627 



growths, exhausted and worn-out 

 wood, must be removed, retainmi^ 

 onlv the vijrorous growths. It is 

 gtnerallv advisable to always 

 prune to four or live eves or buds, 

 so as to have subsec,uent stroujj; 

 growths, alwavs prunin<j into the 

 previous season's wood. Spindly 

 jrrowths, espcciallv in the centres 

 of the bushes, should \ye removed, 

 the plants bein<; trained with an 

 open and angular habit. 



PRESENT PLANTING. 



Continue planting roses, decidu- 

 ous trees, shrubs, and climbers ; 

 thlose with evergreen foliage may 

 also be put in, bxit usually get 

 away with a better start ii left 

 till the ground is a little warm. 

 Having planted a tree or shrub 

 do not consider that there is no- 

 thing further to be done. See to 

 the staking if necessary. Give 

 water, even if the work is being 

 done on a wet day. 'Afterwards 

 see that the soil around the plants 

 does not cake and that weeds are 

 given no opportunity of compet- 

 ing with and perhaps choking 

 them. A little early training, and 

 rubbing out of imnecessarv shoots 

 may save some waste of energy. 

 Plant firmlv and trim the roots 

 \vith a sharp knife if anv :are\ fray- 

 ed or broken. One is almost 

 ashamed to repeat this advice so 

 often but, a good besritming often 

 makes a srood etidinsr and at least 

 half the plants put in each vear are 

 doomed from the beginning. 



WATTLES. 



For a .quick-g-rowin<r, ornamental 

 flowering n^ti'<'e shrub, the Coota- 

 mundra wattle ('Aca'^i^ Eailevana) 

 cannot be surpassed ; it attains a 

 heio-ht of 15ft. or more, but may 

 be kePt lower by iudicious prim- 

 ing. In A. elata the foliap^e is hand- 

 some, the plant is a fast grower, 

 and if allowed, will attain a height 

 of 20ft. and upwards ; its flowers 

 are a pale vellow. 



CUTTING HEDGES. 



Most hedges may be cut with 

 shears but with! laree leaved plants 

 such as pittosporum undiulatum, 

 hollies and coprosma the best ef- 

 fect is obtained by using secateurs 

 and trimming rather than shear- 

 ing. By this method there will 

 be no dead and dving leaves to 

 make the hedge unsightly. 



ABOUT LIME. 



Where the soil is heavy or sour, 

 or where S'orrel is plentiful, the 

 garden should be given a heavy 

 dressing of fresh lime, giving a fair 

 dusting all over the siirface. Lime 



should not be used in conjunction 

 with leaves, garden debris, leaf- 

 mould, stable manure, or any other 

 organic matter u.sed for lunnus. 

 These shoidd be first disposed, of 

 by digging well into the soil ; then 

 shortlv afterwards a top-<lressing 

 of lime may be given. 



CLEARING UP. 



In cleaning up the gardens, all 

 lighit litter and dead foliage shoidd 

 either be dug in, or, better still, 

 it should be placed in an out of 

 the way corner to form a compost 

 heap. Leafmould is especially use- 

 ful in an}^ garden, and where such 

 plants as Azaleas, Rhododendrons, 

 Lilium.s, etc., are grown, or for pot 

 plant work, it is exceedingly valu- 

 able. In forming the compost 

 heap, no medium whatever should 

 be added to help the rotting down 

 of the leaves, unless it be a little 

 sand. Any chemical added will 

 render the mould unsuitable for its 

 special objects. 



SPRING FLOWERING SHRUBS. 



If the spring flowering shrubs 

 .should have not previously been 

 pruned, they should be allowed to 

 remain until after the next flower- 

 ing. This especially applies to 

 such plants as Spireas, Philadel- 

 phns (Mock Orange), Deutzia, and 

 other early flowering shrubs. To 

 prune" these now would mean the 

 certain loss of a great proportion 

 of their flowers. 



FRAGRANT CINNAMON FERN. 



A correspondent of the American 

 " Fern Bulletin " points out that 

 Osmunda cinnamonea glandulosa is 

 distinctly aromatic. If bruised 

 early in the day it is of a spicy 

 fragrance. The evidence appears to 

 be ag-ainst thie suggestion that to 

 this fragrance the Fern owes the 

 origin of the name cinnamon. The 

 editor observes that most elands 

 on plants secrete a volatile oil 

 and that nearly all such oils are 

 odoriferous. A large number of 

 these are what we call fragrant, 

 but many are quite otherwise. 



PRUNING SHRUBS. 



In priming, the shrubs may be 

 well thinned out, especially remov- 

 ing any Weak upright, or old flow- 

 ering growths ; keep the shrub al- 

 ways at an outward growth, in- 

 clining to a broad bushy type, 

 instead of to an upright habit. By 

 this means, the lower resrions vnll 

 always be furnished with good 

 growth. Shrubs and trees of all 

 descriptions should never be al- 

 lowed, to become too crowded ; 

 they require to be opened, so as to 



allow sunlight and air into the 

 interior, where it is most '' needed. 

 This is one means by wludi thi:; 

 class of ]dants may be kcjrt heal- 

 thy and free from disease. Very 

 few shrubs resent pruning, and the. 

 majority of them, including Aus- ' 

 tralian .shrubs, such as Acacias, 

 are very amenable to the pruning 

 knife. 



BANKSIA ROSES. 



For covering a wall, trellis, or 

 shady arbour, there are not many 

 things to beat these beautiful 

 roses. They like any amount of 

 sun and will enjoy a north or 

 western aspect which might prove 

 too exposed for more tender vari- 

 eties. 'They may be grown quite 

 easily from cuttings of ripened 

 wood put in now. 



SPIREAS. 



Although the individual blooms 

 of the Spireas are of moderate 

 .size, they are produced in such 

 numbers that a large plant has a 

 beautiful appearance. They can 

 be propagated from cuttings, but 

 plants of some size can be obtain- 

 ed in a much shorter period by 

 layering the branches. Of course, 

 when a very large number are re- 

 quired it is necessary to be con- 

 tent with small twigs for cuttings, 

 but in order to get large plants as 

 quickly as possible, good sized 

 branches may be layered in some 

 fresh soil, which will be all the 

 better for containing leaf mould 

 and sand. The branches) should be 

 cut on the lower side in the same 

 wav as a Carnation, and this will 

 hasten the emission of roots. The 

 soil should be frequently watered 

 if the weather should prove dry at 

 the time of layering. Most of the 

 varieties are white flowered, and 

 as the flowers come somewhat in 

 advance of the leaves, the white 

 appearance of the myriads of 

 flowers is seen to the best advan- 

 tage, as they make a conspicuous 

 object even when seen from a con- 

 siderable distance. The pink flow- 

 ered Spireas are less common, but 

 quite as beautiful. 



CARNATIONS. 



LANE'S NOVELTIES— STRONG 

 PLANTS NOW READY. 

 INSPECTION INVITED. 



Cut Flowers of all kinds always on 

 hand and cut to Order. 



J. O. LANE, 



NURSERYMAN, WALKER VILLE 



