332 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
April 18; 1905. 
WORK OF THE WEEK. 
The Kitchen Garden. 
Potatos -—The main crops ought now to be planted as soon 
as possible, and providing the sets have been properly treated 
as previously advised the growths made will be stout and 
sturdy, and if a reasonable amount, of care is taken when 
placing them, in the ground these will, in all probability, yield 
better crops than those planted at an early date. Far too 
often sufficient care is not exercised in so doing, especially so 
on heavy, retentive soils. I am fully convinced that the little 
extra trouble incurred in careful planting will be amply repaid, 
whether on a. large or small scale. I never advise or practise 
hihhing them in on such land ; by far the best method is to 
take out small trenches the necessary depth with the spade, and 
cover in as liglitly as. possible with some of the. driest and best 
top soil available ; and when extra good tubers are required for 
exhibition some specially-prepared material, such as good leaf 
soil, old Mushroom-bed manure and wood ashes should be used, 
placing a small layer in the trenches before, planting and care¬ 
fully covering the sets with the same material. Another fatal 
mistake often made is not allowing sufficient space either be¬ 
tween the sets, or rows.; particularly does this apply to all 
strong-growing main crop varieties. Allow a. distance of 
2 ft. G in. between the rows, and 22 in. to 2 ft. between the 
tubers, and, unless the land is in a perfectly dry condition— 
which is very unlikely this season—thin boards should be used 
for working on. 
It is a. good plan to make a mark down the centie 1 of tlie 
rows, as by so doing the ground can be lightened and cleaned 
from weeds if necessary before the growths appear. 
There are new such a large number of varieties to choose 
from, many of which are practically worthless except for 
appearances, that for whatever purpose, these are required the 
hist and most important thought should be quality. I have 
always held that in making awards at exhibitions quality 
ought always to be taken into consideration. I am fully awaie 
that seine kinds which are useless m some localities and on 
some soils do well in others, but there are many which, when 
grown under the most, favourable conditions, are not fit. for 
table use. 
Among the very best for main crop use. and generally to 
be relie cf on is Windsor Castle, which, both for quality, appear¬ 
ance and cropping is hard to beat; Supreme, Snowdrop, and 
Carltcmian are also good. . 
Early varieties which were planted on warm boideis during 
last month must now be watched for, and it will be advisable 
to keep the growths covered with soil or seme othei protecting 
material whenever frost is likely to. occur, for not only does it 
mean a severe check when once, injured by frost, if ever so little, 
but the yield will also suffer much in consequence. 
Mushrooms.— Maintain a cool, even temperature in the 
Mushroom house, excessive fire heat being fatal to the produc¬ 
tion of good Mushrooms. Any beds which have been in beai- 
iug for some time and show signs of distress will be. much 
benefited if a good drenching of farmyard manure-water is 
given in a tepid state. Beds which were made up m the open 
late last autumn and thoroughly covered with long stable litter 
should now be' coming into full bearing. The precise date at 
which these open-air beds will commence to- produce Mush¬ 
rooms cannot be given, as they vary considerably respecting 
this.; but one thing is practically certain, providing the 
material lias been properly prepared, the beds well and firmly 
made, and the spawn good, though one may have to wa.it some 
months for the crop, there need be little fear as to tlie ultimate 
results We have had such beds, commence to bear m April, 
and continue to. do so all through the summer. The covering 
material should be. frequently changed, and replenish it with 
fresh long litter from the stable, the ammonia from winch is 
just, the kind of stimulant required. 
Prepare and make up beds under north walls on the coolest 
site available. These often prove of immense value during 
Cardoons.- —Though these are not universally grown, they 
are nevertheless in much demand in some large establishments. 
Trenches should now be prepared much in the same way as 
for Celery, and tilled up nearly level with good half-decayed 
manure, on to'which the finest of the soil taken from the 
trenches should be placed. Towards the end of the month the 
seed should be sown. A very large percentage will run to 
flower if put in too early. E. Beckett. 
Aldenham House Gardens, Elstree. 
Hardy Trees and Shrubs. 
Ornamental Climbers. —These play an important part in 
gardens, either for covering walls, pergolas, or pillars in the 
shrubbery, and when judiciously used are both interesting and 
extremely beautiful, especially for the latter purpose, as they 
help considerably to break up tlie monotony of the shrubbery 
borders, and form veiy pleasing features, whether grown foi 
their ornamental flowers or the beauty of their foliage. This 
is the. best month of the whole year for planting them, and 
both for utility and appearance there is nothing more suitabh 
as supports than stout Larch poles, of course leaving the bark 
on them. These should be placed firmly in tlie ground a good 
depth and made secure by placing three struts of the same 
material at equal distances round it, which also adds, to the 
appearance by forming a, kind of base for the pillars. Should 
tlie soil be of an unsuitable nature a mixture should be pit- 
pared, and should consist of good turfy loam chopped lint, 
three parts; well decayed manure, one part ; and suffieiem 
road grit or old mortar rublble to keep it open. At least one 
barrow-load to each should be used. 
Among those which will be. found very suitable for the pur¬ 
pose are Akeibia quinata, Polygonum baldscliuaniouni, Clematis 
of sorts, among the most beautiful being Countess of On slow, 
Duchess of Albany, and Duchess of York, which are always 
much admired when in flower, and remain in great beauty foi 
a long time. This is probably the- best- way of growing these 
beautiful varieties. The. various kinds of Honeysuckle are ex¬ 
tremely handsome grown in this manner, especially Lonicera 
Periclymemum, L. japonica, j. aureo-reticulata-, and L. parvi- 
ficra,, their delightful fragrance always being much appreciated. 
Some of the most beautiful varieties of Ivies are also well 
suited for this purpose, especially the best golden-leaved kinds, 
a,s by fully exposing" them in this way they colour most 
brightly. 
Last, but not least, are the strong .varieties of garden Hoses 
a few of the most beautiful and conspicuous being the well 
known Crimson Rambler, Pink Roamer, The Dawson, Lon^ 
worth Rambler, Felicite Perpetue, Carmine Pillar-, Singh 
White, Leuchtstern, Aglaia, and the beautiful hybrid Brier 
raised by the late Lord Penzance. 
The best mode of training these is to use fine French win 
nails and tie the growths to these with neat twine as they 
require it. When once they become thoroughly established 
and the poles well covered, except an annual pruning, tying i 
the young growths, and occasional syringing® with insecticicl 
to keep them free from insect pests, they will occasion rei, 
little further trouble. Complete, the pruning uid training a 
established plants in whatever position they may be, aii' 
attend to tying in the young growths of Clematis and siuril i|j 
plants before they- become, entangled, and any which an 
apparently starved for w’ant ot feeding should hare a- thoioug 
mulching of good manure and chopped loam in equal propoi 
tionsi • , 
Hollies.' —From now until the. end of the present piopth is ta 
most favourable time, for transplanting all kinds of Holin', 
either large or small, and if the operation is carefully perform e 
no harmful effects will accrue. Lift with good balls of soil, an 
when placing in the new position shake the finest soil 10UI 1 
the roots and give a good mulching with rotten manure- 
the case of big specimens', these should be securely staked an 
tied. Syringe freely in dry weather, but do not. saturate, t 1 
roots, this being the cause of many failures: Complete t ' 
summer. 
