March. 1914. 



THIi: GARDEN AND FIELD. 



445 



Carnations. 



The next two months include 

 what is probably the best time of 

 the whole year for plantinjj carna- 

 tions nnder ordinary pirden condi- 

 tions and the earlier the prepara- 

 tion of the bed in which they arc 

 to urow is completed the better. 

 We do not moan that the carna- 

 tion, even of the most hisrhly bred 

 exhibition strains, is fastidious as 

 io soil requirements. It will £jTO_w 

 in almost pure sand, and also in 

 heavy clav, but the nearer we g«t 

 to the happy medium, between 

 the.se two extremes, the more 

 succes.sful will onr carnation ^_ow- 

 insr be. There is just two points 

 which the carnation certainly ob- 

 jects to— stasrnant air and sodden 

 frround— the remedy is easy, where 

 it is possible avoid plantinj^ near 

 hed"Ts, and if the frround is badly 

 drained, this must be altered. 

 Without makinq- the soil too rich, 

 which does not favor the produc- 

 tion of the best flowers, it should 

 be reasonably fertile. If new na. 

 tural manure only is available, it 

 shonld be dup- into the second spit 

 and will not then darnajre the 

 voune crrowincr roots. If it is cold, 

 and well rotted, it is best incor- 

 porated with the soil throu<yhout 

 the bed. A layer two inches deep 

 of this class of material, well and 

 f^eeply du?: in, will be sufficient 

 for ordinary Purposes, or a dust- 

 in? of superphosphate, or perhaps 

 bonedust will be a suitabfe equiva- 

 lent. Since the carnation must 

 have lime to do its best, in the 

 rather unusual absence of this in- 

 crredient, it should be supplied at 

 the rate of three or four ^ood 

 donblp handfuls to the snuare yard, 

 but should not be applied at the 

 same time as the manurinc; is done. 

 Where the situation is low, and 

 thedrainasre not very free, it is a 

 o-nod plan to raise the bed some- 

 what above the general level. 



Clairville Nursery. 



Except in cold, wet, and exposed 

 situations, which in any case are 

 not suited to oramrc <^rowinij, the 

 autumn plantinjr of citrus is be- 

 cominsx more and more common. 

 The absolute best time durinjr the 

 next two or three months, will de- 

 pend on the season, whether it is 

 an early or late one. What the 

 planter wants to aim at is, as 

 much warmth in the "ground as pos- 

 sible without too mnch of it in the 

 atmosphere— in any case it should 

 not be so delayed that the ground 

 becomes cold, with the result that 

 the newlv-planted trees merely ex- 

 ist. The important point is that 

 root errowth shall be active, and 

 the tree well established before 

 winter. In successful fruit grow- 

 iti"- a o-ood deal depends on the 

 nursery treatment of the trees ; 

 this is perhaps especially so in the 

 case of all citrus varieties. A good 

 start means a lot. Fortunately 

 South Australian nurser^imen are 

 fully alive to this. Visitors to the 

 extensive nurseries at Hectorville 

 wall be impressed with the fine 

 condition of the block of many 

 varieties which Mr. Pike has raised 

 for this season's planting. Whe- 

 ther he is fTOwino- a standard 

 variety like the Washington Navel, 

 Siletta, St. Michael, etc., by the 

 thousand, or one of the newer sorts 

 by the hundreds, he puts the same 

 amount of skilled supervision into 

 the work so that buyers either in 

 small or lar^-e nunntities may be 

 assured that as far as a " Good 

 Start " is concerned, everything 

 possible has been done fof them. 

 Tntendino- planters should commu- 

 nicate with IMr. Pike, if thev have 

 pot already done so. and place 

 their orders at an early date, for 

 laro-e as has been the provision 

 made for the past few years, he 

 has on more than one occasion got 

 very near the "Sold Out" mark. 



SADDLE AND HARNESS MAKER. 

 Grindery Stocked. 



Comei^l69, Hindh.-y and Morphett 

 Streett. 



Special terms to Country Clients. 

 Satisfaction Guaranteed. 



and in some varieties over it. The 

 early bird gets the hest worm-— or 

 at all events he gets the choice oi 

 all the worms— substitute trees for 

 worms and you have the position 

 of the man w^ho is going to plant 

 trees this season. The lesson is 

 obvious. 



♦ • 



In the Land of the Setting 

 Sun. 



Some Yankee nurseryman, 'tis said, 

 Claims to have scored a floral 

 coup, 



For he successfully has " bred " 

 A Rose indubitably blue ! 



Which like the short-lived " green 

 Carnation," 



Will cause, he hopes, a wide sensa- 

 tion 1 



But we, for our part, cannot he 

 Approvers of the skill he's 

 shown ; 



Confound that nurseryman ! say 

 we. 



Why can't he leave the Rose 

 alone ? 



Bluel Rose, forsooth ! Why not 



Black Lily 

 Or something even still more silly? 



Far in the end this meddling crank, 

 Resolved his cleverness to show. 



May outrage Nature by a prank, 

 Past which e'en he can't hope to 

 go — 



Yes, he may stagger us, the var- 

 let ! 



With Violets of a vivid scarlet ! 



—Truth. 



♦ 



To enlist the aid of boys and 

 girls in improxdng and ornament- 

 ing the school or home grounds 

 meius to cultivate esprit de corns 

 which ma^'es them more loyal to 

 the school and its interpsts. The 

 joy coming from helping make 

 thiniTs go^ in the little republic, 

 will lead to future lovc't- ^'ii the 

 broader citizenship of community, 

 state, and nation. 



ALBERT O. PIKE, 



(Late GAMKAIT BROTHERS). 



Clairville INarsery, Hectorville. 



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

 speciality. Send for illustrated Catalogue. 



■elegraphic Address— Pike, Hectorville, Payneham. Telephone-Cen- 

 tral 2768. 



