68 PICTORIAL PRACTICAL CARNATION GROWING. 
be followed up by intelligent routine, so that the plants may have 
every chance of doing themselves justice. 
If the ground was handpicked for the roots of perennial weeds 
when the bastard trenching was done there will be no trouble on 
their account, but annual weeds will appear, and must be kept under 
by regular hoeing, which also helps to keep the soil moist. 
In hot, light, shallow soils mulchings with cocoanut fibre refuse, 
lawn mowings, or short manure will be a help, but they are not 
attractive, and can very well be dispensed with where deep cultiva- 
tion has been practised. Where watering has to be resorted to in 
OUTDOOR CULTURE. FIG. 30 (NEXT PAGE).—STRAINED WIRE 
STAKING AND DISBUDDING. 
V, bed with a double row of plants : v, rows of plants ; w, end parts, deal, 14 
by 23 inches, 2 to 3 feet long, according to the height desired, with a 
hole bored near the top for the wire to pass through; z, stays, 1 inch by 23 
inches, the lower end abutting on a flat stone, and the upper secured to 
_ the end part with screws ; y, uprights, 1 inch by 2} inches, pierced with 
holes similar to the end posts, and fixed at the same height above ground, 
these acting as guides for the wire; z, stout pegs to which the wire is to 
be fastened, and the pegs driven into the ground so as to draw the wire 
taut; a, wire (}-inch, No. 10, galvanised and painted green); 4, stems 
secured to the wire. 
X, one year old plant at the disbudding stage : ¢, grass; ¢, basal side flower 
stems, which attain vigour secondary only to the main or central flower 
stem, and which must be removed only when a few fine flowers are 
desired ; for decorative purposes and cutting they may be retained, and 
fair flowers had by leaving only their crown buds f, and terminal buds 
of sublaterals g ; h, central or leading flower stem, the only one to be 
retained when fine blooms are required; i, lateral flower stems, to be 
removed early ; j, vigorous side branch flower stems likely to produce 
good blooms, their axillary leaf buds being removed, 4, only retaining 
their terminal ones; J, lateral flower stems, usually weak and likely to 
impoverish the crown bud, hence they should be removed ; m, crown 
bud, generally giving the best bloom of the plant. It will thus be seen 
that for securing fine blooms on a plant only the crown bud, 1, the third, 
2, and fourth, 3, from the top are retained on the plant. : 
Y, upper part of a flower stem, all the side growths below having been 
removed : ”, crown bud; 0, point where buds sometimes appear—they 
must be removed; y, second and third side branchlet buds that must be 
removed; g, third side branchlet from the crown bud having a good 
terminal bud 7, to be retained, and axillary bud or buds s, to be 
rubbed off; ¢, fourth side branchlet from the crown bud, usually 
vigorous, and having sub-branchlets ~, that must be removed, leaving 
the terminal bud only, ». 
Z, upper part of a flower stem properly disbudded: w, crown bud; z, ter- 
minal buds; y, points where branchlets have been removed ; z, points 
where axillary buds have been taken out, the leaves in all cases being 
retained ; the dotted cross lines show points where flowers can be cut so 
as to have long stems. 
