IRISH GARDENING. 



63 



can be spared. In any case, shorten these okler 

 shoots fairly hard back. 



Okl stools of early flowering Clirysanthenuiius 

 should be broken up and planted till the end of 

 the month in a cold frame. These will make 

 better plants than cuttings. Stop the growth 

 six inches high, and grow on naturally after, 

 planting out in the garden the first week in May. 



Plant out Pentstemons, Gladioli and Violas 

 for a good display in summer. The cheaper 

 Gladioli are grand for massing in colours — 

 America, pink ; Baron Hulot, blue ; Princeps, 

 scarlet ; Halley, salmon, and Early are fine in 

 masses through tlie herbaceous border or at the 

 corners of beds of flowering shrubs. 



Cuttings of Dahlias, Lobelias and Iresine may 

 still be put in with good results. All tender 

 bedding plants wintered under glass may be 

 gradually hardened off in cold frames by the end 

 of the month. 



Bedding Begonias should be started into growth 

 at once and planted either in boxes or pots as 

 soon as the new shoots are about an inch long. 

 These are better grown from then on in cold 

 frames or on a very mild hotbed, with no shading. 

 Water with extreme care until new growth is 

 active. 



Hardy Annuals may be sown out in the garden. 

 A list of some of these and the method of sowing 

 them appcai-ed in the March number, page 1."). 

 To 1 liisc 1 1 1,1 \ be added : — Phacelia Campanula ria, 

 a lovely shade of blue ; Mignonette, Perfection 

 and JU'd King, and the .Mammoth form of Machet : 

 Larkspur, stock-tiowered rosy-scarlet ; the 

 annual Clirysaiit hemums ; Candytuft, Little 

 Prince: (uidrtia. flouble, pink; the Eschscholt- 

 izias ; >;igillia. .Miss Jekyll. A corner for a patch 

 of Matthiola liicoiiiis, although not a pretentious 

 flower, makes a garden in the evening very 

 fragrant — there is nothing quite so sweet. 



Sweet Peas sown in pots may be planted out 

 about the middle of the month, and if good well 

 grown plants that have been stopped and are 

 growing freely again they should have eighteen 

 inches between each ])lant in the drill ; six plants 

 make a good clump, and they are very effective 

 grown that way. 



The rock garden will be needing attention, and 

 any gaps through deaths during the winter should 

 be planted at once from cuttings rooted last 

 summer and wintered under glass. The tufted 

 Androsaces and other plants that are covered 

 with small hairs around their crowns during 

 winter are the worst offenders. The best plan is 

 to have them tilted in fissures between the 

 rocks wherever possible. Choice plants that are 

 susceptible to slugs and will be making new 

 growths should be carefully watched and pro- 

 tected for a time with zinc collars. A few blank 

 spots may be sown with Portulacas and other 

 similar annuals suitable. The Portulaca must 

 have a dry sumi\ spot : it prefers a little mortar 

 rubble and crumbled cow dung in the .soil, the 

 surface pressed down with a lioard and a little 

 sand sprinkled over; on tiiis sow the seeds, and 

 do not touch it again or attempt to cover the 

 seeds or they will probably fail to germinate. 



Plants of ^Meconopsis Wallichii and Cambrica 

 grown from seed sown last year in .March will be 

 ready to plant out at once; .Meronnpsis ( 'amhiica 

 does well also with the same ti'eat iiient . LLIiuiiis 

 started into growth in pots can be planted in 

 groups. At the back ground these taller plants 



lend an attractive and natural appearance to a 

 rock garden. 



Climbers will need attention, especially, the 

 Clematis, which will be growing freely. The 

 climbing and pillar Roses will need putting 

 firmly in position for their summer flowering, 

 both on A\alls and pergolas or on i^illars. 



The Fruit Garden. 



By T. E. ToMALiN, Gardener to the Earl of 

 Bessborough, Bessborough Park, Co. Kilkenny. 



Pruning. — The early part of this month is the 

 best time to prune newly planted fruit trees. On 

 young standard trees of apple and pear the 

 growths should be shortened to about one-third 

 of their original length, leaving a little more or a 

 little less, according to the strength of the shoots. 

 Thus, very strong growths can be left a foot or 

 more long, whereas six inches will be plenty to 

 leave on weaker shoots. The reason for this is 

 that the harder a shoot is cut back the stronger 

 will be the resultant growth, therefore a weak 

 shoot is cut hard back to induce greater strength, 

 while a strong growth is left longer, thereby 

 encouraging shoots of medium strength, which 

 are always more prolific in forming fruit spurs. 

 Moreover, medium-sized, well ripened wood is less 

 prone to canker than are gross shoots. Young 

 standards with four to six shoots should be 

 pruned just above two good side buds, so as to 

 get two leaders next season. If there is a centre 

 shoot it should be cut out. Older trees that have 

 enough branches should be pruned just above a 

 bud pointing in the direction in which the young- 

 shoot is desired. It is not wise in all cases to 

 prune to an outward pointing bud — e.g., apples 

 such as Lane's Prince Albert and Norfolk Beauty, 

 which are inclined to grow in a horizontal or even 

 drooping manner, should be pruned to a bud 

 pointing upwards, otherwise the branches will, in 

 a few years, touch the ground. Young fan- 

 trained trees of plum and pear should have the 

 growths shortened by about two-thirds, to a bud 

 on the under side of the shoot, and the same 

 applies to espalier-trained trees, except that in 

 the latter the middle shoot is left about 15 inches 

 long to extend the tree, whereas a fan-shaped tree 

 should have no centre shoot. The side growths 

 on cordon trees shotdd be closely pruned to form 

 fruiting spurs, and the leading growth left about 

 9 inches long. If it is left longer than this the 

 lower eyes often fail to break, with the result that 

 bare spaces, devoid of fruit spurs, occur ujj the 

 length of the stem. It is always best to " make 

 liaste slowly " in covering the allotted space, both 

 with cordons and with fan-trained trees, as undue 

 haste to cover the wall means in the end lengths 

 of bare wood instead of evenly distributed fruit 

 spurs. 



WATEBiN(i AND iMi'LC'HiNG.^ — If the weather is 

 dry, water should be given to any late planted 

 trees that may require it. A good mulch of 

 sti'awy manure applied afterwards will generally 

 make a second watering unnecessary. Estab- 

 lisiied \vall trees often require watering during 

 .\pril, especially in positions where the wall, or 

 tall trees behind it, keep off the rain to any 

 extent. Apricots and cheriies are usually the 



