144 



THE GENESEE FARMER. 



J UN 



HORTICULTURAL DEPARTMENT. 



EDITED BY P. BARRY. 



HINTS FOR THE MONTH. 



Tree Department. — The earth around newly plant- 

 ed trees, should be kept clean and mellow all summer. 

 Mulching, that is covering the earth around the tree 

 as far as the roots extend or farther, with 3 or 4 inch- 

 es deep of litter or manure, is an excellent practice. 

 It keeps down weeds, and prevents moisture from 

 evaporating, rendering the application of water quite 

 unnecessary. Watering should only be resorted to 

 in cases of extreme necessity, and when once com- 

 menced should not be discontinued until rain comes. 

 The surface should never be allowed to bake after wa- 

 tering, as then the water does more harm than good. 

 It is a good time now to rub off useless or misplaced 

 shoots while tender ; the use of the knife will not 

 be required on them afterward, and the tree will be 

 all the better for their timely removal, Grafted trees 

 should be examined, and all suckers, or shoots from the 

 stock be removed,as they will interfere with the growth 

 of the graft. So with buds of last season ; they must 

 be looked to, and all shoots from the stock kept down. 



The thinning of fruit should be attended to. — 

 Very few people think of thinning the fruit on their 

 trees, and the consequence is, many trees are injured, 

 broken down or enfeebled, so as not to recover for 

 years, if ever. On dwarf trees thinning is particu- 

 larly necessary — some varieties are so prolific as to 

 completely overbear themselves. The better way, in 

 such cases, is to remove the fruit buds ; but this not 

 being done, the next best way is to remove the young 

 fruit. This is a hard matter where fruit has been so 

 anxiously looked for, but it is necessary and should 

 be done promptly by all who value the health and 

 longevity of their trees, or who wish, even, to raise 

 large, finely colored and fine flavored fruit. 



Birds are very troublesome to the cherry trees in 

 some places. Some people think shooting them the 

 most effectual remedy, but we dislike it very much — 

 better frighten them if you can. A very successful 

 plan went the rounds of the papers some time ago, 

 viz : to hang bits of broken looking glass in the 

 trees, so that they might dangle in the air. The 

 curculio will attack the stone fruits, as usual ; the 

 thousand remedies suggested are as familiar to the 

 readers of the Farmer as to us. 



Strawberry Beds will require attention. Where 

 the runners are not wanted for planting, they should 

 be cut off and thrown away. The ground around 

 the plants must be kept clean, and when the fruit is 

 swelling, if dry weather prevails, they should be wa- 

 tered liberally. The strawberry very soon suffers 

 from drought, unless in deeply trenched, moist soil. 

 Where the plants are grown in rows, as they always 

 ought to be, some straw or grass might be laid along 

 each side of the row to prevent the moisture of the 

 soil from evaporating. 



Raspberry Canes should be kept well tied up. — 

 Gooseberries and Currants must be looked to, and all 

 superfluous rank shoots from the stem or head be re- 

 moved, as they will injure the crop of fruit. 



All fruit trees suffering from a poor soil, may be 

 greatly benefitted by the application of liquid manure 

 a lew times. A few inches of the surface soil may 

 be removed, and when the liquid has been applied, 



replaced. Dwarf fruit trees, with a heavy crop, would 

 be benefitted by such an application, both tree and fruit. 



Floiver Department. — Dahlias may be planted out 

 any time, now to the middle of the month. Dry 

 roots that have been started, or young plant- in pots, 

 will bloom finely from the latter end of August till 

 frost comes, if planted now. We prefer strong plants 

 in pots to old roots — they are apt to give better flow- 

 ers. The Dahlia should have a fresh, loamy soil, 

 not too rich; too much manure makes rank plants, 

 imperfect flowers, and coarse, unsound roots, that 

 keep badly over winter. If dry roots are planted the 

 crown, where the eyes start, should be two inches be- 

 low the surface, and a neat stake four or rive inches 

 high should be set with the root, that the plant, as it 

 grows, may be tied to it. W T hen young pot plants 

 are used they should be carefully turned out of the 

 pots, without breaking the ball of earth around them, 

 and placed in a hole prepared for them. A good wa- 

 tering should be given, before the earth is all filled in 

 around, and a stake set. The after culture will con- 

 sist of keeping clean around the plants, cutting off 

 straggling branches, and keeping the plant neatly 

 tied to the stake, for the winds soon break them. 



Annual flower seeds may be sown yet for autumn 

 flowering; and Verbenas, Petunias, monthly Roses, 

 Salvias, Heliotropes, Scarlet Geraniums, and other 

 plants for masses in lawns or in flower gardens, may 

 be turned out any time. Annuals raised in the bor- 

 der may be transplanted in a moist day. The flower 

 stems of all plants should be kept neatly tied up, and, 

 when done flowering, cut down and cleared away. 

 Walks must be kept clean of weeds, and lawns fre- 

 quently mowed, rolled and kept in good order. The 

 way to do all these matters at a trifling cost, is to do 

 them in season. 



THE SEASON, CROPS, &c. 



The transplanting season was greatly prolonged, 

 in this section, by .the coolness of the spring. Until 

 the 15th or 16th of May we had scarcely one day of 

 usual spring warmth- -so that we may conclude that 

 nearly all the planting intended to be done has been 

 completed. We think too, that planters will be more 

 successful than usual on account of the cool, moist 

 weather experienced during the season of planting. 



We have at the present moment (May 18,) a fine 

 prospect for a fruit crop. Cherries, Peaches and 

 Plums, are loaded with blossoms. Pears and Apples 

 look well and will be open in a day or two. Apricots 

 have set their fruit finely, and will be ready for the 

 curculio in a few days; but he must be watched and 

 kept off if possible. 



The small fruits look equally promising. Mr. 

 Thomas stated in 'the April number of the Cultivator 

 that, "through a large portion of Western New York, 

 most of the peach crop has been destroyed by the se- 

 vere cold of the late winter." We have not found 

 this to be the case by any means, as far as we have 

 observed; on the contrary, all looks as well as usual. 



Early spring crops will be later than usual. Green 

 peas were in market on the 15th. Asparagus, Rhu- 

 barb, Lettuce and Radishes are becoming plenty, but 

 we have seen none of first rate quality. 



The flowering season of ornamental trees and 

 plants is later than usual. Few trees are yet in 

 bloom; except the double varieties of fruit trees, such 

 as the double flowering Peach, . llmond, Cherry, Sloe, 

 he. These are all beautiful now. The Pyrus Ja- 



