112 



Gardening for Amateurs 



Something You May Not Know 



TO Protect Seeds from Mice. 

 Mice are often very destructive to 

 the larger kinds of seeds, such as 

 those of Peas, Beans, and various trees, 

 and if steps are not taken to prevent 

 their depredations whole sowings may be 

 ruined. Preventive measures are usually 

 more satisfactory than curative ones after 

 the mice have commenced work, and one 

 of the best methods is to roll the seeds in 

 dry red lead previous to sowing. Sufficient 

 red lead attaches to the seeds to make them 

 distasteful to the mice, and if a few seeds 

 do happen to be eaten the mice are almost 

 sure to die. Paraffin sprinkled over the 

 seeds after sowing also acts as a deterrent. 



Lilac Suckers. Complaints are often 

 heard regarding the unsatisfactory flowering 

 of Lilac bushes, and more often than not 

 when such cases are investigated, it is found 

 the plants are masses of suckery growths. 

 To produce good heads of flowers it is neces- 

 sary that Lilacs should have vigorous, well- 

 ripened shoots, and this cannot be whilst a 

 great deal of the available food material is 

 being wasted upon suckers and weak inside 

 branches. All suckers from the rootstock 

 must be cut away, and a considerable pro- 

 portion of the weak inner shoots must be 

 treated in a similar manner. This will 

 result in additional vigour to the remaining 

 branches, and better ripening of the wood. 

 Some of the young shoots, when a few inches 

 long, may be removed during early summer 

 and an application or two of cow-manure 

 water may be given to the plants with 

 advantage during the growing period. 



To Destroy Leaf-eating Caterpillars. 

 Certain caterpillars are sometimes preva- 

 lent during May and June on the leaves of 

 Euonymus, Gooseberry bushes, Apple trees, 

 and other kinds of trees and shrubs, and if 

 steps are not taken to kill them at once they 

 frequently succeed in defoliating the plants. 

 One of the easiest ways of destroying such 

 caterpillars is to poison the leaves upon 

 which they feed. This can be done by 

 spraying the leaves lightly on both surfaces 

 with an arsenical compound. Take 2 oz. of 



Paris green and mix it into a thin paste in 

 a little cold water ; then make up to 25 gal- 

 lons with water. Use during dry weather if 

 possible, but whilst the leaves are damp with 

 dew, and allow the liquid to fall upon the 

 leaves in the form of a light spray rather than 

 as a heavy wash. Should a shower occur 

 soon after, a second application may be 

 necessary. The wash, of course, is very 

 poisonous. 



Refuse Heaps. Wherever room can be 

 found for a refuse heap in a garden, such a 

 space should be provided. During the year 

 an immense amount of rubbish is cleared up 

 from even small gardens, and if properly 

 rotted it makes excellent manure, which may 

 be returned to the ground at the end of the 

 year. Anything which will decay readily, 

 except such plants as may be affected by 

 fungus diseases, may be placed in the heap, 

 care being taken to turn it over once or 

 twice during summer. When the refuse is 

 being wheeled out, anything not properly 

 rotted may be left as the nucleus of the 

 succeeding year's heap. A little care in 

 dealing with this waste material saves pounds 

 in manure at a later date. 



Garden Fires. An occasional bonfire 

 in a garden is an excellent thing, for it 

 enables the owner to dispose of waste 

 material which cannot be readily rotted, and 

 so to keep his garden neat and tidy. More- 

 over, he would often be wise to light a fire 

 and burn those of his plants which are worn 

 out or diseased. A poor or unhealthy plant 

 is no credit to anyone, and the garden is 

 infinitely better without it ; yet many 

 people will insist on keeping miserable, 

 scrubby plants in case they should improve, 

 whereas healthy young plants could be 

 purchased for a shilling or two. Pruiiings, 

 hedge clippings and other substances may 

 well be burnt at once, instead of being left 

 about, and the ashes which result can be 

 put to a profitable purpose ; for they are 

 rich in potash and form a valuable manure 

 for certain crops, particularly Potatoes on 

 heavy land, while they can scarcely be 

 used wrongly. 



