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Gardening for Amateurs 



Hints that may be New to You 



A SIMPLE Propagating Case. 

 Amateurs whose glass accommo- 

 dation is limited to one greenhouse 

 find great difficulty in striking various 

 cuttings which need a close atmosphere, 

 or in raising seedlings of different sorts, 

 owing to the difficulty of preventing 

 fluctuations of temperature. These diffi- 

 culties can to a certain extent be overcome 

 with very little trouble. Obtain a fairly 

 large box, but not too deep. Fix this over 

 the hot-water pipes in a warm corner, and 

 partly fill with cocoanut fibre, which is to be 

 kept constantly moist. In this fibre pots 

 containing seeds or cuttings are plunged, 

 and it is only necessary to cover the top of 

 the box with sheets of glass to ensure closeness 

 and an even temperature. 



An Easily-made Bird Scarer. Birds 

 are an intolerable nuisance in many gardens, 

 and although the old-fashioned scarecrow 

 may be effective for a short period, its use- 

 fulness for the purpose very soon passes 

 away, and the litter left there barely com- 

 pensates the grower for the trouble taken. A 

 gardener living in our district has long since 

 discarded the old practice of using glass or 

 tin, and instead selects several large Potatoes 

 or Turnips, in which are fixed feathers of 

 various sizes and colours ; finally their 

 appearance is suggestive of some huge bird. 

 After these are prepared they are suspended 

 from wires stretched at intervals over the 

 bed it is intended to protect, or over bushes 

 of Gooseberries and Currants in spring. 



Transplanting Seedlings. The natural 

 tendency when transplanting, or pricking 

 off seedlings from the seed-beds or boxes, is 

 to pick out the largest until sufficient have 

 been obtained, and then to discard the 

 remainder. In many instances this is a 

 great mistake. In a mixed row of seedling 

 Canterbury Bells those with blue flowers 

 largely predominate among the strong plants, 

 and the delicate pink shades, being less vigor- 

 ous, are often thrown away. The strongest 

 seedlings of Stocks very often produce 

 single blooms, while among the smaller 

 plants there is a larger percentage of double 



flowers. Tuberous bedding Begonias and 

 Petunias are instances of plants in which, 

 as a rule, many of the best flowers come 

 from the less vigorous seedlings. The teach- 

 ing of this, and it holds good with many 

 plants, is to retain some seedlings of all 

 sizes. 



Duckweed and Scum in Ponds. When 

 the flow of water through a pond is not very 

 strong a green scum sometimes forms or the 

 surface may be entirely hidden under a 

 covering of floating Duckweed. To ret rid 

 of both use copper sulphate solution, allowing 

 one ounce of the chemical to 1,000 cubic 

 feet of water ; if there are no fish or plants 

 in the water this amount may be doubled 

 or even trebled. Perform the work in 

 spring or, indeed, at any convenient time 

 and the vegetable matter will soon dis- 

 appear. The copper sulphate, or bluestone, 

 solution may be sprayed over the surface, 

 or the crystals tied in a muslin bag, which is 

 drawn through the water until the chemical 

 dissolves. Copper sulphate is a poison. 



To Destroy Nettles. The nettle is a 

 bad weed once it gets firmly established in 

 any corner, and the work of eradication is 

 often troublesome and prolonged ; the long, 

 fleshy roots are difficult to pull up thoroughly, 

 and as the plant generally settles in a most 

 inaccessible spot, it is sometimes almost 

 impossible to get rid of it. If the foliage 

 is cut down regularly as soon as it reaches 

 a height of some 6 inches the plants will 

 gradually die out. The eradication will be 

 materially hastened, however, if a solution 

 of salt or kainit be sprayed over the place 

 or if the soil be heavily dressed with either 

 of these substances ; 4 ounces per gallon of 

 water is the proper proportion to employ, 

 and if hot water can be obtained the solution 

 can be more speedily made up, and it will 

 prove more effective for the purpose in- 

 tended. Should the dry substances be em- 

 ployed, scatter some 3 or 4 ounces on 

 every square yard immediately after the 

 foliage is cut down, and after two or three 

 applications the nettles will give no further 

 trouble. 



