Gardening for Amateurs 



121 



Prom a Gardener's Note Book 



TO Kill Flannel Weed and Scum 

 in Water. The presence of Flannel 

 Weed and green scum in ponds, 

 lakes, and tanks is not only unsightly 

 but offensive, for at certain times it is 

 attended by a very disagreeable smell. It 

 may, however, be destroyed by adding 

 copper sulphate to the water at the rate 

 of one part of the chemical to from 750,000 

 to 1,000,000 parts of water, or 2 oz. of 

 copper sulphate to 10.000 gallons of water. 

 A fairly wide margin is allowed for error, so 

 that the calculations need not be exact, and 

 lish are not injured even if it is used at the 

 rate of one part to 500.000 parts of water. 

 Tie the chemical in a canvas bag and draw 

 it through the water until dissolved, or mix 

 it in water and syringe it over the surface 

 of the affected area. Two or three applica- 

 tions may be needed during the year. It is 

 as well to keep animals away from the water 

 for a few hours, although it is not likely to 

 harm them. 



Geranium Cuttings. Although bedding 

 Geranium cuttings are amongst the easiest 

 to root under proper conditions, some people 

 find a difficulty in dealing with them, more 

 especially after a wet summer, when the 

 stems are sappy and full of moisture. 

 The following method of procedure is, 

 however, usually successful. Commence tak- 

 ing the cuttings about the third week in 

 August, and insert them in moderately firm 

 soil in well-drained boxes. Give a thorough 

 good watering, then stand under a wall, and 

 place lights over them so that rain is kept 

 off. Should a cold frame be available they 

 may be placed in that, providing a free 

 circulation of air is admitted at all times. 

 Do not give water until it is absolutely 

 necessary ; rather allow some of the leaves 

 to die, and the cuttings to shrivel a little. 

 As soon as dead leaves fall easily from the 

 cuttings, remove them. Soon after this 

 new leaves will begin to grow and roots 

 will be formed. Do not give much water, 

 however, for several months : in fact, little 

 will be required l>efore the plants are potted 

 singly in 3^ -inch pots in January. 



To Trap Wireworms. Wirewonns are 

 often a serious menace to crops, especially 

 when newly ploughed up grass land is being 

 dealt with, and thousands of soft plants are 

 killed annually by the light brown grubs 

 boring into and devouring the centres of the 

 stems. A great many wireworms can be 

 caught, and other crops protected somewhat, 

 by burying Potatoes or Carrots in the ground 

 to a depth of 3 or 4 inches, each Potato or 

 Carrot having a small stake pushed into it, 

 by which it may be removed and examined 

 every other day. From 6 to 20 grubs may 

 often be obtained from each trap every 

 time it is examined over a period of several 

 weeks. Needless to say, the destruction of 

 this number of grubs must be beneficial to 

 surrounding crops. 



Plantains and Other Coarse Weeds 

 on Lawns. Although it is a good practice 

 when mowing lawns to allow the mown 

 grass to remain to act as manure, it is only 

 on lawns that are free from noxious weeds 

 that this can be allowed after the weeds 

 commence seeding. For seeds of Plantains 

 and other coarse weeds ripen quickly, and 

 between one mowing and another Mowers 

 which have been missed will have produced 

 seeds, which are at once widely distributed 

 if the machine is used without a box. Where 

 vigorous weeds of tins description exist in 

 a lawn the most efficacious method of dealing 

 with them is to pull them up by the roots. 

 Salt applied to the heads simply kills the 

 upper parts, and new growth appears from 

 the rootstock. The same may be said to 

 result after the heads have been cut off by 

 means of a spud. Lawn sands do a certain 

 amount of good, but nothing l>eats the com- 

 plete uprooting of all weeds which have 

 thick roots or rootstocks l>elow ground. 

 Then give the lawn a good drawing of rich 

 soil free from weed seeds, and otherwise 

 encourage the grass to outgrow the weeds. 

 Bone meal and well-decayed manure may 

 be applied without fear of injuring the grass. 

 Some manures, such as nitrates, must be 

 applied very carefully, however, or the 

 grass will be burnt. 



