THE GARDEN

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 566, 19 January 1929, Page 26

THE GARDEN

BY

LEONARD A. GRIFFITHS,

F.R.H.S.,

and forgot to put « tout into. • Beecher.

URGENT WORK IN ORCHARD

By now all the summer fruits will have finished flowering, and will be well in leaf. The peach trees will In many cases develop “curley leaf,’ especially if the month is wet. This should be prevented by spraying every week or so with lime sulphur or Bordeaux mixture. As the apples set they should receive a spraying with arsenate of lead so as to catch the codlin moth. This spraying should be given while the fruit is still extremely small, in fact, just as the flower falls. Grape vines will be coming into leaf and we must be ready to deal with the vine moth caterpillar, a handsome fellow in his way, in his red and black uniform, but a ravenous feeder. Arsenate of lead sprayed over the vines and leaves will soon settle him. Don’t forget to keep the weeds down between the trees, and if you have a good supply of water keep the trees moving by a weekly watering in the dry spells. The citrus crops should be off by this time, and now is the time to go over the trees and give them a trimming into shape. Cut out all dead wood and shorten any unsightly branches. An occasional spraying with washing soda, lib to the two gallons, will clean up the tree and make the wax scale, if present, feel uncomfortable, but he usually has too thick a coat at this time of the year to get at properly. We must catch him when on the move in February. Keep the strawberries picked and watered. They should carry on for a few weeks yet. Keep the runners cut back as they come, only allowing those to develop which you will want for planting.

THE SCYTHE HOW TO USE IT Several times lately we have seen j men using scythes that were not “set” to suit them. The last grass cutter we had a look at was so cramped with the tool he was handling that he was bent over rather more than was good for him. A right setting will correct that fault. Stooping is not right in a scytheman. There can be no free action unless one is able to stand; fairly straight. When the scythe- j blade lays on the soil surface and you can swing the tool with a straight! back the “setting” is right. It is the bending and twisting of the main rib of the scythe that makes all the difference in one’s ability to use the cutter effectively. The Axing is a. blacksmith’s job. Some traders twist the steel or iron while it is cold. That is not right. Many a good blade has been ruined through that sort of foolishness. Right setting means easier work and better cutting. USEFUL CHARCOAL The horticulturist can make use of charcoal in several ways. It may be broken up rather finely, and in this condition it is of great value in loosening heavy soil, especially when used for potting; it is also of value in mo-derate-sized pieces for putting into the bottom of pots for drainage. Charcoal is also very useful for putting into water in vases or bowls that hold cut Hovers. The stems of certain flowers, such as stocks, wallflowers, mignonette, etc., after being in water for a couple of days, give off an objectionable smell. "Phis is prevented entirely if a few lumps of charcoal are put into the water beforehand.

ANIMAL OR ORGANIC MANURES

WHAT THEY CONTAIN Mixed farmyard manure (rotted); j Nitrogen. 0.50 per cent.; phosphoric j acid, 0.26 per cent; potash, 0.63 per j cent. Cow manure ( fresh): Nitrogen, 0.34 per cent.; phosphoric acid, 0.16 per ! cent; potash, 0.40 per cent. Horse manure (fresh): Nitrogen, j 0.5 S per cent.; phosphoric acid, 0.2 S j per cent.; potash, 0.53 per cent. Sheep manure (fresh): Nitrogen, 0.53 per cent; phosphoric acid, 0.23 per cent.; potash, 0.67 per cent. Fowl manure (fresh I: Nitrogen, 1.63 per cent.; phosphoric acid, 1.54 per cent.; potash, O.So per cent. Pigeon manure (fresh): Nitrogen, 1.75 per cent.; phosphoric acid, 1.7 S j per cent.; potash, 1.00 per cent.

INFLUENCE OF LIME

Lime, as a direct plant food, is commonly present in most comparatively virgin soils in sufficient quantities; but with the constant cropping, cultivation and the action of the continuous use of certain fertilisers, such as sulphate of ammonia, superphosphate, dried blood, etc., the lime becomes gradually removed, so that the soil, besides becoming yossibly actually deficient in lime as a plant food, also acquires an acidity of sourness unfavourable to the successful growth of most vegetables. The chief function of lime is, however, a mechanical or physical one on the soil texture, for by suitable applications of lime, heavy clayey soils are rendered more friable and less tenacious, while on the other hand, the cohesive properties of aght sandy soils are enhanced by cccasional light dressings of this - laterial.

Lime also corrects any undesirable acidity or sourness of a soil, and acts on organic matter and insoluble mineral particles in the soil, causing plant foods to be dissolved and made available for absorption by the crops. In this way both nitrogen and potash are often liberated.

In the growing of vegetables in the kinds of light soils urually most preferred, five to ten cwt. an acre of mild lime applied every two or three years will, in most cases, be found most beneficial. In cases where basic slag (which contains a fair amount of lime) has been freely used, the application of any of the -egular forms of lime may be unnecessary.