152 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[March 9, 1912. 



L4v 



The Week' s Work. ^ 



THE FLOWER GARDEN. 



By J. G, Weston, Gardener to Lady No 



Eastwell Park, Kent. 



kthcote 



Carnation Seedlings. — Carnations raised 

 from seeds sown in January should be pricked 



off in boxes filled with sandy soil and grown in 

 an intermediate temperature. Keep the plants 

 close to the roof -glass to promote a sturdy habit 

 of growth. When fairly established, remove 

 them to cooler quarters to become thoroughly 

 hardened before they are planted out-of-doors. 

 The Carnations of the Marguerite and Grenadin 

 types are easily grown from seed. The flowers 

 are very sv. reet-scented and numerous : seedlings 

 £ s. good strain will include a large proportion of 

 plants having double flowers. 



Flower-beds and Borders. — Beds and bor- 

 ders planted with Wallflowers, Polyanthuses, 

 bulbs, and other spring-flowering plants should 

 be hoed and made tidy before the plants come 

 into bloom. The verges should be trimmed, if 

 necessary, with the edging knife, making this 

 quarter of the garden as attractive as possible. 

 The flower-spikes of Hyacinths should be tied to 

 neat stakes as soon as support becomes necessary, 

 or many may be damaged during a single stormy 

 night. Take care to tie the matting loosely 

 around the stem, as a tight ligature may cause 

 the growing inflorescence to snap off. Use sticks 

 painted with a subdued colour. Where no dwarf 

 plants are employed as a carpeting for Hyacinths 

 and other bulbs, Cocoanut fibre refuse will give 

 a better appearance than bare soil, and it will 

 prevent the blooms from getting splashed with 

 mud during heavy rains. 



Lawns. — Lawns should receive attention 

 almost daily at this season to ensure a good 

 sward during the summer months. The grass has 

 commenced to grow rapidly, and it should be 

 swept and rolled constantly before the dry 

 weather sets in. If the turf is weedy, it may be 

 dressed with lawn sand, the present being the 

 best time to apply it. Make good all bare places 

 in the turf, and straighten turf edgings, bordering 

 paths and flower-beds with the edging knife. At- 

 tention to these details results in a smart garden, 

 having a well-cared-for appearance. If not ahead 

 done, lawn mowers should be overhauled and put 

 in good order at once. 



Gravel Paths and Drives. — Ground opera- 

 tions entail much wheeling over the paths and 

 roads, which become damaged thereby in bad 

 weather, and they should be put in gocd order 

 without delay. Fill depressions and ruts with 

 rough materials, rolling them well in, and then 

 spread a layer of fine gravel over the surface. A 

 heavy roller should be employed as soon as the 

 gravel is, moderately dry, to provide a smooth 

 surface. 



Tuberous-rooted Begonias.— The tubers 

 should be placed in boxes covered with leaf-mould 

 and started into growth. There is no advantage 

 in starting them too early, or they may become 

 stunted and receive a check before the time for 

 planting arrives. They should be placed in a 

 cool house or frame, no fire heat being necessary, 

 as this would cause them to grow too quickly, 

 rendering them more susceptible to injury when 

 exposed out-of-doors. If started as advised, the 

 young shoots grow sturdy. Later on the tubers 

 may be divided, if necessary, to increase the 

 stock. They should then be potted or placed in 

 boxes, the latter receptacles being the better, as 

 the roots are liable to become matted in pots, 

 causing a certain amount of check when separat- 

 ing them. The soil should consist of turfy loam, 

 plenty of flaky leaf-mould, and a quantity of 

 sharp sand. Pot lightly. The new bedding Be- 

 gonia, Major Hope, created a very favourable im- 

 pression last season, where seen in the public 

 parks. 



Canna. — Bedding varieties of Canna that 

 have been resting in a cool house should now 

 be potted : they will furnish good plants by 

 June. Ordinary potting soil is suitable, and heat 

 facilitates the starting of the plants into growth. 

 After the shoots have commenced to grow, the 

 plants should be grown as sturdily as possible, 



but Carmas will not thrive under cold and 

 draughty conditions. Stand them in a frame or 

 light house, where they will receive plenty of 

 sunshine: on no account grow them under vines 

 or Peach trees, a practice which is too often 

 adopted with bedding plants, with tbe result 

 that they become drawn and weakly. 



THE FRENCH GARDEN. 



By Paul Aquatias. 



Hot- beds. — The Lettuces grown in the frames, 

 prepared in the first place for Turnips and 

 Strawberries, will be all marketed before the 

 10th inst. Lettuces grown with Carrots need 

 to be kept very clean, and all decayed leaves 

 removed carefully. The paths between the 

 rows of frames should be filled again with 

 dry manure, made level with the tops of the 

 frames. The manure is not for the purpose of 

 increasing the temperature of the frames, but to 

 facilitate the raising of the frames when the 

 Carrots require more head room late in the 

 month. If available, a quantity of black soil 

 should be passed through a 

 and kept in a shed, to be spread as a 

 mulching among the Carrots when the Lettuces 

 are marketed ; a barrow -load is sufficient quan- 

 tity for a frame of three lights. Cos Lettuces 

 should now be planted between the cloches on 

 the hot-beds ; ventilation is afforded by pressing 

 the soil with a triangular block of wood under 

 the rim of each cloche. The paths should be 

 filled with short and dry manure, made level 

 with the soil of the beds. 



, — Cauli- 



^-inch screen 



Crops in Unheated Fra 



flowers should be planted without delay, if the 

 work has not been done already. Ventilation 

 should be afforded the " Passion " Lettuces 

 during bright days, and the quantity of fresh air 

 increased gradually. It is essential to cover all the 

 lights and cloches with mats whenever frost is 

 apparent. Sudden changes in the temperature 

 are prejudicial to the welfare of the crops, 

 and often the damage is only noticed 12 or 15 

 days afterwards, when Lettuce leaves become 

 covered with brown spots. 



Melons. — The first batch of Melons is ready 

 to be potted in " 60 " pots. The plants may be 

 grown in a greenhouse till the middle of March, 

 when they should be placed on a hot-bed pre- 

 vious to tneir final planting. Successive sowings 

 of Melon seeds should be made weekly till the 

 end of March to have a supply of young and 

 sturdy plants always at hand. 



Tomatos. — Seeds of the main batch of 

 Tomatos for planting out-of-doors should be sown 

 in boxes. They will soon germinate, and the 

 seedlings may be afforded a little ventilation 

 when the cotyledons have spread out. 



Open-air Crops.— The plants of »■ Passion " 

 Lettuces should be set out at a distance of 9 or 

 10 inches apart. The Cos Lettuces should also 

 be planted as soon as possible. Select ground 

 that has been heavily manured, and plant at 

 14 to 16 inches apart. Spinach may be sown 

 broadcast as an inter-crop, as it does not interfere 

 with the growth of the Lettuces. We sow 

 Radishes broadcast by themselves. The ground 

 about spring Cabbages that were planted in the 

 autumn should receive a good hoeing whenever 

 the soil is dry. Onions and Spinach sown in 

 the autumn will also be benefited by stirring 

 the soil about their roots at the earliest oppor- 

 tunity. 



THE ORCHID HOUSES. 



By J. Collier, Gardener to Sir Jeremiah Colman, Bart., 



Gatton Park, Surrey. 



Management of the Houses. — At this 

 season of the year Orchids generally require 

 very careful attention in the matter of ventilat- 

 ing and shading. The growths and leaves that 

 are now developing are very tender, and are soon 

 scorched and disfigured if exposed to bright sun- 

 shine. Discretion must be exercised in the 

 use of the blinds. It is advisable to be on 



the safe side, by not unduly exposing valuable 

 plants to the sun's influence; at the same time 

 the blinds should not be allowed to remain down 

 longer than is really necessary. Already the 

 warmth from the sun has, on several occasions, 

 had the effect of raising the temperatures of the 

 houses higher than is necessary for many of the 

 occupants. Cold winds oftimes alternate with 



bright sunshine, the external temperature bein" 

 perhaps only 40° or even lower. Under these 

 conditions it is not advisable to admit freeh air 

 in sufficient quantities to keep down the tem- 

 peratures. On such occasions use the blinds. 

 When the outside temperature rises to over 45° 

 the amount of ventilation may be increased and 

 shade afforded with discretion. Admit the air 

 through the ventilators under the stages, if pos- 

 sible, on the side of the house that is most 

 sheltered from the wind. These remarks apply 

 more especially to the cooler houses, containin 

 such plants as Odontoglossums, Masdevallias, 

 Oncidiums and cool-growing Cypripediums. Th 

 Cattleya and intermediate houses will only re- 

 quire shading for an hour or so during the middle 

 of the day. Any of the inmates of these houses 

 that require more shade should be placed at one 

 end, and be shaded independently. Many 

 occupants of the East Indian house, such a 

 Phalaenopsis, Bulbophyllum, Cirrhopetalum, 

 Angraecum and the warm-growing Cypripediums 

 will require protection from the sun. Bollea, 

 Pescatorea, Warsczewiczella and the small-grow- 

 ing Zygopetalums should be shaded at all timss. 



Cattleyas. — The autumn and early-winter 



flowering Cattleyas, both species and hybrids 

 including C. labiata and its varieties ; C. Bow 

 ringiana, C. Mantinii, C. Wendlandii, C. Porti.u 

 C. Ashtonii, C. Pittiana, C. Fabia, C. Clarkia 

 and others that have been resting since flower- 

 ing, are developing new roots. Vigorous plant> 

 that require larger pots should be attended to. 

 If the rooting material is .still in a good condi- 

 tion, the plants may be shifted at once into 

 larger pots, but specimens in sour soil should 

 have all the old compost shaken away, dead roots 

 cut off, and all useless pseudo-bulbs removed, 

 as these will rob the plant of nourishment, and 

 necessitate the use of larger pots than would be 

 otherwise needed. Strong-growing and vigorous 

 rooting kinds should be afforded more roothu 

 space than those of a weaker habit. 



Thunia. — Plants of Thunia should be re- 

 potted annually, and the work should be done as 

 soon as they have commenced to grow. A suit 

 able compost consists of two-thirds rich, fibrous 

 loam, broken roughly and with all the small 

 particles removed and one-third dried cow 

 manure, adding some half-decayed Oak leaves, 

 a little chopped Sphagnum-moss, with crushed 

 crocks and charcoal. Place a layer of crocks 

 about 1 inch deep in the bottom of the pot for 

 drainage, and cover the crocks with a layer of 

 Sphagnum-moss. Place three pseudo-bulbs in a 

 6-inch pot. Pot moderately firmly, placing the 

 bases of the bulbs on the compost and securing 

 the pseudo-bulb firmly to a neat stick. Afford 

 the plants a light position in a warm house, and 

 water them sparingly till they are well rooted. 

 The foliage should be syringed whilst tbe plants 

 are growing actively, as Thunias are subject to 

 the attacks of red spider. At this stage water 

 may be afforded the roots freely. 



PLANTS UNDER GLASS. 



By Thomas Stevenson, Gardener to E. Mocatta, Esq.. 



Woburn Place, Addlestone, Surrey. 



Chrysanthemums. — Early - rooted plants 

 of Chrysanthemums should be ready for repot- 

 ting. If rooted singly in thumb pots, receptacles 

 4 inches in diameter (54's) are the most 

 suitable, but if two or three have been rooted m 

 the same pot large 60 pots should be selected. 

 Pot firmly, using a rich, friable compost com- 

 posed of loam, leaf-mould, sand, and woca 

 ashes, more or less of the sand and wood asms 

 according to the nature of the loam. A lo*> 

 span-roofed house provided with plenty ol sia 

 ventilators is the most suitable structure tor 

 Chrysanthemums at this season of the year. i 

 plants grow harder in such a glass-house than « 

 frames, although the latter are often US ^V ' 

 the purpose. The plants will do very well m 

 cold frame provided that plenty of space i- 

 allowed between the plants. Keep the atmospn-i 

 moderately close after potting to prevent u 

 foliage from flagging, whilst light sprayings in ^ 

 morning and first thing after dinner on an l 

 days will help them in this respect. A * 

 after the potting the roots should be g r0 *!^ 

 freely; fresh air may then be admitted, ana ^ 

 amount increased gradually till the lignt ^ 

 removed entirely on very fine days. Later i 

 batches of plants should be seen to, remou» 

 them from the propagating frame as soon as 



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