^630 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



July, 1913 



Plants Under Glass and 

 Shade. 



— The Greenliouse. — 



Bring in Azaleas, CainelUas and 

 advanced Cinerarias and Primulas 

 from the franres and shadehouses, 

 cleaning the foliage of the former 

 well before staging them. 



These with the aid of Clivias, 

 Zouale Pelargoniums, etc., will 

 help to make a display during, the 

 month. 



Coleuses and Iresines may be 

 kept alive through the winter 

 where the greenhouse has a warm 

 sunny aspect and great care is 

 taken not to give too much water. 

 The morning is the best time to 

 apply water to pot plants dur- 

 ing the unnter, as it allows them 

 to partially dry up by the return 

 of the cold of evening. 



Plenty of air should be admitted 

 during fine weather, but the venti- 

 lators should be closed early in the 

 afternoon so as to imi:)rison as 

 much of the sun's heat as possible. 



If aphides or greenfly appear 

 close up all apertures and fumi- 

 gate with tobacco waste or to- 

 bacco pajjer, always bearing in 

 mind that two weak doses are 

 more likely than one strong one 

 to destro\- the aphides with the 

 least injury to the plants. Sponge 

 the dust from off the leaves of 

 palms ' and other hardy, foliage 

 plants, using a little soft soap in 

 tei^id water. 



— The Shadehouse. — 



There is not much doing in this 

 department at present. Most of 

 the plants are at a standstill, and 

 only a little cleaning up can be 

 attempted. Beds may be roughly 

 dug up, and the old fronds of ferns, 

 and leaves of shrubs and climbers, 

 gathered up and burnt at once. 



Daphnes, Fuchsias, Violets, and 

 Palms make a fair show. 



Cinerarias, where; frosts are few, 

 may be hardened well in the shade- 

 house, but \\"ill require close watch- 

 ing to prevent the depredations of 

 slugs, snails, etc. 



Native Ferns will make a little 

 growth, and when their natural 

 habits are followed can be made 

 to grow very prettily. 



Sporelings should be saved, for 

 though they may be the same as 

 the parent Ferns, their constitu- 

 tions are generally of a more ro- 

 bust nature. 



— The Stovehouse. — . 



In the stovehouse the tempera- 

 ture must be maintained and 

 should not fall below 60 deg. on 

 the coldest night, as upon an even 

 temperature much of the success in 

 cultivating hothouse plants de- 

 pends. When making up the fires 

 at night always see that the tire- 

 bars are scraped, and no choking 

 by clinkers should be permitted. 



Now that the hose is almost en- 

 ticely laid aside, insects will in- 

 crease in the stovehouse, and 

 every attention should be paid to 

 keeping them down. Scales are the 

 most troublesome, as in most 

 heated houses fully half a dozen 

 species may be found. Resin wash 

 is about the best destroyer, but 

 care must be taken in testing vari- 

 ous plants. The simplest method 

 is to dip the plants into the solu- 

 tion, and then, after lying on one 

 side to drain, they are stood away 

 for a couple of days, then taken 

 outside, when a small keen jet of 

 water from the hose will remove 

 all the scales quite easily. Red 

 spiders are easily got under by 

 painting liquid sulphur on to the 

 hot flues as fumes are generated by 

 the heat and the mites eliectually 

 destroyed. 



Specimen plants should not be 

 jjotted just now, unless it is a 

 matter of compulsion ; and great 

 watchfulness should be exercised to 

 prevent any plants standing under 

 a drip from the rafters. 



All plants which grow up from 

 the centres — Palms, Pandanus, Dra- 

 caenas, etc., require constantly 

 turning upside down during the 

 winter, to prevent the lodgment of 

 water within the leaf folds. 



Coleus, Fittonias, Rex Begonias, 

 etc., may be propagated from cut- 

 tings ; and Impatiens, Hawkeri, 

 and Sultani should be potted on, 

 as they make excellent speciinens 

 in warm moist corners. 



Cuttings should be rooted in 

 sand of Alternantheras, Plectran- 

 thus, Iresines, for potting up and 

 hardening in spring, prior to being 

 used as bedding stuff. 



Liquid manure can be given free- 

 ly of a weak strength to most 

 growing plants, and Cypripediums 

 in bloom will be benefited by it. 



Keep Poinsettias close to the 

 light, and do not give very much 

 water. 



A pretty dwarf planti which 

 should receive more attention by 

 those owning a hothouse, is the 

 bright blue Saintpaulia. 



— Pits and Frames. — 



Continue potting on Cinerarias 

 and Calceolarias as the roots reach 

 the sides of the pots. Keep them 

 well I watered, but try to strike the 

 happy medium, and never sodden 

 the pots. 



Fumigate with tobacco when 

 aphides first appear. 



Show, liegal. Fancy, Bi-color, 

 and Tri-color Pelargoniums should 

 now be making good progress, and 

 to keep them sturdy they must be 

 kept close up to the glass, and 

 occasional doses of liquid manure 

 will benefit them, as well also a 

 syringing overhead at intervals. 

 Admit plenty of fresh air into the 

 frames. Any Zonales which are 

 coming into bloom should be taken 

 into the greenhouse. 



Cuttings may be made of Fuch- 

 sias, Pelargoniums, Hydrangeas, 

 Verbenas, Carnations, Pentstem'- 

 ons, Marguerites, and perennial Cal- 

 ceolarias for successional plant- 

 ings. 



Any young seedlings which have 

 been pricked out into pits to grow 

 on a little before being removed to 

 the open borders, should be kept 

 free of weeds, and receive aU the 

 light possible. 



4 



A lady asked her gardener why 

 the weeds always out-grew the 

 flowers. " Madam," answered he, 

 " the soil is inother of the weeds 

 Init only step-mother of the 

 flowers. 



ALBERT O. PIKE, 



(Late GAMEAU BROTHERS. 



Olairville INursery, Hectorville. 



All kinds of fruit trees for sale. Citrus trees, I/emons and Oranges a 

 speciality. Send for illustrated Catalogue. 



Telegraphic Address — Pike, Hector ville, Payneham. Telephone — Cen- 

 tral 2768. 



