64 



IRISH GARDENING 



and reap its. benefit. Cordonb of various kiiuK "ill 

 also be greatly improved by the above Ireatnienl. 1 

 notice that fruit trees in several gardens in this neigh. 



bourbood are looking very pronnsju:;. 



and with 



favourable weather our Kdiior will be able to present 

 the public with a glowing report at the end of the year. 

 Morello cherries are showing splendid blossoms. 

 Itideed, they are now a perfect picture, and 1 hope 

 will form plenty of fruit, for coming late after many 

 other thifigs have finished they are always invaluable 

 for the dining-room. 



The Vegetable Garden. 



Ky W'M. TvNliALl., Horticultur.il Instructor, Co. 

 Kililaro. 



TO those that would excel in the growing of \egc- 

 lahles, either for home use or exhibition, this is 

 probably the most important month of the year. 

 Every opportunity should be taken this very wet spring, 

 when the ground is dry. to get the work recommended 

 for last month done; also study vegetable calendar, 

 given in last months Ikimi t,".ARi kmnc;, for time of 

 sowing and best varieties. The past month has been 

 generally wet afid cold, so that slow progress has been 

 made in many gardens in getting in crops on account 

 of the bad weather; still we had some fine days, and 

 where.-the chance was not allowed to slip, many kinds, 

 such as onion, parsnip, peas, and broad beans, have 

 been got in. Many gardeners, amateur and profes- 

 sional, sow such seeds as onion, lettuce, and all the 

 Brassica family broadcast, and such must be kept clean 

 by hand weeding, which is tedious and expensive. In 

 sowing I prefer sowing the seeds in lines, about one 

 fool apart, as then the hoe can be used between the 

 lines and the ground kept clean, and the more the 

 surface soil is stirred the better the crop will do. 



Spring C.\I)HAi;i is much benefited by a dressing of 

 nitrate of soda, a teaspoonful to each plant. Winter 

 spinach should gel a dressing of soot and wood ashes 

 mixed ; hoe the ground constantly between the above 

 crops to keep down weeds, &c., for once let annual 

 weeds seed it will be very diflicult to keep the crops 

 clean during the rest of the year. 



Plant out during the month as the grouiul and 

 wcallier permits such crops as cauliflower, lettuce, 

 onion, leeks, and Rrussels sprouts raised under glass, 

 but be sure and have them well hardened off before 

 planting, which is best done in dull or showery weather. 



During this month make several sowings of mid- 

 season peas and a couple of sowings of broad beans in 

 ground deeply dug or trenched and well mainired. .\lso 

 sow cabbage, cauliflower, Hrussels sprouts, if not raised 

 earlier, leek and early broccoli, leaving late broccoli. 

 Savoy and broccoli or kale for sowing the first week of 



May. 



Vi;GElAi;i.ii Marrow. — This is .i crop that if obtained 

 early, is much relished, and, again, the earlier the 

 plants begin to fruil the more niarrov s will be gathered 

 ere the plants are cut down by frost. Karly in the 

 month sow three or four seeds in five-inch pots filled 

 with good rich soil, and place on a mild hot-bed where 

 the seeds will germinate ipiickly ; if c;irefully hardened 



off lliey can be planted c>ut about the middle of May, and 

 kept covered at night by boxes or, better, hand-lights. 



Hkkbs. —These are very much required tlin^ing llie 

 past few years, and a sowing of the most useful should 

 be made during the month, such as thyme, sage, parsley, 

 mai'joram and mint, which is propagalet.1 by dixision 

 of the roots ; and also cuttings of the young shoots, 

 which strike freely in a close, warm frame. .-Ml the 

 seed of herbs may be sown in lines one foot apart, on a 

 warm, rich border, and can be thinned ov transplanted 

 when I he seedlings arc large enough. 



Spinach. — Make a couple of sowings of \icloria 

 Round during the month, as the plants soon run to seed 

 in wai'm weather. Where spinach is constantly re. 

 quired a sowing of spinach beet should be made early in 

 the month, and this can be thinned and transplanted in 

 lines one and a half feet apart .'Uid ten inches from 

 plant to plant ; it is most useful during the ;iutumn and 

 winter. 



PoiAToKs.- riant the main crop of potatoes as early 

 in the month as ground permits in drills two and a half 

 to three feet wide ; it is a great mistake to make 

 narrow drills. In old garden soils or those very rich 

 a gooil dressing of warm lime will be found a great 

 benefit, not only in the increased quantity of the crop, 

 but also in the better eating quality of the potato. 

 Leinster Wonder and White City are two varieties of 

 recent raising that I have formed a high opinion of last 

 season, the small quantity of each grown being free 

 from disease and of good eating quality. 



Kkeni'M ami Runn'kk Bkans. - .\bout the end of the 

 month a sowing of dwarf and runner beans can be made 

 in warm, rich soil ; if sown earlier the seed decays in 

 the ground or the plants get killed by the frost in May. 



AsPAKAlits. — Where beds of this much pri/ed vege- 

 t.ible are to be planted this month, they should be pre- 

 pared at once, and left to settle before planting, which 

 is best done in showery, mild weather. As asparagus 

 roots grow in a horizontal direction, don't bundle the 

 roots into a small hole, but open large ones, and spread 

 the roots out, having the crown of the plant about one 

 Inch under the surface of the soil. In prepaiing the beds 

 Irencli -' to ,i feet deep, mixing a heavy dressing of 

 manure willi (he soil, cow manure on light soils, and 

 hoi"Si' manure en hea\y giovmd. 



5^* e^* c^^ 



.\.\i:.\io.\i; lii.AMiA scvriiiNH.A. 



This is a hcaulilul variety of the Creek .\nemone 

 recently introduceil from X. Kurdistan. Its hnely 

 flowers when open on a bright sunn)- day look a good 

 white, but passing on a dull day the exteriors ol the 

 flowers show a clear melallic blue. It does not seem 

 in the least bit fastidious, growing well in the ordinary 

 border or in a peaty soil. When the seeds are allowed 

 to ripen and fall, quite n crop of seedlings will appear 

 around the parent plants the following spring. These 

 if picketl out separately will flower in two or three \ ears. 

 Seedlings vary greatly, some h;ive the deep blue flowers 

 of A. blanda, a few are small flowered and dull, others 

 are good in type like .\. scythinica. The plants may be 

 bought as dry tubers in autumn or m.iy be purchased 

 from nurserymen as pot plants. 



