IRISH GARDENING. 



187 



The Month^s Work. 

 The Flower Garden. 



By CiiARLE.s CoppE.v. (iaidfiu'i- and Forester to 

 Lord Carew. Castle Boro', C'lonroche, Co. Wexford. 



This month is, for many purposes, a dull month 

 in the garden, and opportunity will be found to 

 do many things that are not possible in the other 

 months of the year. After the storms of Noveni- 

 ber all the drains and sand traps should be looked 

 after and cleaned up, so that all will be in jjerfect 

 order. Leaves must be cleaned off lawns and 

 walks and from the exposed parts of shrubberies, 

 on the edges of drives and roads. These may be 

 added to the manure heap, and will make a 

 welcome addition to it. If some basic slag is pi'o- 

 curable it would be a distinct help, and the most 

 desirable way of applying it to flort'er beds and 

 borders is to spread it over leaves and manure 

 and mix it together. After the lawns have been 

 cleared of leaves they must be swept with birch 

 brooms and rolled — this rolling helps them to 

 withstand frosts, and especially on newly sown 

 lawns of last season does this apply, as the young 

 grass plants are easily uprooted by frosts and, if 

 neglected, become jjatchy. Weeds which are 

 deeper rooted then get the advantage of a good 

 start next spring. On old lawns a topdressing of 

 old soil and leaf mould mixed with ashes from a 

 refvise fire or wood ashes have a lasting and bene- 

 ficial efifect. On niany lavvns basic slag will help 

 to destroy the moss, and if this is followed by 

 two di'essings of equal parts sulphate of ammonia 

 and clean sharp sand, about one povmd of the 

 mixture to every square yard, and 2 cwt. of the 

 mixture — that is, one cwt. of sulphate of 

 ammonia and one cwt. sand mixed together — • 

 will cover a full size tennis court and the margins. 

 I prefer to divide this into two parts, putting half 

 on about the middle of March and the I'emaining 

 half about the 14th April. This will do away 

 with the moss, encourage the grasses, and if you 

 use basic slag it will also encourage clover. It 

 will also be beneficial in reducing the weeds, and 

 especially the daisies and plantains. If the 

 daisies are a plague repeat the dose of sulphate of 

 ammonia and sand in early May and again the 

 following October. 



Renovations and renewals of worn-out turf on 

 lawns, especially narrow grass edges, can be 

 attended t(j this month. Where paths are getting 

 weedy and the surface somewhat muddy, this can 

 be carefully scraped off and a renewal of clean 

 sand put on ; in a few favoui'ed spots granite 

 cliippings can be procured at a cheap rate, and 

 tliese make a splendid surface. 



Old and worn portions of shrubberies, and 

 where it is intended to plant flowering or other 

 shrubs in early February, should be cleaned out 

 and thorouglily dug — two spit deep — duriTig this 

 month on all available occasions, when tlie 

 weather permits, to allow as long a time for the 

 soil to settle as possible. 



All climbers of the flowering shrubs on v\alls, 

 and the summer and autumn flowering shrubs, 

 wherever they be, that flower on the curi-ent 

 season's growth shoubl be (in most cases) ])i-uned 

 severely back now, and if the Cleiiuitis were not 

 done in Xov«'ml)er they should be (lone at once. 



Christinas Hoses, llelleborus Nigel", shoidd be 

 covered with glass immediately the flowers begin 



to show above ground to get the blossoms as pure 

 as possible. Those who would have these lovely 

 flowers at will should plant them in a scxuai"e patch, 

 I he exact size of a single light frame; which can be 

 put on them during the flowei'ing pei'iod and lifted 

 off immediately the flowers are picked. 



The rock garden must be kept clean, and a little 

 sharp sand placed round choice subjects liable to 

 dami?. In favoured warm spots Iris stylosa will 

 show some flower buds towards the end of the 

 n^onth, l)ut only on di*y» warm and sheltered 

 positions. 



If renovations are needed on the herbaceous 

 Ijorder the plants can be lifted, labelled and heeled 

 in a high and favoured spot in safety till the 

 border is trenched and heavily manured, but these 

 plants cannot be planted again in. safety till the 

 end of January or the beginning of February. 



On dry days and whenever possible admit air 

 to Violets in frames, to all cuttings in cold frames 

 and to the greenhouses also ; this is very impor- 

 tant, as December is the most trying month of the 

 year on plant life. The ventilators should be 

 opened at the top and gradually increased as the 

 day goes on till noon, then reduce it to half about 

 two o'clock, and shut down at half three if the 

 night shows signs of being cold ; on the nights that 

 are not too cold,, or where the outside tempera- 

 ture does not fell below^ io , some top air may be 

 left on all night. 



Ronian Hyacinths may be kept in a warm 

 house until the flowers are fully expanded, when 

 a return to a cooler house is desirable for a few 

 days before putting in a dwelling-house. Freezias 

 coming into flower should be kept in a tempera- 

 ture of 55° unless the outside temperature is very 

 low, when 50" will be more suitable. This will 

 suit Cyclamen in flower also, which ought to make 

 a good sliow of bloom at Christmas. 



Begonias (iloire de Lorraine are at their best 

 this month, and we have Gesnera Chronatilla, 

 which is in everyway equal, for a brave show of 

 bloom when well' grown. 



The Fruit Garden. 



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

 Bessborough. Bessborough Park, Co. Kflkenny. 



The fruit crop of 1910 has been rather dis- 

 appointing, although some locaUties have been 

 more fortunate than others in this respect. In 

 verv few orchards or gardens has the apple yield 

 ))een up to the average, the better class dessert 

 apples having been the worst defaulters. The 

 following varieties of cooking apples have given 

 s])lendid crops this season here : — (irenadier, 

 Loddiiigton. Lane's Prince Albert, Blenheim 

 Oiange. Bramlev's Seedling and Newton Wonder ; 

 while of the dessert kinds :—Ailington Piiijiin. 

 King of Tomkin's Co., Baumann's i{ed K.-inette 

 and Fearn's Pippin— all being api)les of second lal e 

 ((ualitv — were fairly good. Cox's Orange lMi)pin.s 

 wcM'e Verv scarce, while King of the Pi|)pins, 

 Ril)ston. and (iascoigne's Scarlet were more than 

 usually spotted. The only two pears that gave 

 gi)0(l returns wer(> Williams and Doyenne du 

 Comici — t he lattei' \ipholding its reputation as the 

 best October-November variety. Among plums 

 N'ictoria, Diamond, and Czar — cooking, and 

 Oullin's (iolden (iage, .JeflVrson, Early Trans- 

 paj'e7it and Coe's Colden Drop — dessert, gave the 

 best vields. Of the small fruits, the currants 



