HOW RADISHES SHOULD BE GROWN

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 554, 5 January 1929, Page 24

HOW RADISHES SHOULD BE GROWN

Radishes are probably among the easiest of the salad vegetables to cultivate. All that is required is rich soil and plenty of moisture. Rich sandy or light soils, with manure incorporated on a liberal scale, will produce the best results.

To secure a succession of radishes that is young, tender stuff, seed should be sown every two or three weeks. This can be done in drills or broadcast in beds. Directly the ground is allowed to become dry, the radishes will become teugh, and should be rooted out. The seed should not be sown too deeply. Drills one inch deep will be ample.

A 1929 RESOLUTION The New Year has arrived, and for each individual a new leaf has turned to record another chapter in their Book of Life. Let your good resolutions in turning the new leaf incline toward making your gardens beautiful and so spreading joy and happiness far and wide. To our friends who are enthusiasts we say keep on in the good way and be determined to overcome any discouragement you may receive. Your reward will surely come and your new chapter be a good one, as far as your hobby goes at least. “Who loves fair flowers and shady bowers, And all the joys a garden brings, Knows sweet content and merriment, Far more than happiest of kings.” And now'to our readers, once again the time-honoured salutation —“A Happy New Year to All.”

HINTS THAT BRING SUCCESS If gladioli are given occasional applications of weak liquid manure when coming into bloom the size and colour of the flowers will be greatly improved. Try growing swede turnips for fowls. They lay better when they have plenty of chopped turnip, and the feed bill is much less, making the profit double. One method of keeping vegetablemarrows is to tie two pieces of tape round them at either end and suspend them with loops from the roof of a cool room.

When placing crocks for drainage in pot-plants carefully note that all curved pieces have the concave portion down. This helps the drainage 1 and does not allow water to settle and become sour. If charcoal is mixed with the crocks the drainage is quicker and much cleaner. COMBATING PESTS Codlin Moth. —Remove all loose bark on apple and pear trees. Destroy pupae kybernating under bark. Peach Aphis. —Spray trees with red oil. Later, when your fruit appear, use nicotine sulphate or black leaf 40. Young vine, red, oleander, and other scale insects will soon be hatching. Spray with nicotine sulphate of black leaf 40 when they appear.

After pruning, spray roses with red oil to destroy rose scale. Destroy all prunings. Aphids of chrysanthemums are particularly numerous at the present time. Spray with nicotine sulphate of black leaf 40. The same spray should be used against rose and other aphids, which threaten to become very bad this season. The pea mite is causing a fair amount of damage to vegetables, especially young plants. Dust soil with Clift's Manurial Insecticide. Tobacco dust is also recommended. Woodlice, snails and slugs are particularly bad. Use Calcium arsenate. Lime and tobacco dust is also recommended.