IN THE GARDEN

Wairarapa Times-Age, 16 June 1939, Page 9

IN THE GARDEN

HINTS FOR THE AMATEUR

FRUIT, FLOWERS AND VEGETABLES WORK FOR THE WEEK FLOWER GARDEN. Plant out'stocks, calendulas, nemesia, verbena, pansy and carnations. Make a planting of early gladioli and put sand around the: corms for drainage. Plant deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs whenever the conditions are suitable. Clean up, manure and fork over herbaceous borders. Lift and divide those plants becoming too large for their positions. Rake up all fallen leaves and either stack them for leaf mould or dig them in among the shrubs. Rose planting can be done, but be sure your beds are ready before planting. Dig deep enough to be able to break up the subsoil.. Prune rambler roses. Cut away the old wood which flowered last season. Tie in the current season’s growth. Iris stylosa is pushing up flower buds; therefore cut away the dead foliage; scatter lime around to keep off the slugs. Tender shrubs and climbers should not be planted until spring where there is danger of frost. Run the hoe between the spring bedding plants at every opportunity. VEGETABLE GARDEN. Peas that are through the soil should have a few twiggy sticks placed on both sides of the row for protection. In frosty districts celery will need a little protection; bracken fern or straw litter is the best to place along the top of the rows. Plant out cabbage, cauliflower, silver, beet, lettuce and red beet. There is usually a fair amount of empty space that can be filled at this time of the year. Seed of lettuce and radish can be sown; this should be sown on a raised bed in a warm position. Autumn-sown carrots should be thinned; they can be left closer together than is usual and the thinnings can be used’as a vegetable. Prepare the ground for planting the early potatoes. In warm sheltered positions the tubers can be planted at once. Potatoes in store should not be forgotten; this is the season when dry rot makes its appearance. Any vegetable rubbish that will decay should be placed in a compost heap to rot down. Seed potatoes should be stood in shallow trays so as to produce short green sprouts. Make a sowing of broad beans. Put the seeds in a double row, six inches apart, and planted alternately. When the broad bean plants are a few inches high, draw up the earth on each side of the row. Small swedes should be left in the ground to provide a crop of greens. FRUIT GARDEN. Most indoor vines have shed their leaves, and pruning can be taken in hand. Old fruit trees are often improved if a few of the branches are sawn off close to the trunk; this will admit light and air. If grafting will be done in ths future, select a good quantity of scions of suitable varieties when pruning. Label the scions, tie in bundles and half bury in a cool place. Examine the black currants for any signs of big bud. Badly-infested specimens should be grubbed out and burned. When the crop is off the Chinese gooseberries, thin out the weakly growths and give a good manuring. Push on with the planting of fruit trees.