610 



GARDENERS' CHRONICLE 



The Greenhouse, Month to Month 



W. R. FOWKES 



MIDSUMMER is at hand now with the middle of 

 June, and all plants are in Summer quarters, and 

 "demand Summer care. Watering of most of 

 them has to be heavier, and frequent syringing has to be 

 exercised to keep red spider at bay. The surrroundings 

 of all glasshouses should be kept moist. Spray all shrubs 

 nearby with Black Leaf 40. 



Fire heat has been dispensed with and to avoid a 

 stagnant atmosphere, maintain top air all night. Avoid 

 damping down on rainy days. Cleanse the benches of 

 all leaves or rubbish underneath them that has been ac- 

 cumulated during the Winter. Have the boilers emptied ; 

 flues cleaned out ; all leaks repaired in order to be in 

 readiness for Winter's work. Wash all empty flower 

 pots and store away. Flats should be painted and stored 

 until wanted. 



Carnations that are planted must not be kept too dry. 

 The frequent cause of insects, etc., on these plants dur- 

 ing Summer is largely due to the plants not having suffi- 

 cient water at the roots. 



Roses that have been recently planted must be sprayed 

 several times daily, and only kept dry on wet days. Do 

 not use British methods to water overhead early and 

 late. That practice in England is all right, but evapora- 

 tion here is too rapid. The Britons have moist Summer 

 heat that is conducive to plant growth, while we have 

 practicallv to make a growing atmosphere owing to our 

 arid climate. 



Ill health in plants is due to overwatering or not 

 enough ; too much food, and using soap suds, or coffee- 

 grounds, which some people use on their plants. These 

 things should be avoided if one grows only a dozen 

 plants. 



The stove plants give us their best colors now, and 

 require shading from the burning sun. Crotons, Dracae- 

 nas, Heliconias, Anthuriums, Euphorbias are all in this 

 class. The secret of their great color is by growing in 

 small pots and feeding with suitable foods. 



Poinsettias can be propagated. Take the young shoots 

 and steep the bleeding portion in jiowdered charcoal and 

 then place in sand. 



Acah'pha McKayi is a fine blooming plant from now 

 on that succeeds nicely with gardenias. These latter 

 beautiful exotics are now at their best. Give sufficient 

 syringings to keep the mealy bug away, and keep them 

 in a moist growing atmosphere at all times. See that 

 these plants are dr}- at night. 



To have flowers in Winter we must plant Ijulbs in Sum- 

 mer, and in view of this, soil should be prepared. The 

 ordinary compost heap will do nicely, and incorporate 

 one-third leaf mould and a little sand, and a six-inch pot 

 of bone meal to a wheelbarrow load of compost. Fail- 

 ures occur sometimes through unripened bulbs which we 

 cannot control, but failures also occur through using sour 

 leaf mould or too much barn yard manure. There is a 

 tendency among a few people to ridicule the idea of any 

 dry manure, ancl to think that bags of fertilizer are just 

 an added item of expense, whereas if they took the pains 

 to inquire the amount of barn yard manure it takes to se- 

 cure the same effect of a small quantity of chemicals, 

 the\- would find the bag of fertilizer by far the cheaper. 



I remember when studving at an agricultural college 



across the water, the professors gave lectures about chem- 

 icals versus animal manures, and the following list will 

 suffice to show what is really not contained in one ton of 

 this bulky matter : 



\'alue of fertilizing constituents in 1 ton of manure : 



Horse Cow Cattle Sheep Pigs Poultry 



Nitrogen 1.98 1.62 1.98 3.60 2.34 3.24 



Phosphoric Acid.. 0.27 0.30 0.34 0.44 0.63 0.87 



Potash 0.66 0.42 0.48 0.84 0.48 0.48 



So when all is considered, there remains but about 

 twenty-four pounds of real plant food in one ton of this 

 bulky manure which takes so long to apply. 



Freesias are the first bulbs to arrive, and they favor a 

 larger quantity of leaf mould than the other bulbs. Do 

 not use it from maple leaves or any mixture. Oak and 

 beech are the best and most reliable, and bone meal w-ill 

 supply all food. 



Do not forget to place an order for iris. They have 

 been forced in Europe many years, but became prominent 

 here during the war when houses that were deprived of 

 coal were planted with iris and gave excellent results. 



Do not forget to press the soil in the rose houses after 

 planting. This is necessary to give a firm growth. Put 

 the wire stakes in place and the first wet day is a good 

 time to give the plants their first tie, but do not be too 

 severe for a few^ weeks, for they will make a better break 

 and a larger bush while hanging around for a time, than 

 if kept erect. Remember that roses require lots of air 

 and plentv of water from now until September, and 

 should be given no fire heat. Do not neglect to use Grape 

 Dust, the great antidote for mildew. 



Give the palms around the lawns or porches an ounce 

 of sulphate of potash in two gallons of water three times 

 during the Summer to put strength and firmness into the 

 leaves that are growing so rapidly. See that the plants 

 in the hanging baskets do not suffer from lack of water. 



Immerse in a large tub of water, into which a pecl^ 

 bag of soot is soaking, nectarine and peach trees that have 

 finished their fruitfulness. The laterals should be pinched 

 back to five eyes and plu-nged outdoors up to the rims in 

 ashes and should be well fed to perfect the fruiting wood 

 for next year's work. They must not be thrown into 

 some out-of-the-way ]ilace, if next year, first-class fruit 

 is to be expected. 



Nerines should be well ripened in the frames and suffi- 

 cient water should be given tmtil the leaves have ripened 

 oft' entirely. They can then be placed on a dry shelf ready 

 for Fall blooming. 



Gloxinias and begonias can be kept healthy by not al- 

 lowing the leaves to wilt. Often the plants will droop 

 suddenly and examination reveals a very dry ball of roots 

 under the large fleshy leaves. 



The last batch of 'mums must be potted or planted in 

 permanent quarters. Caps, singles and pompons, are 

 very useful and are favorites with ever\'one. Their cul- 

 ture is simple and they can be grown in eight-inch pots 

 and tied to stakes and pinched several times in order to 

 make them bushy. This is more satisfactory than plant- 

 ing out in the garden and lifting in September, which 

 results in the loss of foliage and a set back from the shock 

 of lifting. They can be grown on the gravel walks or 

 in any open position if no room is at hand inside. 



