The Garden

Te Aroha News, Volume VIII, Issue 490, 19 July 1890, Page 6

The Garden

[By Hortus.] Thinning and Pruning Evergreen Shrubs. In every garden that has been established for a few years there must always be a number of shrubs which will require to be thinned out or pruned 1 back. Now tho best time of the year for performing this work is early in the spring. Where the commoner varieties have to be entirely removed so as to give more room for the better. ones to more fully develop,the removal should take place early, and then some of the plants may be used elsewhere. 'Where conspicuous blanks have been made by this tliinningout the places can be easily filled up with one or two plants of geraniums or some similar plants, which can be taken away at any moment. Again, where any pruning has to be performed on permanent evergreen shrubs it ought always to be done either about the end of July or beginning of August, as by pruning at this period of the year the plants will soon recover. The rising sap of the spring- will soon clothe them with new shoots and foliage, thus soon hiding the hideous effect which a severely thinned shrubbery sometimes necessarily possesses. In pruning shrubs always try and foreshorten tho branches so that when pruned .they will still present their natural habit,’Which is of all the best and prettiest habit for any plant to be trained or pruned to. Evergreen fences should cut or pruned back either the end of this or beginning of next month. These where they are to be kept in moderate good order should be dipped at least twice a year, once during the eaily spring and once during the middle of the summer or after the strong growth of the season is past. .. . Hardy Annuals.

Many of the hardy annuals are the best spring andi summer flowers which can bo grown by oiir amateurs. They will give a handsome return for any. labour expended upon them, but to expect them to grow and flourish without taking a little trouble, results in nothing but failure. Now, I. have always found that to'sow annual seed out in the open border either during the winter or early spring has always been more or less a failure, and I have no .doubt many of my readers have experienced.the. same results. Many lay the blame upon the seeds, saying that they were bad, whereas in most instances it is not the fault of the seed. The cause in most.in-, stances is the slugs, which devour .the young plants just as they come through the ground. How often has somo cultivator sown a few seeds, and for weeks almost every day anxiously looked to see whether or not they were going to come through the soil. Perhaps after a while he sees a few showing, and ho thinks they-are all right. A few days after he again goes to see how they are getting along, but nothing of them is to be seen; they have disappeared,and he can’t make it out. This disappearance is duo to tho slugs having found them out, and as nice tender annuals suit their taste better than food of older plants, consequently they devour them at once and come back night after night to see if there is not some more coming through the ground, thus getting every plant, as it germinates. Now, many of my readers will ask, how is this to be avoided without going to an enormous expense and labour ? W.nafc I have found to be a good plan istogetsome shallow boxes,any thing over six inches deep will do. Into these boxes place about two or three inches of good soil. Let this almost dry before it is used, and afterwards sovv the annual seed in rows. Every box should bo able to have five or six rows of seed sown in it, After the seed is sown the boxes can be placed on the verandah, or some other place where they will be off the ground, and got a fair amount of sun in fine weather. After the boxes have been placed where they are to stand, they should be watered and covered over with a pane of glass, the glass being slightly tilted up, so that sufficient air may get into the box. The after attention will only be to keep the soil in the box moist, which can easily be done by lifting up the glass and giving water as the soil shows signs of becoming dry. It will not take long for seeds to germinate under these .circumstances, and whenever the voung plants have attained a height of about one inch the glass should be removed, so that they may grow up hardy. After the plants have grown to a height of about two inches, the boxes should be removed out to an open part, where they will get plenty of. weather. Here, the plants will soon become as .hardy ss if they had been grown out entirely in the open border, and can then be planted out at the convenience of the cultivator. While the plants are in the younger stages of their growth on the verandah, a stray slug or so may get at them ; whenever the least sign of such makes its appearance, an instant search ought at once to be made, and it is probable that the depredator will be found under the box. If he is nob to be found there, a search at night with a light will probably find him out feeding on the plants. When they arrive at a stage fib for planting out,- a little patch of seedlings should be lifted with a trowel, taking as much soil as possible with the roots. These little patches can be planted out, burying the roots a little deeper than what they were in the boxes. If the above system were followed out a little more extensively, our gardens during the early summer would present a much better appearance than what they have done in the past.

Vitality of Field and Garden Seeds. The seeds of some vegetables lose their germinating powers much sooner than others. The following summary of the time that seeds may be kept and safely used can be relied upon if the seeds are kept from excess of heat, air, or dampness:

We should boar in mind, however, that all E eeds, except the cucumber and other vines, are best when fresh. Chit this out and preserve it in your scrapbook,—“ St. touts Republic,”

Artichoko .. Years, .. 3 Lettuce Years, .. 3 Asparagus ' . .. 4 Mangel wurtzel .. 10 Halm .. .. 2 Margoram .. 4 Basil .. .. 2 Marigold M 3 Bean (all sorts) .. 1 Melon .. .. 10 Beet ., .. 10 Mint .. 4 Borage.. .. 4 Mustard .. 4 Broccoli .. 4 Nasturtium .. 2 Burnet.. .. 6 Onions (fresh best) 2 Cabbage .. .. 4 Paisley .. 6 Callaba8h .. 7 Parsnip .. 1 Capsicum Caraway .. 2 .. 4 Pea Pennyroyal .. 2 Carrot .. .. 1 Potatoes .. 3 Cauliflower .. .. 4 Bumpkins ... 10 Celery .. .. 10 Purslane .. 2 Chamomile .. .. 2 Radish ,. .. 2 Cheroil.. ’ .. Gives .. .. .. 6 .. 3 Rampion Rape .. .. 2 .. 4 .. 3 Rhubarb .. 1 Corn sa'ad .. .. 2 Rosemary .. 3 Coriander • • 3 Rue ■_ .. Cress ., .. .. 2 Rutabago .. 4 Cucumber (2 anc 3 Salsify .. .. 2 rear old best) .. 10 Samphire .. 3 Dandelion .. .. 10 Savory . .. 2 .. 1 Scorzenera .. 2 Endive .. ' ., ' .. 4 Sbalot .. .. 4 Fennel.. .. 5 Skirret .. .. 4 .. 6 Sorrel .. .. 7 Gourd .. .. 10 Spinach .. 4 Hop .. .. 2 Squash.. -.. 10 Horseradish .. .. 4 Tansy .. Hyssop.. .. 6 Tarragon .. 4 Kale .. 4 Thyme.. .. 2 Kale (flea) ... Lavender .. 3 .. 2 Tomato Turnip .. .. 2 .. 4 Leek .. .. 2 Wormwood .. 2