IN THE GARDEN

Wairarapa Times-Age, 23 April 1941, Page 3

IN THE GARDEN

HINTS FOR THE AMATEUR Fruit, Flowers and Vegetables WORK FOR THE WEEK VEGETABLE GARDEN. Plant cabbage, cauliflower, leek, silver beet, lettuce, kale and shallots. Sow broad bean, parsley, winter spinach, onion, early-maturing cabbage (such as Flower of Spring and Harbinger), lettuce (New York), turnip (the yeilow-fleshed is Jhe better now), and short carrots (such as Gem Model or Altringham). i Clear away spent crops and either put in the crops mentioned above cr sow the spare ground with lupins or oats for green manure. On a dry day earth up,'early celery and leeks. Thin the carrots, beetroots, turnips, lettuces and silver beet sown in February and March. Thin the carrots to two or three inches, the beetroots and turnips to four or five, the 'lettuces to ten, and the silver beet to inches. Sow mustard for digging in. Mustard helps to clean the ground of certain types of insect pest. Do not delay in sowing onion seed for transplanting in July or August. In Masterton Alsa Craig and Giant Rocca give the best results of the big sorts, and need to be planted in the above months in order that they will have plenty of time to fully mature. Brown Spanish is the best of the keepers. FLOWER GARDEN. Sow sweet peas in properly 'manured trenches. Plant polyanthus and when dividing the clumps, do not make them small. • Plant cuttings of dianthus, pinks and carnations in sandy soil.' Root out and burn all bad varieties of dahlias before frost kills the flowers and makes the varieties unrecognisable. Plant anemone, ranunculus, freesia, lachenalia, ’hyacinth, tulip, muscari, ixia, bulbous irises, daffodils, etc. Plant bedding-plants such as hardy marigold, Iceland poppy, pansy, viola, Sweet William, primula and stock. Cuttings of hydrangeas can be planted in Masterton now. Place them where frost will not cut them down. FRUIT GARDEN. Clean up around trees and give a dressing of agricii'ltural lime. If weeds are chipped off the top of the ground dig a hole near the roots of the tree and bury them. This will make a useful manure.

Put in cuttings of currants and gooseberries as soon as planting conditions are suitable. 1