 44, 7 April 1948, Page 7

Work in the Garden

ONIONS, PEAS, BROAD BEANS These three subjects may be sown this month, to become available about the beginning of November. The thinnings of this autumn crop of onions may be lined out in the spring to produce the main crop of good-keeping onions. The others may be used in November when sufficiently large. Peas will become established and will reach maturity quicker than spring sowings. Broad beans sown at this time will provide small pods to be cut and served as French beans in October, and the main crop of the beans themselves will be set before the black aphis becomes troublesome in late November. Onions succeed best in an open situation in a rich loam, but they may be grown in almost any well-cultivated soil which is well drained. The lighter loams and peat soils which dry out in the late summer will thoroughly ripen crops, with resultant long-keeping qualities. New ground should be doubledug at least two spade depths deep. Break up the subsoil and thoroughly incorporate a good dressing of wellrotted organic material. Strawy manure is the most suitable to open up stiff soils, whilst the heavier cow manure and others are more suitable for binding light soils. The surface soil should be left rough and exposed to the weather during the winter. If the soil is stiff and cloggy or has been manured for many years, a dressing of lime will prove beneficial. If the soil is forked over in the spring it will prove to be in good condition and spring sowing should be carried out. Culture of Onions Onions may be grown in the same soil for many years, provided they are supplied with organic manure, a dressing of bone meal and occasionally lime. However, in the small garden it is advisable to place it in the rotation in order to help give other plants a change of soil. Seed should be sown in shallow drills \ to 5-inch deep and a similar distance apart. Many gardeners prepare this shallow drill by laying a rake handle along the line and pressing it into the soil. This ensures a firm shallow drill. Soot, ashes and charcoal from the bonfire and dressings of blood and bone

By J. W. Goodwin, N.D.H., N.Z., F.E.H.S., Massey Agricultural College.

should be made if the plants lack vigour. When the weather becomes warmer in the spring and the soil is moist after rain, this crop should be thinned out to two inches apart, and later small onions may be taken out alternately, making the spacing four inches apart. Thinning should be followed by, a good dressing of blood and bone or balanced fertiliser. Thinnings may be saved and lined out or spring sowings of seed may be made. There are numerous varieties available. Ailsa Craig, James Keeping and Pukekohe Long Keeper are good autumn varieties and Brown and Straw Spanish 1 for spring sowing. For those who prefer a mild onion the White Spanish or silverskinned varieties should he used. Autumn-sown. Peas The garden pea is native to Europe and Asia and its botantical name is “ pisum,” the early Greek and Latin name. The second or specific name is sativus, meaning cultivated. Autumn sowings are only suitable in a welldrained soil which does not pack Jiard and wkt in winter time. In our rotation peas follow members of the cabbage tribe. The area was limed in winter prior to digging in a good dressing of well-rotted manure to produce this bulky leaf crop. A well-conditioned soil which was manured for a previous crop is just what is required for peas, and the lime also is beneficial. Shallow drills may be made with the draw-hoe, four to six inches wide and li inches deep. Rows should be 18 inches apart and the seed well covered, as one or two stray seeds showing will be an invitation to birds, particulraly pigeons, at this time of the year. It is usual to broadcast seed along the drills, though some gardeners may prefer to space them more evenly. A distance of from to 2 inches apart is more suitable at this time of the year. The fairly thickly planted seedlings shelter one another and then there are some losses through birds or slugs. This crop of peas will respond to light dressing of blood and bone in the late autumn or early spring. Do not apply heavy dressings, as these will create unduly soft growth easily damaged by the elements. It is also an advantage to draw the soil up to the plants in a low ridge. This will drain water away and keep the soil warm.