436 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



March, 1914 



Get seed in early and have seed- 

 linjis ready by the time the first 

 autumn rains arrive. By tlois means 

 a lonsr stretch of cool, damp, wea- 

 ther is secured for the younor 

 plants, and some months of bloom 

 l)efore thev are cut oft by the hot 

 \%-inds of early spring. 



Sweet peas planted on the east- 

 ern side of a fence, running north 

 and south, \\-ill produce the earliest] 

 flowers. For cool localities spring) 

 sowing gives the best results. 



Seeds planted now will require a 

 coverine of som.e sort to protect 

 the surface from the fierce rays of 

 the sun, and to prevent the too 

 rapid evaporation of moisture. 



Take cuttings of all perennials 

 von wish to propagate, such as 

 pelargoniums — regal, show, and 

 zonale — pentstemons, carn.itions, 

 and various evergreen shrubs. 



Save the .seed of sunflower, hun- 

 nemannia, delphinium, gaillardia, 

 calliopsis, and asters. Select the 

 finest flowers on the plants for 

 this nurnose, and mark them with 

 a calored niece of wool. It will be 

 found advisable sometimes to tie 

 the seed-pod or head up in ;i nie.ce 

 of tissue paper, to prevent its be- 

 inp^ lost when it falls. 



The beds that are to receive 

 bulbs should be prepared at once, 

 Take care that the manure is very 

 old and rotten, and turn the plots 

 over two or three times before 

 plpTit'n"-. to ensure the soil being 

 suffidentlv granulated and mel. 

 lowed. 



Boueainvilleas grow and flower 

 more freelv when planted facing 

 the north or north-east. Thev do 

 not reonire pruning after flowering, 

 onlv to cut awav nn.sisfhtlv 

 PTowths. Boufrainvilleas grow best 

 whf-n planted in a rich, satidy 

 loam, but will grow in anv ordin- 

 ar\' "-ardun soil where there is good 

 drainage. 



Tulips wnll thrive m anv good 

 ordinary irarden soil — ^a cool, loamy 

 soil for preferenice. To do them 

 well prepare a bed for them. Tf 

 soil is light and sandy dig in 

 plentv of himpv old cow manure, 

 and if procurable, some good stiff 

 loam or clav ; mix well bv turning 

 with a earden fork. Procure only 

 strong selected bulbs and plant 

 in rows not less than ^ in. under 

 ground. When growth is looking 

 stronrf- and foliage is two or three 

 inches above r^round add super- 

 phosphate or bonedust, or both 

 mixed, as a top dressing, just a 

 nice .sprinkling, and press the soil 

 firmlv about the roots. Mulch with 



stable manure as hot weather ap- 

 proaches. The m.ost important 

 point in tulip culture is to ripen 

 the bulbs slowlv, and lift them 

 from the ground directly the foli- 

 age has died down ; lay them in 

 travs and place in a cool store- 

 room, or when quite ripe store in 

 pots or boxes of dry sand. Select 

 a nice sheltered position for the 

 special bed, or provide means for 

 sheltering by flowering time. If 

 ground lies low the bed should be 

 drained. A narrow bed, say six 

 feet (6 ft.l wide, rows running 

 lensrthways, is the most conveni- 

 ent. 



At this time of the year of 

 course there is no doubt that im- 

 ported spring flowering bulbs 

 .should be planted as soon as re- 

 ceived. We remember that Mr. 

 Peter Barr recommended immedi- 

 ate planting at whatever time 

 thev were received. A cool shadv 

 position should be selected if avail- 

 able or artificial shade be pro%nded 

 durinsr the hot months. If the 

 soil is kept iust moist the bulbs 

 will bloom the first year and when 

 once acclimatised they will flower 

 freelv in their right season. A local 

 orower told us that he had bet- 

 ter results by cutting the flower 

 stems as soon as the bulbs show- 

 ed the first sien of colour. Bulbs 

 so treated srave particularly fine 

 flowers the next season. 



A successful grower of sweet 

 peas, writing to " The Garden," 

 savs : — It is, of course, necessary 

 that the soil shall be in perfect 

 mechanical condition, • and that 

 there .shall be an abundant supnlv 

 of readilv available food, not, for 

 preference, in the form of natural 

 manure near the roots. Place the 

 seeds not less than .t, inches apart 

 on a firm, level base, and cover the 

 dark brown and black seeds with 

 half an inch of mould, but simplv 

 "ross the white and spotted seeds 

 into the surface. When the time 

 arrives for thinninfif, remove plants 

 as mav be necessaxv to leave the 

 distance 6 inches. This will not 

 conduce to the production of 

 bloom's with .stems a couple of feet 

 in Icnfth : but that will not mat- 

 ter, as the obiect of culture is not 

 exhibition blooms, but ])lcntv for 

 home decoration. The popular ob- 

 iection to sowing Sweet Peas with 

 a y\e\v to transplantation is that 

 thev cea.se "Towinsr entirely for 

 some davs when nut out ; but this 

 is not the case when proper care is 

 taken in handling the roots and in 

 choosinn- a time when the soil is 

 in an ideal state for such an im- 

 portant operation, and, needless to 

 say, it mu.st be fertile. It is early 



to sow vet but quite time to think 

 about prc]iaring the ground. 



The question of the space to be 

 allowed from plant to plant is of 

 great importance, for one of the 

 commonest mistakes in Sweat Pea 

 culture is to grow them too close- 

 Iv together. Where they are over- 

 crowded thev produce neither 

 quantity nor quality of blossoms, 

 and^arc never satisfactory. Some 

 exhibitors give i8 inches for each 

 plant, but this is onlv advisable 

 where everything is specially suit- 

 able for their requirements, or 

 where there is plenty of room. A 

 foot apart is a fair distance, and 

 six inches may be looked upon as 

 the absolute minimum. The dis- 

 tances named refer to rows, but 

 where clumps are grown the dan- 

 ri^ers of over-crowding are just as 

 great. 



In its native home the Aristolo- 

 chia, known as the Pelican flower, 

 must be a beautiful sight. The 

 leaves are large and heart-shaped, 

 the stem climbs to a height of 

 from 15 feet to 20 feet. Some of 

 the lar<rer flowers often measure 15 

 inches or t6 inches aioross, and 20 

 inches to 22 inches in length, with 

 a tail upwards of 3 feet in length. 

 This latter appendant forms a 

 convenient ladder for insects to 

 reach the flower. ' The inside of the 

 throat is lined with hairs turned 

 downwards, evidently to prevent 

 the escape of insects when once 

 inside. The mouth of the tube is 

 velvet^^ purple, the remainder of 

 the flower being creamy yellow, 

 mottled with purple. It does not 

 last lone when fully expanded, and 

 emits a rather obnoxious odour. 



Most heavv soils, if dug and 

 allowed to lie rough for a time, 

 are rendered friable and better 

 suited for seed-beds than when 

 newly dug, as, through beinp- light- 

 ly forked over and raked, the soil 

 breaks down into fine particles, 

 so that when the seeds are Sfiwn 

 the soil does not present much re^ 

 sistance to the delicate roots. 

 T/ieht sandy soils are auite the 

 best and easiest to deal with when 

 forming seed-beds, as they may be 

 dutr at any time except when ex- 

 tremely wet. No hard-and-fast 

 rules can be laid down respecting 

 soils, but as far as circumstances 

 will admit it should be ""'^t i'lt^ 

 the best iiossible tilth for seed- 

 sowincf. 



Australian florists (says an Kx- 

 chano-el do nothing special at Kas- 

 ter time to make their windows 

 attractive. They should take a 

 leaf out of the book of a Parisiaii, 

 or of an American florist, and 

 make a mild sensation in the Kas- 



