136 



THE GAEDEN GUIDE FOE JUNE. 



Kitchen Garden. — A quick eye and 

 quick band are now necessary to keep 

 pace with the season. Weeds prow apace, 

 and the pests of the garden are in fullest 

 vigour. Prick out cauliflowers from the 

 seed-bed; plant celery in trenches, well 

 manured, transplant cabbage, kale, broc- 

 coli, etc., between showers, or else give 

 plenty of water. Plant out vegetable 

 marrow.- 1 , ridge cucumbers, tomatoes, and 

 capsicums. Hand-weed onion-beds. Po- 

 tatoes ought to have been all planted long 

 ago; but if there is room for a patch 

 where any other crop has been taken off, 

 they may still be got in. Thin out where- 

 ever crops are crowded, and keep the hoe 

 and water-pot in constant use, and let not 

 a drop of liquid manure or liquid sewage 

 be wasted. The best season for trans- 

 planting hardy evergreens is duiing June 

 and July. Any gaps in the borders and 

 shrubberies may therefore be at once filled 

 up, and beds of rhododendrons and other 

 Americans may be planted. Water well 

 until the July rains come on; after which 

 they will be safe. 



Sow salads, kidney beans, broad beans, 

 and peas, for succession. Sow principal 

 crops of broccoli and turnips. 



Fruit Garden. — Cut all runners away 

 from strawberries, unless new plants are 

 wanted, in which case plunge pots under 

 the joints, and let them root into pots at 



once. Vines want frequent nttention now, 

 to thin out superfluous shoots and train 

 any wanted to cover any gaps in the wall. 

 Continue to disbud wall-trees, and, where 

 this has been neglected, take away fore- 

 right shoots, first by nipping off the point; 

 and in another week cut them back to 

 the old wood. Bud plums, peache*, and 

 apricots Prune away the centre shoots 

 of currants and gooseberries, to keep the 

 bushes open. 



Flower Garden. — Dahlias may still 

 be put out, and late-blooming herbaceous 

 plants may be planted. Pompones struck 

 now will make good plants. Syringe roses 

 with weak tobaoco- water, if at all infested 

 with fly, follow with a syringing with c.ear 

 water. Plunge pot-plants in coal ashes. 

 Shade flowers intended for exhibition. 

 Take up bulbs as soon as the leaves 

 fade. 



Greenhouse and Stove. — As soon as 

 the oidinary stock is turned out to harden, 

 clear the house, and get some balsams and 

 asters forward to keep the stages gay 

 during the next two months. Put up 

 shading to prolong the beauty of plauts in 

 flower. Cut in any plants that have done 

 blooming; repot pelargoniums when they 

 have made plenty of short shoots. Stove 

 plants will want abundance of water, and 

 New Holland plants should have frequent 

 shifts. 



TO COEEESPONDENTS. 



Setting Grapes. — T. M. W. — The 

 " setting" of grapes is accomplished by 

 the deposition of the pollen on the 

 stigmas of the flowers, an operation 

 which is, of course, influenced by many 

 circumstances. If the pollsn is damp, 

 it is either rendered infertile, or the 

 stigma, being also damp, will not re- 

 ceive it. Then, for the perfecting of the 

 pollen a certain degree of heat is re- 

 quired, and for its distribution some 

 movement of the atmosphere or agitation 

 of the flowers is needful. It follows that 

 the "setting" of grapes is most likely 

 to be accomplished by keeping the 

 atmosphere of the house tolerably dry 

 while the vines are in bloom. A free 

 circulation of air is also needful ; and 

 usually it is best to slightly increase the 

 heat until the grapes are developed to a 



visible size. Varieties that are described 

 as " good setters" do not need any special 

 care to insure a crop ; but those de- 

 scribed as "shy," or "bad setters," 

 should have the aid of extra heat while 

 in flower; and during that period the 

 cultivator should, at mid-day, for several 

 days together, gently draw the branches 

 through his hamls, or by a light touch 

 with a stick give them a gentle shaking. 

 " Setting" is not to be confounded with 

 planting. If your query refers to tl<e 

 latter operation, the reply is, that this is 

 the best time in the whole year to plant 

 vines in greenhouses. For nine good 

 vines to be grown in green ouse tem- 

 perature, we should recommend three 

 Black Hamburgh, and one each of the 

 following : Early Auvergne Frontignan, 

 Primavis Frontignan, Chasselai Royale, 



