6 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[January 6, 1912. 



u, The Week's Work. H! 



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THE KITCHEN GARDEN. 



By Edwin Beckett, Gardener to the Hon. Vicary Gibbs, 



Aldenham House, Hertfordshire. 



Winter Greens. — Although the past summer 



was unfavourable for all green crops, the weather 

 of autumn and winter up to the present has been 

 f xceptionally mild, and all members of the Bras- 

 sica family, as well as late-sown Turnips, have 

 made exceptional growth. Provided very severe 

 frost is not experienced, there will not be such 

 a shortage of green vegetables as was anticipated 

 in the autumn. 



The Seed Order. — Most of the seedsmen have 



already issued their catalogues for 1912, 



and it will be 

 advisable to 

 send the or- 

 der for the 

 s u p p 1 y of 



seeds as early 



in tli 8 New- 

 Year as pos- 

 sible. When 

 the seeds are 

 received they 

 should be un- 

 packed and 

 stored in a 

 dry place, 



where they 



are out of 

 the reach of 

 mice. It is 

 probable that 

 seeds of 

 many kinds 

 of vegetables 

 will be scarce 



this season* and those who have any that have 

 been left over from the previous season should 

 test them to see if their germinating qualities are 

 still good. It is a good plan to purchase a few 

 of the more promising novelties each season and 

 test them with standard sorts in order to have 

 the very best varieties available. 



Seed - sowing.— Many kinds of vegetables 

 should be sown early in January under glass and 

 raised in gentle heat. Onions need to be sown 

 early, so that the crop will mature early, as the 

 bulbs keep better when they are ripened tho- 

 roughly. Sow the seed in shallow boxes pro- 

 vided with plenty of drainage materials, using a 

 moderately light, porous soil and making it very 

 firm. Ailsa Craig is still the best variety for 

 furnishing large bulbs. Leeks may also be sown 

 now for an early supply. 



Garden Tools. — The stock of tools should 



be examined at this season, replacing any that 

 are worn out and repairing others that are only 

 damaged. Tools should always be cleaned and 

 put away in a proper order, and the operator 

 should be allowed time to do this. 



Soils and Manures. — The yard where 

 the potting soil, manures and pots are stored 

 should be put in order, and fresh stocks of the 

 various materials procured. All refuse should 

 be burned on the garden lire and the ashes saved 

 for distributing on freshly cultivated ground. A 

 supply of stakes should be got in readiiu > for the 

 coming season and the ends sharpened, which 

 will provide employment for the staff under cover 

 on wet days. 



Crops in Frames. — Material for covering 

 the frame in very cold weather should be got in 

 readiness. The plants should be examined occa- 

 sionally with a view to removing decayed leaves 

 and rubbish. An abundance of fresh air should 

 be admitted to the frames on all favourable 

 occasions. , 



Digging and Trenching. — Take the oppor- 

 tunity when the ground is hard with frost to 

 wheel manure and other materials on land that 

 is to be dug, thus saving labour as well as pre- 

 venting damage to the paths and verges. Ground 

 operations should be pushed on with all speed. 

 I strongly advocate deep cultivation, the benefits 

 of which were more than ever apparent during 

 last season. 



PUBLIC PARKS AND GARDENS. 



By Chief Officer. 



he Dangers of Ward Jealousy.— 



Although ward representation is a very necessary 

 concomitant of municipal government, it has to 

 be admitted even by the most democratic section 

 of the community that, while much can be urged 

 in its favour, there is a good deal to 

 be said against it. Without the slightest 

 doubt, the abuse of ward representation — often 

 known under the name of " wardism M — has very 

 frequently been responsible for a great amount 

 of municipal extravagance that might otherwise 

 never have taken place. In this and in other 

 ways a principle, admirable enough in itself, has 

 not infrequently proved most inimical to the best 

 interests of a municipality as a whole. Ward 

 jealousy, in whatever form it may show itself, if 

 brought to bear upon the important delibera- 

 tions of a council in full assembly, never fails 

 to react injuriously upon the interests of the 



town and its whole population. That such a 

 state of affairs often exists is well known to any 

 citizen who takes an intelligent interest in the 

 proceedings of his local governing body. 

 No public department worked by a muni- 

 cipal authority can be absolutely free from 

 the ill-effects of wardism ; but some depart- 

 ments, in the very nature of things, are more 

 liable than others to be affected by it. A parks 

 department comes within the latter category. 

 Amongst other things, wardism is frequently 

 responsible for the employment of inferior bands, 

 simply because the players happen to reside in a 

 ward where they can make their influence felt. In 

 the same way, a number of ratepayers making 

 themselves sufficiently insistent, have been known 

 to get bands sent to play in open spaces which 

 were not in the slightest degree suitable for the 

 purpose of musical performances. In both in- 

 stances the result is a waste of public money. 

 Since bowling and tennis playing have 

 become so popular during the past few years, 

 one of the latest phases of wardism in its rela- 

 tion to park management is a growing tendency 

 to influence parks committees to convert every 

 little garden space into a site for a bowling green 

 or tennis court, however unsuited it may be for 

 the purpose. Ward representatives are continu- 

 ally being urged by deputations of their 

 constituents to use their influence in getting 

 bowling greens set down in every ward 

 where a small open space exists, regardless of 

 the fact whether or not it is likely to pay. It 

 very often requires no small amount of moral 

 courage on the part of a committee to refuse re- 

 quests brought before them in this manner, and 

 it is exceedingly fortunate for a parks depart- 

 ment when the governing body realises the f act- 

 that, while it is their duty to provide as much 

 reasonable amusement in the way of games and 

 sports as possible, they have an equally impor- 

 tant duty to perform in catering for the wants 

 of the older and younger inhabitants to whom 

 such pastimes do not appeal. In addition to this, 

 a parks committee has a very strong argument 

 against the wholesale conversion of town gardens 

 into bowling greens or tennis courts. One of the 

 objects of such a body is the beautify- 

 ing of the town, and no one would for one 

 moment suggest that bowling greens, however 

 well laid out, have such a pleasing appearance as 

 a piece of ground of equal size set out irregu- 

 larly, and planted with choice trees, shrubs and 

 flowering plants. For these reasons, a very strong 

 stand should be taken against any attempt to en- 

 croach upon the smaller town spaces which serve 

 such a useful purpose when laid out in th< 

 form of town gardens. The question very natur- 

 ally arises in what way can the evil effects of 

 wardism, in so far as it has to do with parks, 

 be prevented? Is it the duty of the chief officer 

 of the department concerned (who is a paid 

 official) to attempt to influence the policy of 

 those placed by the ratepayers in authority over 

 him? This is undoubtedly an exceedingly deli- 

 cate matter for an official to deal with, but it is, 

 without question, his duty to use every legiti- 

 mate means to get his committee to pursue a 

 correct line of policy in the management of his 

 department, and not only the committee, but the 

 public at large. One of the most useful means 

 at his disposal for enlisting the sympathy and 

 assistance of the general public I propose to de- 

 scribe in a later issue. 



THE HARDY FRUIT GARDEN. 



By F. Jordan, Gardener to Lady Nunburnholmb, 



Warter Priory, Yorkshire. 



Pruning and Top-dressing.— The weather 

 during the last quarter of last year was 

 unusually mild and wet, and outside opera 

 tions, especially in the case of heavy soils, 

 were carried out under great difficulties. Con- 

 stant treading on fruit tree borders during wet 

 weather is very detrimental to the borders, and 

 much of the work of pruning, training, and 



top - dressing 

 BMHHMBHHK3»flB has been 



allowed, per- 

 force, to fall 

 into arrear. 

 But the 

 work of 

 training and 

 securing 

 fruit trees, 

 such as the 



Morello 



Cherry on 



north walk, 

 has been 

 done this 

 season with- 

 out inconve- 

 nience to the 

 operator 

 from cold. 

 Later, when 



_ _ , the weather 



is dry, the 

 trees may be dressed with one of the many 

 alkali washes on the market, as strong measures 

 to eradicate pests may only be taken when the 

 trees are dormant. The work of mulching, prun- 

 ing and training may be carried out whenever 

 the weather is favourable, 

 two different purposes (1) 

 newly-planted trees from 

 give manurial assistance 

 when they are in active growth and swelling 

 their fruits. Any light material that will ward 

 off frost is suitable for winter mulches, such, for 

 instance, as manure from old Mushroom beds. 

 Mulchings used for establishing trees in sprin 

 and summer should be of a stimulating nature, 

 and heavy enough to keep the soil moist even 

 during times of drought. Last season proved the 

 value of these summer mulchings and of deep 

 cultivation. 



Mulches are given for 



to protect the roots of 



severe frosts ; (2) to 



to established trees 



IT 



THE FLOWER GARDEN. 



By J. G. Weston, Gardener to Lady Northcote, 



Eastwell Park, Kent. 



Planting Shrubs.— The weather of the past 

 three months has not been, on the whole, favour- 

 able for planting operations. In the early autumn 

 the ground was too dry to permit of an early 

 start, and when the fine weather broke rain 

 fell so continuously that planting could only be 

 carried out under difficulties. Against these dis- 

 advantages may be set the absence of frost and 



the ground 



being warm- 

 e r than 

 usual. Every 

 o p portunity 

 should now 

 be taken to 

 carry out 

 any plantin 

 that is con- 

 templated. In 

 prep aring 



the ground 

 for trees and 

 shrubs it 

 should either 

 be trenched 

 or dug deep- 

 ly. If • 

 shrubbery is 



being re- 

 planted, any 

 old roots pre- 

 sent should 

 be cleared from the ground and, with other rub- 

 bish, burned, returning the ash to the soil when 

 the planting is in progress. The planters of a past 

 generation relied largely on Laurels, Aucubas, 

 Privet and other common evergreens for their 

 shrubberies, but nowadays there is a wider choice 

 of subjects, including rnanv handsome flowering 

 species. Shrubs should be" selected not only for 



