Gardening Notes.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2673, 13 August 1887, Page 2

Gardening Notes.

, Most plants, which are now bogiuing to respond to the increased light 'and sun, and the greenhouse, should, he gavwi th "Hyacinths, Tulips, Ntu'citai, Oyclameiw,;,; ete,_ Primulas, both single und double, will, continue to bloom freely, especially ;whero they -stroaaaieted from time to time with weak liquid' manure. . Azalias, : Carqelias, Genistas; and other plauta of this character, will be greatly benefited by frequent ttprinktlogs over ' head i in bright weather, and everything; that may be in full growth, and advancing towards.bloom, must receive''.plentiful supplies of water at the roots,', Spireas should be coding on apace,' asid- niustalso be supplied with abundance. of moißtuve, Chrysanthemum cuttinga of choice varieties, that wore inserted some ete.or eight weeks, back by this time have rooted nicely, aud bad better be shifted on into larger sized pots (about 4 inch). Bo careful to place, the young plants where thoy will receive abundance of light, and where'tree ventilation can be afforded as soon as the plants are in a condition to benefit by it.. It is not yet too late to insert cuttings of Chrysanthemums for: general purposes, and of rarieties for late flowering. Shift a few of the •strongest and most forward plauts of j Zonal Pelargoniums, Petunias, Heliotropes, etc., now in small pots, into five oi' six inch for early bloom, Give Cinerarias advancing towards bloom plenty of water and liquid manure and keep Herbaceous Calceolarias moist and cool. Those who have flower gardens to plant, and only a limited amount of glass to keep tender plants, must make the most .of such plants, as can be readily raised from seed. One reason why there are ho many failures with these; is, that a start is not made early enough, Tiie seer sowing is deferred nearly until the time the plants are lvquired, and, consequently, they are rushed and coddled up, so that tlmy Income weak and spindly, and take all the summer to cover the beds; therefore start as early as possible. If you have.any protection in the shape of a pit or greenhouse sow the seeds at once, and let them grow ou gently until about September, you will then have dwarf, stocky plants, that will soon make a good return for the attendance beßtowed on tbem. Lobelias, single aud double, Petunias, Verbenas, Tropraolums, DrummondiPyrethrum, Pcrilla, Ageratums, Asters, Paris Daisies, Single Dahlias, Gaillardias, and many other plants can be raised in any quantity in this way and if sown in pans and boxes, and afterwards pricked out in well sheltered situations, tliey will not bo crowding any little glass you may possess, Vegetable Gardeh,

Cabbages and lettuces may now be planted in new beds, or vacanoies made good in those planted in Autumn. Apply Bait to Asparagus beds if thought deairablo j half a pound to the square yard will be sufficient. Stir the soil among autumn planted onions, and sot out other beds on rich land, made firm by treading when the surface is dry, Poas and beans planted now will be nearly as early as those sown earlier. Sow Radishes., .on a warm sheltered border, Some of the very early varieties of Potatoes may be planted now in warm situations, The drill system of planting is the i best, as it permits of the free:use of munurial composts in the drills at the time of planting. Anything in the nature of old turf, wood ashes, or old hot bed manure, worked into a compost, and placed over the sets, will be beneficial, There is no f < so much danger of over-manuriug early.potatoes (is later ones, aB the crop will be lifted before the disease'becomes viru-

lent. Dig up every hit oflantlapjl becomes vacant, and it is not easy to over-manure any crops except carrots and parsnips. Sow Celery, and keep the young plants, when up, in a lightpositiori. Sow Leeks in rich soil for \ transplanting. Tie up early lettuces for blanching, and sow seeds lor succession. Net iladish'es as soon ai sown ' to keep off birds. Fruit Garden. " Where tree planting has hestl layed, no tim« should tree 9 should be got in are to be expected to withstand tners drought. The Lam. of the Codlin ' : \ Moth should be now sought' fot, ' and destroyed, Where the maggots.; have been troublesome in the nasfc. : it-*& is a good plan to wrap pieces of ol®' canvas or rags round the trunks of the trees in autumn, to form sheltered hid« ' inj? places, under which the insects • crawl, and lie dormant till the warmth • •of spring infuses fresh vigor, and life into them. Removing the covers, atffi' woll scrubbing the steins of the tfer with a hard brush, will destroy them, and ut good scarifyins; will clear away .noss and lichsns, if any are present. In answer to" Forty acto section!" ; —While we deem it of the utmost importance to have all apples grafted on blight-proof stocks, wo do not think it. will pay any amateur to raise them • himself, as first-class stocks, ready for grafting, can bp, purchased at £2. per'. hundred. Tho two recognised blight-, proof stocks are the Mnjotin and the v Spy, but, of tho two, wo' prefer-tire ; : Majetin, They can- bo propagated by : . cuttings taken now, from the last season's ripened wood, cut so as to secure . a heel-from tho old wood, or belter by ; : .-djL suckers that have been thrown up from tho roots of iinvapplo trees that " have been grafted on Majetin stocks; these, taken and planted in nursery rows and cared for, will soon be fit for grafting on. Whore very large quau-" tities are required, they are either raised from /end;- or the roots'of the Mfijfitin tree are uucovered,.and piecea- •; of the root, about tho size of an ordinary lpMfl pencil, or rather larger, are taken off, on to these must be graftefifr a scion: from the..-Majftin tree, amr grown on till large enough to work,, with tlui apple desired." In answer to "Flower Pot,"-. : \ quiw agree with you; it is difficult to plant, a good Breakwind on a quarter a:re section, lm( ;i few shrubs, planted: in snitablo situations would • assist you very much. Arbutus Canariensis, AHcuba Japonica, ~A. Limbata, Berberw' Darwini. Bnonymus Japonicus Argenteum, E. Japomcus Aureus, if Clianthus Punicens, (scarlet kaka ' eversreens; these could be interspersed with the various colored WeigeHas, Philadelphia coronaiius,. aiid; varieties, deciduous shrubs, If these were planted round your fences they would materially aasist in warding .off. winds, at :thti 'same time they . are not likely to become unmanageable, as to size, as neither of them will grow üboVe six feet high, but. will he a souKßi, of great /.pleasure as to foliage and®' flower. >■ iPlauts to auit youiß" situation'are not very hard to get'; many bulbs suoh as Ixias, Sparaxias, Watsbnias, Babianas, Gladiolus, etc., Eamunculus,; Anemones, Oxolis. In annuals you have Portulacca, Phlox*: } Druomocdi, Nemophilas, Candytuft, - • Sweet .AbyssumrMathipla JBicomis ■ (mcht scented stock),' unci various others, Wallflowers, Sweet Williams, French Marigolds, Stocks, Myosotis, v Pentstcmoiis, Primula Japouica, P. vulgaris , and • varieties, Polyanthuses, • etc. I was sorry for tho fato of your Convolulu.3 Major, but anything of a soft herbaceous texture should not be ' attempted; if. yon reqmro a climbing % plant the Passionflower or Wistaria ; ' may suit you ; tho latter is a magnifi- • • cent flowerilig plant, and either ot them can be tacked up to stand any amount) of your Pahiatuain hurricanes. Should there be room, I would-certainly recommend planting a hedge of Cupressus Macroearpa, it can be trimmed jk so that h will not take up more two foot six inches in width, hut it can be allowed to run up in height until it forms arches over your entrances or gateways. •