OLD-FASHIONED HOLLYHOCKS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 910, 1 March 1930, Page 30

OLD-FASHIONED HOLLYHOCKS

The hollyhock Is a hardy perennial, and the varieties include single and double flowers in a wide range of colours; very suitable for growing against a wall or fence. The ground should be well drained and fairly rich; lime should be added. Sow the seed in an outdoor seed bed, or in seed boxes; if in a seed box see that it is deeper than for most other seeds. If using an outdoor seed bed, work the soil up freely, make it moderately firm, and plant the seeds two inches deep, about an inch apart. When about fpur inches high, transplant to their position in the garden, in groups of four to six plants, allowing two feet between each plant. HOW TO SOW SMALL SEEDS Small seeds require careful handling; for, besides the risk of many being lost if the packet is opened where a draught can blow them away, they are apt to be sown too thickly, or in patches, and the seedlings killed through overcrowding. Procure small boxes about three inches deep, and having made plenty of holes in the bottom, cover these holes with broken crocks. Fill the box with finely sifted sandy soil, and make it firm and smooth with a flat piece of wood. Mix the seed with several times its bulk of dry sand, and place on a piece of folded paper. By tapping the paper lightly with a stick the seed can be scattered evenly on the surface. After sowing, cover with a mere dusting of very fine soil, again firm it with a piece of board, gently spray with water, cover with glass, lay paper on the glass to shade and prevent undue evaporation. When germination takes place, the paper must be removed, but not till the seed leaves have begun to develop, and not even then in the case of ferns, begonias, gloxinias and such like shade-loving plants.