THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



Ji'ebruary, 1914 



hrini^ all the satelitcs out topethtr. 

 Ptill your flowers in bud and 

 throw tluin into a tub of water to 

 await the settinjr nj). Five o'clock 

 in the morning is the l>est time of 

 day to {rather roses. Then the 

 flowers are onlv an her or two 

 over their beantv sleep. 



Gladioli may be lifted just as 

 soon as the flower spikes have 

 dried out. The bulb is hardy full 

 grown, but it is quite big enough 

 for taking up, if you are anxious 

 to use the ground for anv other 

 purpose. If not pushed for room 

 let the plants dry rights out. Don't 

 break the stem off until t'hev are 

 quite brown. Sow any seed that 

 you have at once. Provide a verv 

 rich light bed to get as much size 

 as possible into the sieedling 

 bulbs. 



]\Iany of the newer lawn mowers 

 arc made to cut closer by adjust- 

 ing the bottom blade against 

 which the cutters revolve. On each 

 end of this pieice of steel vou will 

 find two screws. Manipulate these 

 to suit vour purposes. One brings 

 the blade closer to the cutter, 

 while the other widens the gap. 



People who own cows might 

 tether them tip. or keep them in a 

 paddock all night, instead of al. 

 lowing them to wander roimd the 

 suburb, raiding gardens after dark. 

 It is hard to lose the whole of 

 one's flowers to a cow, or two and 

 a '' poddv " calf who u.suallv tram- 

 ple down a lot more than thev 

 eat. When vou find cows in vour 

 grounds — pound them ! 



American rosegrowers use 2'/ 

 tal)lesnoonfuIs of Paris green and 

 ^Ib. of brown sugar, to about a 

 barrel of water, as preventative 

 sprav airainst thrip on roses. Fre- 

 ouent .svrinTinfTS are given, be- 

 (nnnine with the first anpearance 

 of the btidp • and from' that right 

 on to tho flowerinrr. The Paris 

 freen poisons the foliage against 

 the insects. 



When men and women trarden for 

 love thev are not much off the 

 nath which lea'ds to real success 

 in life. Not the success which is 

 built of pound, shillinfs and nence, 

 but that more lastino- satisfaction 

 which sririno-s from the inner heart 

 where 'ill the best of the man and 

 womanhood lineers. 



Sow anv rindioli seed in ' rich, 

 liwht soil, and lot the voung S'ced- 

 linps have all the water and en- 

 couraeement they need. 



T^eaf-eating caterpillars are troub- 

 lesome. Arsenate of lead or Paris 



green in very weak solution will 

 clear the pests. 



Hvdrangeas arc still holding 

 their lovely blue and pink heads 

 together. Don't let them wilt for 

 the want of a good soaking. The 

 dry weather will end their flower- 

 in days quickly, if you are not 

 watchful. 



Carnations which have been lay- 

 ered, and those which have re- 

 cently been planted out, should be 

 looked after and watered regularly, 

 so as to get good flowering wood 

 for the winter blooming season. 

 Keep the ground open, and water 

 frequently. 



Poor quality bulbs are not as a 

 rule good flowers. Buy good 

 stock, and plump stock, 



Pansies can be kept in flower 

 from -Tune to .January, after which 

 thev are best taken out. 



A mixture made with Calvert's 

 carbolic soft soap is used success- 

 fullv by Kngli.sh rosarians against 

 mildew in roses. 



Gladioli bulbs should not be cut 

 away from the foliage until the 

 leaves are quite dr}'. Pack in dry 

 .sawdust rather than expose the 

 bulbs to the air. 



Carnations should not be over- 

 fed. As plants for forcinrr thev 

 are not good subiects. A good 

 steadv feedinp- such as can be 

 supplied bv old cow manure, but 

 no_ cramming, in what they re- 

 quire. 



Mr. J. H. Pemberton, writinir re- 

 cently to the " Gardeners' Chroni- 

 cle " on the subject of mildew, 

 says that wherever you find it 

 nersistentlv infectinpr the plants 

 you can be certain that the root 

 action I's defective. There is no- 

 thing like good cultivation and 

 stronrr feeding as a mildew preven- 

 tative. 



Tt is difficult to eet a competent 

 trardener. The man who knows 

 but little losps the plants through 

 ifrnorance, while here and there 

 ;i skilful but dishonest trardener 

 makes away with his emoloyer's 

 fi-oods for his own benefit. On 

 more than one occasion the same 

 complaint has been made. Un- 

 fortunately there are men in 

 every trade purposelv for all thev 

 can "make." A (rardener without 

 a heart for his plants is a worth- 

 If^s individual nt ;>tiv time. AcTd 

 dishonesty to his faiUno-s and you 

 have someone to avoid. 



Auriculas and Primulas. 



— The Auricula. — 



A very few years ag^ this flower 

 was very little known in Austra- 

 lia. Folks who knew it were im- 

 bued with the idea that the cli- 

 mate was quite unsuitable for it. 

 It is a plant that flourishes in 

 cold climates, certainly ; but here 

 one sees some very good speci- 

 mens. The first essential is suit- 

 able soil, and once one has master- 

 ed what sort this plant really re- 

 quires, the rest is fairly easy. 



— Suitable SoU. — 



If one possesses a woodshed 

 Tand the majority of folks do), one 

 can alvays muster a few buckets 

 of soil where perhap's one's fire- 

 wood has been deposited. The next 

 requisite is some old dry cow 

 cakes, which can generally be pro- 

 cured. I have many a time ob- 

 tained a small sack of these for 

 the modest sum of threepence ; and 

 just allowed them to lie in a comer 

 near the compost heap. If it is 

 warm weather they will soon dry 

 and be fit for breaking up and 

 mixing with the woody soil. Then 

 from the bottom of the compost 

 heap take some well-rotted leaf 

 manure and a few shovelfuls of 

 dear sand. Mix all well together 

 and let it lie for a few weeks, 

 turning it well over occasionally, 

 and it will soon be found ready for 

 one's auriculas ; and not only for 

 them, hut this particular soil will 

 be found suitable for primulas, 

 primroses, and diverse other plants, 

 Very sfood auriculas have been 

 grown from seed. This ?eed should 

 be planted in soil which has be*n 

 well prepared. If you are getting 

 a small cocoa box ready for seed, 

 make it slightly richer by putting 

 in extra leaf and cow manure. 



— Method of Sowing. — 



Auricula seed does not need 

 burying in the old-fashioned me- 

 thod, but rather sprinkling on the 

 surface of the small flat box. Then 

 a little fine sand is sprinkled over 

 it very sparsely. Water most ten- 

 derly. Directly the tiny green 

 heads appear, sprinkle a little 

 more fine sand, and when they 

 push their way through that 

 again, sprinkle some fine wood 

 ashes, well broken up and refined, 

 so as not to choke the little 

 seedlings. If the .seed, is planted 

 now, the little plants should be 

 ready for transferring to open 

 beds by the beginning of Augaist. 



