IRISH GARDENING. 



The Flower Garden. 



By J. G. TONER, Horticultural Instructor, Co. Monaghan. 



^ Q ^y T7^"'^*v\ ^ ready to pot on young- plants 



jelargfoniums as struck. 



r-inch pots will be sult- 



, and compost consisting 



of loam, leaf mould, and 



a little sand will grow 



them well. Firm potting 



at all stages of their 



growth is essential to 



success. 



Mig-nonette may be 

 sown again from the 

 middle to the end of this 

 month for spring flower- 

 ing. Observe the directions as given last month, and 

 as the young plants advance in g-rowth thin severely, 

 leaving finally about five in a six-inch pot. Most ama- 

 teurs fail to some extent to produce good specimens, 

 owing to the overcrowding of the plants. 



If very fine specimens of that popular flower schiz- 

 anthus are desired, the seeds should soon be sown, and 

 the young plants can be easily kept over the winter in 

 structures where a very moderate heat is maintained. 



Stocks, on account of their sweet perfume, are always 

 welcome, and seeds of the intermediate variety may be 

 sown either in this month or September in pots placed 

 in frames — it is not necessary to put them in heat — and 

 if they are carefully grown during the winter will make 

 a fine display in spring. 



Cyclamens require to be potted on as growth 

 advances. Many plants will be fit for this operation 

 before others, therefore, only those requiring- more pot 

 rt)om should be so treated, over-potting being- very often 

 fatal to their well being. 



Cinerarias, Primulas, and Chinese ohcunica audstellata 

 must be looked after in regard to growing on, and it 

 would be wise in many cases to limit the number of 

 plants rather than overcrowd and spoil them. 



Calceolarias, as they are slow in growth, rnay be 

 pricked a couple of inches apart in pans, and, when 

 ready, potted on. As a general rule, six or seven-inch 

 pots will be quite larg-e enough to flower them in ; they 

 may be put in fours frorn the pans, and when fit, 

 transferred to their final pots. Moisture, coolness, and 

 shade are the conditions that suit these plants. 



This will prove a busy time in the outdoor garden. 

 There will be the staking and tying of the taller herba- 

 ceous subjects, thinning the growths of dahlias and 

 mulching them ; gladioli will benefit by being neatly 

 supported, carnations to be layered, and, if necessary, 

 seeds to be sown. In a few years quite a good collection 

 can be got together from selected seedling-s 



Chrysanthemums, whether grown for exhibition or 

 general purposes, will need to be carefully and constantly 

 fed. Plants having a huge mass of roots confined to 

 comparativel}- small pots will be quickly checked it 

 abundance of water in the hot weather and plenty of 

 feeding from this period onwards are not supplied ; 

 attend also to the tying- of the shoots. The early 

 flowering kinds will soon be making a good display, and 

 it would be difficult to select plants that g-ive better 

 value. 



Those who are keen on room and table decoration 

 should grow plenty of Coreopsis grandiflnra. Seeds may 

 be sown just now, and the young plants pricked out 

 when strong enough 



Look out for the first arrival of Roman hyacinths, and 

 have a batch potted up at once — three or four in a five- 

 inch pot. Afterwards stand in the open and cover with 

 ashes or cocoanut fibre. 



1 he Fruit Garden. 



By GEORGE DOOLAN, Instructor in Fruit Culture, Department of 

 Agriculture. 



SUMMER PRUNING.— The great objccfof summer 

 pruning is to open up the centre of the tree and 

 the spaces between the permanent branches by 

 judicious pinching' and pruning to the beneficial 

 influence of air and sunlight. This allows of the 

 formation of new spurs, the ripening- of the wood, and 

 making the tree better fitted for fruit production the 

 following season. Fruit on apple and pear trees get a 

 better opportunity of being perfectly finished when a 

 certain number of shoots are cut away ; inore vigour is 

 diverted to the fruit and more lig-ht is available. 



The exact time to prune depends very much on the 

 nature of the season. Last year, when so much rain 

 and moisture prevailed, growth remained soft until late 

 in the season. This year, however, growth is more firm, 

 and the work may be commenced early in the month. 

 This operation consists in cutting back all lateral (side 

 growths) shoots to within four inches of their base. 

 Cross shoots should be cut likewise, but do not shorten 

 leading or permanent branches ; pinching the tops of 

 these is sufficient. The shortened spurs often break 

 into growth again from the outer buds, due to the extra 

 supply of sap diverted to that channel, while the lower 

 buds, in many cases, swell and develop into fruit buds. 

 These shortened shoots must, in all cases, be cut further 

 back at the winter pruning to about two inches. 

 Currrants and g-ooseberries also derive great benefit 

 from summer pruning-, and where the shoots are 

 grovving too thickly they may be cut back similarly. 

 In the winter pruning-, however, they need not be cut 

 further unless the spurs are very crowded. 



Strawberries : Preparation of Ground for New 

 Plantation. — Strawberries do best in a strong-, loamy 

 soil, but any soil may be made suitable by proper 

 working and manuring. Somebody has said that a 

 strawberry can be grown as easy as a cabbage. It is a 

 fact, the only difference being that the strawberry 

 requires double the attention, but it gives three times, 

 and in some cases four times, the profit the cabbage 

 does. Ground from which potatoes have been dug suits 

 admirably ; it is easily got into a fine condition. Make 

 the soil level on the surface, having- first applied 

 sufficient manure as the nature of the soil demands. 

 The earlier the runners are planted the better will be 

 the chances of getting a good crop the following season. 

 Plant in lines 28 inches apart, and allow Z2 inches from 

 plant to plaiit. If possible, plant during showery 

 weather, otherwise the plants should be watered after 

 planting. Do not plant carelessly ; a ball of soil to each 

 plant is a g-reat assistance. Make the plant firm, 

 especially if the soil be of a light texture ; use the feet 

 to make the graund around the plant thoroughly firrn. 

 The after-treatment consists in keeping the grouud 

 stirred and clean by the frequent use of the Dutch hoe 

 and by cutting off" any runners which early plants often 

 throw out. 



Old Strawberry Plantations. — Where these are to 

 be kept on, though it does not pay to keep longer than 

 three years, the g-round should be cleared of weeds and 

 runners, and the soil lightl}- forked between the lines; a 

 dressing of old manure forked into the soil will be of 

 great help to the old plant. 



Varieties of Strawberries to Grow. — Royal 

 Sovereign, the best in cultivation for general purposes ; 

 Leader, The Laxton, and Monarch ; British Queen, the 

 best late. 



General Remarks. — Young trees this season are 

 remarkable for the small crop they are carrying. Cox's 

 Orange Pippins are good. All the other varieties — and a 

 large number is grown here — are bad. Pears and plums 

 are a failure. Gooseberries were poor, and they have 

 been severely attacked by the sawfly- caterpillar. 



