Southern and Western Counties. 



By W'm. CAMriii:!,!.. (i.ii'dciici' (<> liord ("asUclow n. 

 Doncrnilc Covirl. Co. C(M'k. 



TlIK VEiiKTAIU.I': (iAlJDKN. 



Ski'TEMHIOK II]) to the date of writing (tin- IStli) 

 has tui'ucd out to be a very wet month, and great 

 dilliculty is being experienced in drying off the 

 Onion crop and gathering in the Appk' crop. 

 Those who liave an open dry shed sliould remove 

 their Onions there at once and keep them regu- 

 larly turned. They should on no account be 

 stored away into their winter quarters until 

 thoroughly dry. All the Brassica family are 

 doing well, and pronuse plenty of winter greens. 



Cabbage. — Plant out more of the August-sown 

 plants ; keep the ground well stirred with the 

 hoe between those already planted : at the same 

 time make good any failures that may have 

 occurred. 



Beetroot. — This is a root very easily damaged 

 by frost, and should now be lifted and stored 

 under a shed, or they can be built uj) by a 

 sheltered wall and layers of dry earth or sand 

 placed between them. Care must be taken when 

 lifting the roots not to break or injure them in 

 any way. 



Celery. — On fine dr>- days earth U|) late 

 Celery, first dusting the plants with lime or soot. 

 to ward off slugs, which often destroy whole 

 rows of good Celery by eating holes all through 

 the plant, especially the young and tender hearts. 



Lettuce and Endive. — Lift the plants care- 

 fully with a good ball of earth attached to the 

 roots and plant closely in frames. Abundance 

 of air must be given as long as the weather is 

 favourable. 



Rhubarb. — If lihubarb is required for 

 Christmas, it is now time to prepare the stools 

 for forcing. Lift the required number and leave 

 them on the ground exposed for a week or so 

 before putting them in some warm place to 

 force. Rhubarb, like Heakale. must ])e kept 

 quite dark while forcing. 



Seakat-e. — Clean away all dead foliage and 

 weeds of the beds. A few good crowns can be 

 lifted for forcing. Treat in the same way as 

 directed for Rhubarb. 



Tomatoes. — If aii\ fruits still I'emain on 

 Tomatoes planted out door, take them oft" and 

 bi'inu; tliem indoor to ripen : they will be very 

 useful for cooking purposes. 



(iENEHAi- Work. — Hoe between growing croj)s 

 to keep the surface open and promote free 

 growth. Clear away all old pea straw and other 

 rubbish and ])urn them to give the garden a tidy 

 appearance. Trencliing and digging can now 

 (•oiiuiu'nce. Leave the surface rough, so that it 

 may get the full l)enefit of the weather, look 

 over seed I'otitoes. and stand early varieties 

 on their ends in crates or boxes. 



The Fkuit (Jardkn. 



Special care should be taken this year in picking 

 and storing AiJjjles and Pears, so that none may 

 be lost. The shortage of both Apples and Pears 

 is becoming more evident every day by the high 

 prices obtained for them. By the time this 

 appears in print all except late vai'ieties will 

 have been gathered into the fruit room. They 

 should be frequently looked over, and any 

 damaged or decaying fruit removed. 



STRAWBERRir<:s. — Keep all runners cut oft' : 

 hoe between the rows to keep down weeds, and 

 see that none of the young plants get loose in the 

 ground. 



Planting and Root-pruning. — These impor- 

 tant .operations can now commence. Root- 

 pruning has a very beneficial affect on trees that 

 are making too much growth, and. consequently, 

 little or no fruit. The operation is a simple one. 

 Dig a trench around the tree 3 feet from the stem, 

 cut all the strong roots, making a clean cut : 

 gradually work inwards towards the tree, remov- 

 ing tile soil from between the roots with a fork : 

 carefully preserve all fibre roots. When all tlic 

 large or fleshy roots have been seyered start to 

 fill in the trench, carefully spreading out the 

 roots as the work proceeds, giving them an 

 upward tendency. If a few barrow-loads of fresh 

 loam is at hand to mix with the soil taken out 

 of the trench, it will help to encourage the 

 formation of new roots. If it is intended planting 

 new Apple or Pear trees where old ones have 

 been stubbed out. it will be best to remove most 

 of the old soil and have a few loads of loam from 

 an old pasture to plant the trees in : no manure 

 will be necessary, especially where fresh loam is 

 used. In the case of stone fruit plenty of old 

 lime rubble should be mixed with the soil. 

 Always see that the hole to plant a tree or bush 

 in is larger than the roots when spread out to 



