IRISH GARDENING. 



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the roots are plentiful and the plants are growing 

 freely, a little manure water can be given every 

 second day, followed by clear soot water as an 

 alternative feed. Bear in mind that until the 

 flower buds are showing it is bettor to give clean 

 water every second day ; after the buds are set 

 give manure water every week day and clean 

 water on Sunday for a purifier of the soil. The 

 plants later on will want water at least three 

 times a day in hot weather. 



Cyclamen will be growing freely in their 

 fl owering pots, and must be shaded from direct 

 sunlight. I grow them in a cold frame with plenty 

 of air on, unless the nights are cold ; they are 

 sprayed over with clean water twice a day, and 

 are not allowed to get dry. wliich is fatal. Shotdd 

 thrips appear, it is better to remove them at 

 once to a greenhouse and fumigate them three 

 times on succeeding nights. Some help can be 

 given by sponging the leaves and syringing with 

 clear soot water, but a bad case of thrip is usually 

 fatal when the flowering season arrives, and is 

 always the x-esult of bad management. 



A few pots of Freesia refracta alba potted 

 towards the end of this month will enable anyone 

 with a warm greenhouse to have these lovely 

 flowers ready to cut at Chinstmas. Bulbs for 

 this early flowering should be planted in 5-inch 

 pots, seven bulbs in each pot, and placed in a 

 frame where direct sunlight cannot reach them 

 until roots are forming and the young growth 

 commences. 



Mignonette sown in June for Christmas flower- 

 ing should be thinned as soon as the young 

 plants are large enough to handle. These should 

 only be covered with glass when heavy showers 

 are liable to disturb the young seedlings. 



Malmaisons should be layered as soon as the 

 plants are passed out of flower. This is best done 

 in a cold frame to protect them from rains until 

 the plants are rooted. The operation is exactly 

 the same as recommended for the border varieties. 

 Some of the best shaped and healtliy ])huits can 

 be taken out of their pots, the soil slightly sliaken 

 off and repotted in the same size pots. They 

 should be put into a frame and kept close for a 

 few days ; when new roots are formed they can 

 be potted on into larger pots — an S-inch is large 

 enough for a one year old plant, and in these 

 they will flower next year, carrying from 10 to 12 

 flower spikes. Great care must be exercised in 

 watering these plants until roots are freely made. 

 -Many plants in the rock garden which have 

 finislied flowering will still have cuttings available 

 for ])ropagation. These tiny plants must be 

 wintered in a cold frame or greenhouse, and will 

 make plants for filling up gaps next April. 



May flowering Tulips — Darwins, the cottage 

 type, and others — are better if lifted this month 

 and lipcncd in the sun ; they can be stored then 

 for planting in October. 



Sweet I'eas must be kept watered, and all the 

 plants should be picked clean at least once every 

 fortnight. Seedlings of })iennials must be pricked 

 out into nursery beds as soon as they are 3 inches 

 liigh. (iivc your Lily of the Valley a good soaking 

 of liquid manure during this month to swell the 

 crowns for next year's flower : it will be too late 

 after this month. Make notes of any plant or 

 varieties of the different florist flowers during 

 llieir flowering season for a guide for propagation 

 for next year's planting. This specially applies 

 to Roses, Carnations, Dahlias, and any particular 

 favourite hobby one may have in hand. 



Lawns in small gardens or in town gardens 

 would be improved by a sprinkling with a hose 

 pipe should the weather be dry. Tennis courts 

 and croquet lawns needed for special purposes 

 will require watering regularly during dry weather. 



The Fruit Garden. 



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

 Bessborough, Bessborough Park, Co. Kilkenny. 



Thinning Stone Fruits. — Early in the month 

 stoning will be finished, and the final thinning of 

 stone fruits can be carried out. No hard and fast 

 rule can be laid down as to the number of fruits 

 that can with safety be left to mature on a tree, 

 as this must be determined by the size and vigour 

 of each tree and by the kind that is being dealt 

 with. If the tree is young and is making very 

 strong growth, a good heavy crop will check its 

 exuberance and greatly benefit it, but if the tree 

 is old and not growing too freely, the crop left to 

 mature must be correspondingly smaller to 

 ensure enough strength being left to build up 

 next year's fruit buds. In any case peaches 

 should have from S inches to a foot of space 

 between each fruit. Plums can still be left 

 fairly thick, as, after the middle of the month, 

 they can gradually be thinned for using green. 



Summer Pruning. — Apples and pears can now 

 be summer pruned, beginning with the wall and 

 espalier trees. All side growths sliould be cut 

 back to about the sixth leaf, rememl)ering that 

 the end buds left will most likely grow out again, 

 so that the shoot must be left sufficiently long 

 to enable one to cut behind these secondary 

 growths to a dormant bud when pruning next 

 winter. The leading shoot on each branch 

 should not be shortened, and where required a 

 conveniently i^laced shoot can be left to form a 

 new branch. The great advantages of summer 

 pruning are not only apparent in the greatly 

 improved appearance of the cvirrent year's crop, 

 owing to the free admission of sunlight and air 

 to all parts of the tree, but it also does much to 

 ensvire the proper development and thorough 

 ripening of next year's fruit Ijuds. 



^^'ALL Trees. — Continue to tie in the leading 

 growths of trees growing on walls, and stop an>- 

 that have filled the available space. The growths 

 of peaches and nectarines must be attended to 

 as required, tying in just sufficient to furnish the 

 tree next year, and removing altogether all gross 

 or unnecessary growths whicli otherwise over- 

 crowd the tree, than which notliing is worse, 

 ^lorello ch(;rries will commence to colovir about 

 the midrlle of the month, and it will be well to tie 

 in the young growths before putting on (lie nets. 

 If there are any signs of aphis on the trees a 

 final syringing with an insecticide should be 

 given before colouring commences. 



Straavherries. — As the different varieties go 

 out of bearing, the beds sliould be cleared of 

 weeds, decaying foliage, and surplus runners, 

 leaving enough of the latter to supply young 

 plants for futuie reciuirements. These should 

 be layered without delay either into small pots 

 filled with loam, or, if these are not available, 

 turves can be cut about a foot square, from a 

 pasture, and about 1 inches thick, and placed 

 grass side downwai-ds on the beds ; each of these 

 will accommodate about a dozen layers. Where 

 scarcity of labour renders both these methods 

 impossible, good results may be obtained by 



