THE GARDEN.

Otago Witness, Issue 2892, 11 August 1909, Page 10

THE GARDEN.

Vr OPEKATIOXS FOR THE WEEK. FRUIT UARDEN.— The remaindsr of the planting for the season should be completed as early a= possible, to give the trees a chance to become established before the dry weather overtakes them, which in the case of late-plantsd trees often seriously affects their growth, unless it is convenient . to water them as required- TV'her* the fruit trees ha,ve to be manured, the operation should not be longer delayed, hut the pruning musi be the first completed, so that unnecess&r;. treading on ihe ground be avoided. Young trees should be sparingly bupphed with manure ; exceie is waste, caus- . ing them to make a rank growth of wood at the etfper.se of fruit. One cannot go wrong in using rotten stable manure to fruit trees; but potash is a valuable addition to most soils, and should be used in preierence to phosphoric acid. Fruits, like other crops, need all the elements of plant iood to enable -them to do well. In the application of manure the digging fork should always he ueed in preference to the spade, which must of necessity destroy some of the surface roote. When scions are wanted for propagating purposes thej should at onca be taken, off, labelled, and laid in until the season for grafting. When the pruning is finished the trees should, if in the least infected with scale or other disease, ba thoroughly cleaned according to instructions given from time to time. Strawberry beds sometimes get full of weeds at this seaBOn. As the hot is not o! much service when the soil and weather are damp, the beds must be cleaned by thinly skimming the surface w>th thi spade or fork; in poor soils a slight topdressing will do gocd. KITCHEX GAKDEX.— Until the advent of finer or warmer weather it is better to defer the sowing of garden seeds. The soil is cold and in many places very ivet, and ■where this is the ca«.a small seeds are liable to perish. Do not fail -to stake peas when they are a few inches high', even the dwarf varieties in the winter f-easons are benefited by having tome support to cling to. and so ba kept from the cold, wet soil; besides, the pea- plant is easily blown out of the ground if left to itseli. Row out a few cabbage plants for spring use. Remember that a good rich soil is necessary to grow them quickly and of good flavour at the same time. Very large, coar.** beads are inferior in quality to those of a moderate size. The selection of a good strain of seed in the cabbage is very important. Where very •aorljt celery is required a small sowing ahou.'d be made in a seed pan in a glass frame. As the present crop grows, the eai thing up must be attended to. Keep all your young crops free of weeds ; at this time of the year the latter grow very fast, and may soon choke the plants. FLOWER GARDEX.— Xo time should be lo=t ir. cjinpleting any fresh work being done, so that the stocking of new beds, tho '. renewal of old shrubbery borders, and the ' formation of walks may be finished before the spring is well advanced. Grasses \ and other weeds on gravel walks should be destroyed bsfore the> become laTge. There are numerous way? of removing these, but by far the most effective is a solution of arsenic. iWhen a good dose of this poison is applied many years will elapse ere weeds will grow again. In using this or salt, or, in fact, any other weed-killer, care must be taken "that adjacent vegetation be not also destroyed. Where the area to be gone over is b*t small, boiling water maj be used to kill weads in paths. Where- new lawns have •to be nia-do, the work should be pat in feftnd at once. To make* a thoroughly good iawn the drainage should be perfect, arid to prevent inequalities or depressions later on *he soil should be deeply dug. A perfect ■awn should be even as & billiard table, and of one shade of green, not patohy, as is often seen; some bits pale, others of »_dark green. This .'s -generally caused by variableness in the soil and unequally distributing manure, as it is fo frequently full of weed 1 eeeds; bonedust is generally better. The making of )?wns should not be underta-ken when the soil is wet. GREENHOUSE —With the return of longer days, growth is commencing to push tip on most of the soft-wooded plants, which ■will require more room to develop and allow a nee circulation of air to ensure a robust growth. Pelarjonijims, as soon fts their

m pots are fall of roots, will require ano-the shift into a size larger pots, but cars shoul< bo taken not -to use too large a pot; tme teurs often mate v mistake upon this point A plant will succaad better m a small po filled, with roots than it can do if ovei potted, as this often causes the soil abou the roots to become sour and unfit for thi roots to run in. Petunias that are wantei for early flowering should be encouraged t< grow fieely by giving them liquid manure j-nd if. strong plants are wanted they shoulc b9 potted on until they axe in the sized pot they are wanted to flower in. The "points o the growths should be stopped at ever; three or four joints for some time yet, i< encourage "a dwarf, compact growth, and kee] the plants in a light, airy position, near ih< glass. Zonal geraniums that were cut dowi early should have, broken- well by this time When the young growths are about Jin, o: ra-ther more, long, the plants should I* turned out of the pets and the soil shaltei clean away. s«d a few of the long stnagglinj roots cut back, and the plants repotte< into larger-sized pots, just large enough t< get the roots into without crowding them it is far better to commence with a smal pot, and get it well filled with roota, and po' on as necessary, than to place them at onci into large pots in which they are to flower No greater mistake in potting could bi made. After potting the plants should b< kept rather close .for a, week or two, unti ( they show signs-- of moviDg into growth. Ii keeping them in a close frame, if such it used, they must be ventilated to prevent tianvping off. Primulas* for late flowering should now :-t<eive' their final shift mtc • size larger pots, using, as before recom- ' mended, a light rich soil. Cinerarias musi | also be examined, and not allow young plants I to become pot-bound, or a. great check will ■ , ha given to their growth. Early plants, as soon as their pots are filled with roots, should receive occasional waterings of liqvnc mantue. "Where facilities for forcing exist 1 a few tubers of begonias and gloxinias should be taken irom tbeir winter quarters and Bte-rted in gentle beat, watering them gradually at first until they show signs of breaking into growth when they will require relating.