The Garden.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 368, 15 May 1889, Page 3

The Garden.

{By Houtus.]

Planting. n a few weeks' time the proper- plantingoub season will havo arrived, that i°, when - we gob the first heavy rains. Planting on a'lvmited scale can now be carried on ; that u», where there is. plenty, of water which caii be -used .to thoroughly moisten the *£ l ... around eaph tree or shrub that. \r ® ccn f . f? vcd. -Where e>ten^ ,£ SSud"taW^S&, and even it the iater' •-* ' could W^ it would be too ex pen Now, although the actual planting* in a large number 1% of- instances cannot be undertaken till web or moist weather sets in, a' large amount of preparation can bo carried on that will materia ly assist in making ihe planting a success, it done while the soil is in a dry state. 'First, the positions where' a tree or f shrub is to j be placed can 'be * 'marked, 'and...defmita I .t. t arrangements made so that you thoroughly i ." 'understand where each plant is to go when ib arrives at the place to be planted. , Second, all the holes for the reception of the roots can also be dug. * Digging these . holes in dry weather will be of immense advantage to the plants, as~ you wiU"iiave fine, well-pulveri«ed soil to put around the roots of each plant. The depth and circumference of «ach hole will be regulated by the size of the tiees 01 shrubs to be planted ; and there is one tinner fchat 1 Would- like to point out to intending . plan.ters, ami that is, in the case of ornamental trees, or shrubs which ate to be allowed to attain a large s ; ze or grow quickly to maturity, the holes for -their recepiioa " cannot be made too large. I have always found that the<deepcr an'd -broader the holes were , mat! e, -to a —corresponding ratio the plants, grew, aftep " they eot a firm holtJ.in the ground. Where - a large surfa-'O space had been propaied the young fibres had more loo^o space,-in which to travel, anct consequently more chance of picking ud' p'anfc food. At the sjime 'time, where the =o»l had been laboured to, sa~y v a %>.(lepth of two feeb, the rains received in the late spring passed *■<> a greater depth than „ where the ground was oniy dug to a dt ptb ■ of about nine inches i_t.hat gave th 6 deep fiol'e a- much better chance to retain its •» moisture longer. , The tree planted t!\eiein .., would have afl thi3 longer period to draw' ■upon the "moisture stored in the greater - d^pth xOf. loose soil ; in fact a tree or slmib - 1 planted:- lira deep hole ha-j all the same aclover .pne^ planted in a hole lhab! ,'Vordinary'~c'ropa "*'havo wheio the ground' Tia,^ beenfcrohch"ed Instead of only dug one, spitdeepf -All the labour o digging hule< should r -3vhcre possible, bo done biie weather breaks, even though tt-'costrt Uttle more through the «oil being a littiejiard. After tire Voil in 6he hole has been all' taken i oub stfll Fnrtherbrfak up the bobnom -with tne fojfcy-leaving it where it i?. Aftp\- a few 1 .day? tV^4ioles _ can nil be neul'y filled- up, l leading 3JU t st room for the roots 6> be placed, •sufficiently "deep. This can a'so be done, witK advantage while the weather is dr\', "as the bottom of the hole will then be h le.li With sweet, dry toil. After the soil and weather become sufficiently moist for general planting io will bo vo- y easy wo< k to geb it done, as ib will simply* consist in ! baking bho tree* to the different position?, placing them properly, covering up their roots and staking them. This dteo should be done while the soil is in* a compatabively dry state, nob when wet, sticky or adhesive.

' ' - % Growing Onions. The onion, 13 one of tjie trost important vegetables '• which~ r ,can 1>& u v.oj^, in ulpy garden. The u^esthis bulb is put bo in tlte*j ""- kitchen are almost innumerable. V"er"v few , soups', or stew£,* etc.j t\\n be properly flavoured withoutLits^aid, afcthesauve timo it is one o£ the, most wholestffne vegetables, assisting in the digestibility of many im'- n portant articles of food that would fail to nourish us without its aid. Now to jjrow good crops of good, sound, clear-«kinne.d onion bulbs there are two requis te« — first, good seed; next, good rich soil, of a not too retentive nature. Where large bulbs are required the seed should be sown in- the autumn, about the middle of-May being the, best time.' TJieseed can either be sown in^ rows where • the crops are to grow.* simply thinning out superfluous plants in the spring or the seed can be sown in a small patch of ground and allowed to stand in the seed 6ed till springr, when the 3'ou ng plants can be dibbled out in rows about fifteen inches apart. Many growers prefer to dibble out autumn-sown crops, as this gives the plant 3 a check and makes tfteon less liable to run to seed, than those wl\ich are left in the same piece of ground fiom soxving till the, crop comes to maturity. For, late- keeping onions it is always better to 'sow a small patch in the springr, about the end of August being, in my eot'mation, the best time. .The cntons sown in the spring are not as a. rule so large as the autumn -sown ones, but they are later xii coming to maturity, and I also always fancy that the bulb is harder and closer grained and richer in flavour, al- ""' 'though /the crop per given space is not quits 50 heavy. The soils which suit the onion have a wide range ; so loner as they are sufficiently rich in plant food the crop is almost sure to be a good one, but to obtain good results the soil must be very rich. How I have always obtained my best re Bu,lts ' by early in the autumn selecting ■ th 4 patch, for nest season's crop. Thi" • piece of ground is trenched' to a, gopd depth, and a liberal supply of manure placed in each trench. After trenching I plant the break with cauliflowers ; these will bo all ready, to cut off by August, when the ground is cleared of the debris and th£ surface stirred to a depth' o\ about three inches, not deeper. - No new manure f is put into the ground, as the onion does not like, rank or, new manures. Perhaps jf I have a small pile of wood ashes these are scattered over the surface, as the onion (also all bdttms crops) are very partial to wood'ashes* The young plants- to crop this grouniiwil] have been, produced on another piece of soil from seed sown in May.- r Tho^e are lifted when about six inches high and dibbled in rows in the new piece, specially prepared. In dibbling give plenty of room between the. row?, about fifteen inches being sufficient, -and about from .six between the plants. Thi3 leaves plenty of room to work the hoe between the rows and keep tbfcm clean. By following the above, good crops should be obtained on almost any soil, unless it be very retentive or sour, wet, swampy soil, and this is most unsuitable,, as stagnant moisture is fatal to the onion. 'At the time of planting out the autumn-sown orpp, sow a tew rows, so, as. to give a few later keeping bulbs, and also a small, patch shpuld be thickly sown 'broad' cast. These should be left unthinnod, so as to produce a ' number of small- bulbs for pickling purposes.- Po'ato, or underground, onions can now be planted oul". They should be planted in about similar 'soifto -what has been already described. The bulbs should be placed in rows, fifteen inches apart, and about nine inches between the. plants. Ifc-ij» better .to plant them shallow, as when they begin to make offsets the tops of them should be protrud*-

ing above the surtace ot the soil, as the best growth is made when they are exposed to the full daylight, the bulbs bitting on, not in, tho. coil, only tho part from which tho roots protrudo well covered. The varieties to sow: Of course witli the onion thoro are a great number of varieties as with other vogotables, «nd a great deal in tlfe choice of such >\yill depopd upon the jjnvposes for which toe 'bulb is rea«»«Kf,' r Miri. » choice, should .lie made *" accoHanfcd wjjth suqh reqiuronVo^*" 3 - or m y< OWI) - u 9u 9 e { I onl y n » e a ,,ri oow the brown Spanish,' as *in my estimation, it is the best all-ro«nd L 6fiioM we postcss. Xt.is a good cropper' rind. pi-oducea" large^izeci firm bulbs, and tho. v flavoui\ is noither too mild nov too stronir. It is alst) a Aery good keeping onion if kept in" a dry place where a free current of fresh air is constantly permeating the place.