The Garden.

Southern Cross, Volume 1, Issue 2, 8 April 1893, Page 12

The Garden.

NOTES FOR APRIL. (By Mikihiku.) Vegetable Garden. —Work in the garden this month is mostly of an unimportant character. Every vacant space should be dug up and allowed to lie exposed to the action of the weather. All parts of the garden under crop, which will allow of doing so should he gone over thoroughly with a Dutch hoe, and the weeds allowed to lie exposed to the action, of the sun. Clear off all pea and bean haulms, and store away stakes for future use. Celery will require a good deal of attention just now, both as regards watering and earthing up. This latter operation should always be done on a fine day, care being taken to keep the soil from getting into the heart of the plants. Autumn-sown onions generally succeed better than when sown in spring, and sowings not already completed should not he deferred later than the first week of this month. Get in late sowings of lettuce, radish, mustard and cress. Lift and store all potatoes, looking over the crops in case any are diseased. Fruit Garden. —The ground for new" strawberry beds being in good order, planting may be proceeded with, selecting strong wellrootod runners and planting about 2ft. 3in. between the rows and loin, between the sets. The old beds should be gone over, the dead leaves removed, ground stirred up and covered with a top-dressing of manure to protect during winter. Gather and store apples nnd pears as they ripen, great care being taken to avoid bruising. The best method of keeping these fruits is to store away thinly on shelves in a cool dry place. Flower Garden. —The Flower garden is now beginning to assume a somewhat wintry appearance, the frost having marred the beauty of such showy flowers as dahlias, marigolds, etc. Remove decayed flowers and leaves and keep the ground as neat and clean as possible. AIL dormant bulbs should now be planted. They thrive best in a deep sandy soil, and ground not naturally so formed should bo thoroughly worked—applying at the same time a good dressing of well-rotted manure, and on clay soils adding a quantity of sharp sand. Bulbs form a very attractive feature of the flower garden in spring, blooming as they do when other flowers are scarce, and a garden well stocked with Hyacinths, Tulips Narcissi, Crocus, Iris, etc., will amply repay for any work that may now be expended on it. Chrysanthemums should be staked and kept neat and trim, and those for indoor decoration removed under cover at once. ABOUT WATERING. A (dear understanding of the relation of water to plant life would, we think, solve many difficulties which present themselves, especially to inexperienced gardeners. We extract the following front the American Gardeners’ Monthly:— We shall understand better how to water if we correct .first some impressions derived from old works on physiology. It is said that plants want water. This is not strictly true. A wet soil’is totally unfit for plant-grow-ing. A plant standing 21 hours in water is often irreparably injured. A Hyacinth, to bo sure, will live one season in water; but all the matter which goes to make up the flower is prepared the year before, and after flowering the bulb is exhausted and almost worthless. A good soil for plant-growing, therefore, ia not one which will hold water, but one irt which water .will rapidly pass away. The soil itself is composed of minute particles, through which air spaces abound. The water must be just enough to keep these particles moist, and the air in the spaces is thus kept in the condition of moist air. The roots traverse those air spaces, and it is therefore moist air which roofs want, add not water. If it were water simply which plants wanted, we should cork up the hole in the bottom of the flower pot, nnd prevent the water getting away. Instead of this w e try to hasten the passing of the Water through as much, as possible, by not ’only keeping the ho’# as clear us possible, but .often by putting pieces of broken material over the hole. A plant will generally ,be the healthiest, therefore, which waiits water the often est. This will show that there are plenty of airspaces, and that the roots are- slaking good use of them. If it does not often want water, it is in a bad way, and more water will make it worse. , How often to water, then, will’be'according to'how easy the water passes away.- If, when you pi ur waiter on earth, it disappears liUmost instantaneously, it would be safe to water such plants every day.