142 



IRISH GARDENING. 



SEPTEMBER 



crood week cut. Their sweet, pretty blooms and eleg-ant 

 sprays are most useful either for table decoration pur- 

 poses or large vases in rooms. Asters of different 

 shades, mixed with some light grasses, make a capital 

 decoration, and for church purposes the star-like asters 

 must not be forgotten. They are of easy culture in 

 ordinary garden soil, and thrive also very well in 

 shrubberies. They look lovely planted in good masses 

 of blues and pinks and whites. This is the month to see 

 them at their best, and where much exposed to wind 

 place some loose stakes as supports, but avoid tying 

 them up in bunches to a single stake. 



AuTiM.\ Propagation. — No time must now be lost 

 in getting in the stock of cuttings that are required to 

 keep over the winter. Pelargoniums — as advised in 

 last month's issue — can still be put in. Lobelia, iresine, 

 verbenas, and such like, being soft, should be put in 

 pots or boxes, struck in a heated frame, and shaded 

 from bright sunshine. It is also well to pot up a few 

 odd plants of each variety, and from these numerous 

 cuttings can be obtained in spring. This saves room, 

 and old plants are not so ready to damp off, and will 

 stand being kept on the dry side during the dull winter 

 days. 



Calceolarias, \'iolas and Pentstemons do best in 

 a cold frame, and the sooner the latter is put in hand 

 the better. These will even stand a few degrees of 

 frost in severe weather, but when this is so they must 

 be kept shaded till a thaw again takes place. Calceo- 

 laria aniplexicaiilis is well worth growing for its colour 

 and tall habit, but it will not stand frost, and where the 

 protection of the frames is not sufficient it is best to 

 strike the cuttings in boxes, and keep in a cool house 

 all winter. 



General Work. — There will still bestakingand tving 

 to do in the herbaceous border to preserve a neat and tid^■ 

 appearance. The hoe must be run over bare patches to 

 keep small weeds in check. Preparation should be made 

 to cover anything that may be endangered by the frost, 

 which sometimes suddenly comes down in September. 

 .Autumn chrysanthemums prove very useful this month, 

 and so do late dahlias. Light tiffanv spread over the 

 tops of the plants at night and removed in the morning 

 will be a valuable protection from early frosts. Constant 

 attention must be given to the spring bedding, and 

 where effect has to be studied immediately after the 

 .-lutumn flowers are removed, of necessity the chief 

 portion of the plants used must be evergreen shrubbery 

 plants. Some of the hardier-foliaged herbaceous plants 

 may be pressed into service where winter effect is the 

 point aimed at without reference to spring. When 

 winter and spring seasons have to be studied, selections 

 from both shrubby, bulbous and perennial plants can be 

 effectively combined. Contrasting shrubs, such as 

 coniferje in a small state, hollies of various-coloured 

 foliage, yuccas, and berried plants, should be introduced. 

 The stock of bulbs that must be bought should be 

 ordered at once, as those who order early generally get 

 the best of the nurseryman's stock. Where narcissus 

 and tulip bulbs have had to be lifted, now is a good time 

 to plant the smaller bulbs in the reserve garden, keeping 

 the largest for planting next month in the flower garden 

 beds and borders. 



The Fruit Grounds. 



By WiLLL\M R. Spencer, Manor House Gardens, 

 Loughgall, Co. Armagh. 



THIS is one of the busiest months of the year for 

 the fruit grower, his time being fully occupied 

 in gathering, packing, and marketing his 

 produce. 



The marketing of fruit demands the utmost care and 

 foresight of the grower. He should have all his fruit 

 packages and packing material at hand, also his market 

 must have his consideration. It will not do to leave 

 these things oft until the time fruit is ready for despatch, 

 as some fruit will not bear to be delayed. The quicker 

 the journe}' is done between the tree and the consumer 

 the better. 



Dealing first of all with plums. They must not be 

 allowed to gel too ripe, else they will not travel well, as 

 skin readily gets broken. They should be graded into 

 at least two sizes, and packed in small, clean bo.xes 

 holding about 16 lbs. Put a little wood wool in bottom 

 of box, line with clean paper, and pack in layers ; put a 

 sheet of paper over top, a little wood wool, and the lid 

 put on, nailed down, and at once forwarded to market 

 or private customer as the case ma}' be. 



Apples, too, now demand attention, many of the early 

 varieties being fit for market. Also many trees will 

 benefit by thinning the fruit — taking the largest and 

 allowing small ones to remain, they will swell up 

 considerably, particularly if the tree be attended to bj- 

 giving it plenty of water if at all dry. These will have 

 to be graded — that is, divided into different sizes, and 

 all of each size kept by themselves. 



Dessert varieties should be marketed in small boxes 

 holding about 20 lbs. Cooking varieties in barrels of 

 9 stone, or boxes of 40 and 80 lbs., and particularly 

 specimens in one dozen lots. 



Owing to the fine crop of fruit this season the prices 

 are not expected to rule high. Growers should 

 endeavour to get the highest possible value for their 

 produce, and to this end should go to some trouble and 

 expense to place their goods on the market in as decent 

 and presentable a form as possible. 



The writer was greatly struck last year in going 

 through a fruit market in Belfast with the disparitv of 

 the Irishman's method of sending fruit to market com- 

 pared with our foreign competitors. The foreigner 

 always packs in clean packages, and fruit is clean and 

 uniform in size, whereas our home man seldom, if ever, 

 packs in a clean package. Generally dirty barrels 

 are used, and the hay employed to cover tops of barrels 

 is generall)' of the worst description. Sometimes 

 cabbage leaves may be seen covering top of barrel, and 

 not very fresh-smelling either. L'nder these circum- 

 stances it is no wonder that high prices cannot always 

 be had if this can ever be guaranteed. But something 

 better might be done, and to this end a few rules should 

 be laid down for the guidance of these men, or they 

 should adopt some such rules as the following for their 

 own guidance : — 



1. Use clean packages and packing material. 



2. Honestly fill packages by giving full weight, it 



