IRISH GARDENING 



139 



The Month^s Work. 



Midland and Northern Counties. 



By Mr. F. Streeter, Gardener to B. H. Barton, 



Esq., D.L., Straffan House, Straffan, 



Co. Kildare. 



The Kitchen Garden. 

 Forcing Asparagus.— Where there is a demand for 

 forced Asparagus it will be advisable to make up 

 some good hotbeds of three parts fresh leaves and 

 1 part long litter; place about 3 to 4 feet of the 

 above material and thoroughly firm, put a few 

 inches of good sandy soil over this, then lift and 

 put the crowns in close together; do not allow the 

 crowns to become dry after lifting from the per- 

 manent beds; keep the frames close and sprayed 

 on fine days, covering at night. It is a good practice 

 to take one bed each season for this purpose, 

 making a fresh bed v.'ith strong seedlings. 



Rhubarb and Seakale. — A\here one has the con- 

 venience of forcing houses, it is now a simple 

 matter to obtain plentiful supplies of both 

 Rhubarb and Seakale. Owing to the Apples keep- 

 ing badly this year, plenty of Rhubarb will be 

 required, also Seakale, to make a welcome change 

 in the vegetable list. Keep a moist atmosphere, 

 and not above 60°; great care must be taken to 

 keep the house perfectly dark. 



Mushrooms. — Guard against too much heat in 

 the Mushroom house, and keep the walls and floors 

 damped with warm water daily. Keep collecting 

 fresh manure for making up fresh beds; be on the 

 alert for woodliee, etc. When picking twist the 

 Mushroom clear, do not cut as is too often done, 

 thus causing damping to set in, and so destroy 

 the crop. 



Early Potatoes. — Set up the Early Potato sets 

 to green and sprout, ready for forcing. Duke of 

 York seems a great favourite here in Ireland. Per- 

 sonally, I prefer Shaipe's Express and Midlothian 

 Early. Last season New Success was in advance 

 of anything we had, both for cropping and earli- 

 ness; the first planting should be done this month, 

 using either pots or boxes; an excellent plan is to 

 start them in the early fruit houses, moving into 

 later houses as the season advances. 



Carrots. — The first sowings of Horn Carrots 

 should be made in hotbeds in heated brick pits, 

 using some 4 inches of fine soil, dust over occasion- 

 ally with soot or lime to ward off attacks of slugs. 



Tomatoes. — Make the first sowing of Tomatoes 

 for next spring supplies. Sunrise, Winter Beauty, 

 where it does well, Peachblow and Sunbeam are 

 the best varieties for this sowing; raise in a tem- 

 perature of about 60°, prick off when large enough 

 and grow steadily on a shelf near the roof glass. 

 When pricking out and potting off use soil the same 

 temperature as the house and pot them in the 

 same house as growing. 



Broccoli. — All Broccoli turning in during the 

 Avinter months should be heeled over facing north; 

 carefully watch and place any that are " turning 

 in " into cold frames during .sharp spells of frosty 

 weather. 

 ! Spring Cabbage. — Keep the spring Cabbage bed 



f clean of all leaves that may i)low from other quar- 

 ters of the garden. If the ground gets beaten hard 

 with rain, etc., it may prove helpful to gently 

 fork between the rows. 



Turnips. — Where young sweet Turnip tops are 



appreciated place a few bulbs in the forcing house 

 weekly, they soon start into growth and may prove 

 helpful. 



Sprouts. — Sprouts in full bearing will require 

 constant cleaning of all dead leaves; do not take 

 the heads of the plants off until the picking is 

 finished. 



Spinach. — Spinach is in daily demand now. Con- 

 tinue to pick the outside leaves first, and keep the 

 plantations free from dead leaves, etc. 



P.\RSNiPS.— During frosty spells lift sufficient 

 roots to carry over the hard time. 



Celery. — Have sufficient covering at hand to 

 protect the main rows of Celery during sharj) 

 spells, removing immediately the frosts break. 

 When digging up leave the ridges until the spring, 

 this will allow the frost to do its work. 



Salads. — Keep sufficient Endive and Chicory 

 blanched ready for use. Make weekly sowings of 

 Mustard and Cress, and use Water Cress from a 

 clear running stream. 



Hardy Fruits. 



Pruning. — Push forward the pruning of all fruit 

 trees, with the exception of Figs, Peaches, Nec- 

 tarines and Apricots. This operation requires of 

 the operator a good knowledge of his subject. He 

 must know the varieties and the different types of 

 training, the main object being to obtain high- 

 class fruit, and cover whatever space the tree is 

 allotted. Where summer pruning was practised 

 very little remains to be done, except the leaders, 

 which require shortening to five or six buds and 

 to an outward eye. When pruning Wall Fruit 

 keep the fruit buds forming as close as possible 

 to the wall; endeavour to keep the tree well 

 balanced, that is, an even number of shoots each 

 side of the stem ; in yovuig trees sometimes two or 

 three growths will grow clean away, this must be 

 stopped, and the strength thrown into the weaker 

 growth to furnish the tree. Keep the centres of 

 the trees open as much as possiFjle to allow the 

 sun and air to reach each branch and fruit; do 

 not overcrowd, allow plenty of space from branch 

 to branch. When the pruning of each section is 

 finished it is advisable to clean up and burn all 

 rubbish. Take a little of the top soil that has 

 become impoverished, giving a "^topdressing of 

 good loam and lime rubble, with a sprinkling of 

 finely crushed bone (not bone meal, as this too 

 often goes mildewed and stale, thus driving away 

 and killing the roots, instead of feeding them). 

 When using artificials, if the gardener does not 

 possess a knowledge of cliemistry he would be well 

 advised to consult his local chemist, or purchase 

 " Cousin's Chemistry of the Garden," revised, 

 price 2s. My reason for writing this is because if 

 any plant or tree is fed at the wrong time the 

 valuable stimulant is lost, which, if given at the 

 proper time, would make all the difference between 

 poor and excellent fruit. 



Raspberries. — Push forward the tying and clean- 

 ing of Raspberry canes. When tying to wires 

 the ground clean and free from dead leaves. 



Raspberries. — Push foiward the tying and clean- 

 ing off all Raspberry canes. When tying to wires 

 face them to the north or east, whichever direc- 

 tion they are planted ; do not cut off the top, as 

 is too often practised, remembering that practi- 

 cally all fruit trees produce the best fruit at the 

 tip of the growth, bend them over to form an 

 arch. This is a very old practice and but seldom 

 seen in present day fruit gardens, but I strongly 

 recommend it to all those who require the finest 

 fruit and a longer succession. 



