GARDEN NOTES.

Shannon News, 14 February 1928, Page 4

GARDEN NOTES.

The Flower Garden. With the prolonged spell of hot feather routine work in the flower garden has dwindled down to stirring around beds and borders in an effort

'to keep as much moisture near the surface as possible and plucking off ' dead flowers and watering those which arc showing signs of flagging. Shrubs planted last, season need particular attention or probably most of thorn* will succumb especially if the 'ground be hard and baked. The more the surface soil is hoed, the longer will ' r plants.resist drought. In a large majority of gardens wata* not available, and sole reliance must be placed on good cultivation to help tide the plants over these very trying days. Newly planted hedges will also need . similar attention to help them through. Where soil has been left untouched from Christmas rains it has now baked so hard and dry that it is almost impossible to work it until such time as rain falls.

The making of new bulb beds or the reconditioning of old ones should be proceeded with as the earlier bulbs are. planted in March, the better. Unddr present conditions this planting work wil need to be delayed as long as possible, . although everything should be got in readiness for it. Materials Needed.

To grow good exhibition blooms good drainage is essential. On heavy clay land it is best to remove a good depth of this, replacing with turf from the roadside. This necessary turf could be collected now in readiness, also any broken up bones available. Well decayed manure may be added so long as it is deep enough to -escape contact with the actual bulb, also bone meal. Finish off with the top soil, adding sand if it is of too heavy a nature. The bed should be raised above the ground level. Sweet Peas.

The sweet-pea trench, for exhibition blooms, also requires to bo prepared in readiness for sowing. These should be got in as early in March as possible and the trench is' all the-better if prepared some weeks before sowing/This work, of course, largely depends on the condition of the soil and whether it is in workable order or not. The trench needs to be deeply worked in order to give the roots of the peas an opportunity to get deeply rooted. Plenty of rotted manure, wood ashes, or lime should be used, and if available, the manure from a blacksmith's shop, which is usually mixed with hoof parings, is very valuable. The Vegetable Garden. Recently planted cabbage and all winter greens must be carefully watched for "fly." The attacks of this pest leave the plants mere skeletons. A weekly spraying of black leaf 40 is effective in keeping this in

\ check. .-' Keep all plants well hoed, and all

weeds removed. . Each weed is rob- I bing a plant of moisture, ■' "' Tomatoes' are setting*'fruit freely, but unless supplies of water are avail- j able the fruit will be on the small side. Cut off all side-shoots. If the trench is first well watered a further sowings., may be made of dwarf French beans and dwarf peas, first soaking the seed, A row or two of swedes, turnips, beetroot, carrot, silver beet and winter spinach may b.e sown providing the soil is worked fine and the trenches kept watered until the seeds have germinated. Lettuce and other salad plants may. be sown in small quantities so long as the site is. a shady one and daily waterings are given. lame for Flowers, and Trees. The value of lime is not always realsed by amateur gardeners, and as this commodity is usually best applied during the late autumn, now is the time for a supply to be got on hand in readiness. A good supply of lime worked into the soil will help clear it of slugs and other troublesome pests. Slugs are never so troublesome during a spring w r here the soil has received a liberal suply of lime the autumn before. The value of lim<e is great on heavy soils, its action rendering the ground much more r friable and easier to work. lime restores old and exhausted soils, if manured,- to an active and healthy condition. Nearly all soils containing' much humus respond to liming. Aiitirrhimums, wallflowers, the earnation family, and many other flowers of the garden border rejoice Li *i calcareous soil. It is often the .main secret in growing fine flowers. Old lime plaster, when finely pulverised, is ideal to mix with the soil for potting purposes. Either burnt or unburnt lime may be applied to the garden borders, but the slaked lime is quicker in action and is more effective as an insect destroyer. Any hard lumpy pieces may be hoed in around the fruit trees. Stone fruits, especially love lime, and when planting new trees a liberal supply worked into the soil is of great benefit.

Scabiosa Pterocephala,

Suitable plants for the dry situations in rock t gardens or for dry, hungry soils are always welcomed, especially by the busy man or woman who have little time to spare for the garden. Scabiosa is a particularly easy thing to grow and will stand drought well. Most gardeners are familiar with the scabiosa, commonly known- as pincushions, but the type in question is a plant of very low growing habit never exceeding more than from four to six inches in height. Scabiosa pterocephala forms a dense mass of narrow greyish foliage which stands stiff and erect. For several months of the year it is freely studded with lilac-rose blooms, standing up well from the foliage. The flowers are shaped like pin-cushions of a small size, but lack the pin-heads

which give the pin-cushion its name. This scabiosa is a charming plant for covering spaces underneath taller plants or pockets in the rock garden, and it is also valuable as a low-edg-ing to borders of hardy flowers. Also, hs it favours a dry place, there is not much difficulty in finding a spot somewhere in the garden to grow it. It is easily grown from seed or by root division and as a hardy perennial is to be recommended. There arc other types of the perennial scabiosa with slightly taller foliage and much longer flower 'stalks, some with the same lilac rose colour and some of a pleasing pale pink shade. These are much usod for florists' work as the compact flowi er heads do not wilt and will stand plenty of knocking about. Mulleins or Verbascum, Most of us who are interested in all plant life will remember the oldfashiofied mulleir with its silvery, foxgioved shaped, woolly leaves, accompanied in its flowering season by wide open flattish-shapped, yellow flowers which come one after another on a stem six feet in height. It is not generally known, however, that these mulleins may now be had in several varieties and shades of colour, and where hardy flowers are needed they are not to be despised. Mulleins, like foxgloves, and hardy, forns delight in rather a shady position, and if the three are planted together, they create a restful and pleasing addition to the garden. Like the foxglove, the mullein is also a biennial and has the accomodating habit of self sowing its own plants. It is also useful for temporarily filling in bare spaces between shrubs. The various shades obtainable now range from yellow to golden "bronze and from, red to violet and purple, and through shades of pule blu e and mauve. It is best to commence sowing eeed in the autumn .which by spring time will have developed into large plants ready to bloom. One or two of the species arc true perennials blooming on year after year, without any

trouble. One variety in particular i 8 very attractive with Its coppery buff flowers shot with purple, the flower spikes being very freely produced. Some New Foxgloves (Digitalis). Among the new things available for the 1928 season are several more varieties of foxgloves. One of these ranges in colour from lemon to tieepest yellow shades, while another is a striking combination of pale buff inside and rich apricot outside. These are catalogued as- being of true perennial habit. Another striking feature is tho length of the flower spikes which grow from anything up to six and seven feet in height, three to four feut of this being covered with rich spotted blooms. These hitherto unknown shades will prove a very welcome addition to the hardy border or for woodland and wild gardening. Primulas and Carnations. The two above mentioned very desirable garden subjects are difficult to grow really well on heavy soil. The writer failed steadily with them until the plot devoted to them was connected with a drain and two feet of stiff clay removed from it. After this broken bricks were used to fill up about a foot of the space, then a thin layer of broken mortar. If this is not obtainable use lime, or make some rubble by simply puddling water and lime together. When dry break it up and add to the drainage (this rubble is also useful for the bearded irises). When the plot is well drained, add a'layer of manure, then loam, sand, and leaf mould in equal quantities. Primulas are all the better for a little shade.