USEFUL HINTS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 868, 11 January 1930, Page 26

USEFUL HINTS

Nip off the tops of young snapdragon plants when they are two inches high and sturdy laterals will soon appear. This treatment also helps to make m° re root growth. Make a thorough clean up of slugs and snails and other pests. A dusting of lime and tobacco dust at nighttime twice a week will kill off myriads, and attention along fences and among 1 übbish will also help In the cleanup. And in connection with this •Spring Cleaning” (?), induce your neighbour to fall into iine. If your seeds do not come up after sowing, don’t grumble about your seed man. Ninety-nine cases out of a hundred it is your faulty sowing that has caused them to fail to germinate. Ttemember the seedsman makes his living only by selling good seed. Cuttings of wistaria can be rooted by placing them in a glass jar halffull of sandy soil, then filling the jar with water. It should be placed in a sheltered sunny situation.

Do not neglect the lily of the valley beds now that the flowering season is over. To ensure a plentiful show of blooms next year keep them green as long as possible by giving an occasional watering in very dry weather. Pick all pods of garden peas as soon as they are matured and the plants wili keep on bearing. The plants should be well watered, and the ground hoed regularly. If you are pestered with snails and slugs there is no better way of getting rid of them than by having an Indian Runner duck or two about the garden. It will surprise you how quickly they will clean up the garden. No longer will the nightly prowl with a torch looking for the intruders among the choicest plants and seedlings be necessary.