Gardening for Amateurs 



79 



sprinkling of sand. Pot fairly firmly 

 and tie out the growths in good time 

 to show the blooms to the best advantage. 

 When the pots become full of roots give 

 weak liquid manure weekly. 



Starting Gloxinias. The roots of these 

 handsome plants should now be potted. 

 The conns are started into growth in boxes 

 of leaf-soil placed in a warm corner of the 

 greenhouse. Syringe them frequently, and 

 \\liru the growths are an inch or two long 

 pot each plant in a 5- or 6-inch pot, using 

 rich soil for the purpose ; firm potting is 

 not advisable. 



Hollyhocks. Seedlings raised from seeds 

 sown in January will be ready for potting 

 singly into 3-inch pots. About ten days 

 after potting move the plants into a frame 

 and gradually harden them for planting 

 out in May. 



Sowing Schizanthus. For summer 

 blooming, either in pots or outdoors, seeds 

 of Schizanthus Wisetonensis (Butterfly 

 Flower) may be sown thinly in pans of light 

 soil now. As soon as they can be handled 

 transfer the seedlings to other pots or boxes, 

 placing them wider apart, and later pot each 

 one in a 3 \ -inch pot. Grow in a temperature 

 of about 50, and keep them near the glass. 



Liquid Manure. Plants coming into 

 bloom, such as Arum Lilies, Cinerarias, and 

 Primulas, should receive weak applications 

 of liquid manure regularly twice a \\<-<-k. 

 To vary this give occasionally doses of a 

 reliable fertiliser, such as Clay's. 



Coleus thyrsoideus. Cuttings of this 

 fine blue winter flowering plant may be taken 

 and inserted in small pots of sandy soil. 

 The cuttings will soon form roots if kept 

 in a closed case for a week or two, wlu-n 

 tiny may be potted off separately. This 

 plant is particularly valuable, as it blooms 

 in midwinter, when few blue flowers are 

 obtainable. 



THE FRUIT GARDEN 

 Planting Strawberries. Strawberries 

 are best planted in early autumn, but 

 failing this the work may be carried out 

 now. Thorough preparation of the ground 

 is necessary, for the only means of supplying 

 nourishment to the plants in future years 

 is by means of mulching (covering the soil 



with manure) and watering with liquid 

 manure. It is necessary to dig the ground 

 18 to 24 inches deep, and plenty of half- 

 rotten manure should be mixed in. Keep 

 most of this in the lower part, where it will 

 be found by the roots later on. Plant 18 

 inches apart in rows 2 feet asunder, and 

 water at once if dry weather prevails. It 

 is advisable to remove the flowers from 

 spring planted Strawberries the first season, 

 though probably few amateurs would care 

 to do this. Good varieties are Dr. Hogg, 

 Eoyal Sovereign, and Sir J. Paxton. 



Big Bud in Black Currants. Boskoop 

 Giant is a variety that resists this pest 

 better than most sorts, but it falls a victim 

 occasionally. Xow is the best time to 

 attack this minute insect, as the buds are 

 opening and the mites emerge to seek new 

 quarters. Either spray the bushes with a 

 mixture of quassia and soft soap, or dust 

 them with newly slaked lime and sulphur. 

 In either case the measures of prevention 

 taken should be repeated at intervals of a 

 fortnight from now until early in May. 

 The mites cause the buds of Black Currants 

 to become enlarged, and they fail to grow. 



Grafting Fruit Trees. This work should 

 be undertaken at this period, and novices 

 should practice making the various cuts 

 before operating on valuable trees. There 

 are several methods in practice, such as 

 whip, cleft, and saddle grafting, but the 

 principle is the same in all cases, to fit 

 the scion or graft close to the stock, so that 

 the inner bark of both comes in contact, 

 as it is there that the union is made. All 

 cuts must be cleanly made, and after the 

 scions are securely tied in the point of 

 connection is covered with wax or clay to 

 exclude air. 



Protecting Wall Fruits. Pears and 

 Plums in bloom should be protected by 

 means of fish netting, but in nil cases remove 

 the nets as soon as they have served their 

 purpose or the young shoots will grow 

 through them, resulting in considerable 

 daman,- \\hrii they an- ultimately removed. 



Silver-leaf Disease. This is a disease 

 for which no real remedy is yet known, 

 although in some cases liberal manuring 

 has been known to remove the trouble. 

 Where such measures fail, root out affected 



