504 THE GARDENING WORLD. June 13, 1903. 
WORK OF THE WEEK. 
Hardy Trees and Shrubs. 
The warm, dry weather we are experiencing will be beneficial 
to the shrubberies, but on heavy soils the ground on the surface 
is beginning, to- crack, and where this is. the case many of the 
smaller trees and shrubs will need to- be looked after, by stirring 
the soil with the- hoe and giving a. good watering. To tho¬ 
roughly soak the ground this must be done three or four time-s. 
In the case of newly-planted shrubs, a good mulching will be 
a- great help, as this- keeps the roots, cool and moist. Insect- 
life is very plentiful this season, and must be watched for, 
and unless means are taken to prevent their ravages the 
appearance of the foliage will be considerably marred. The 
tips o'f young shoots which are infested with caterpillars should 
be pinched carefully, so as to- kill the. -insect, but not to damage 
the growths. Where green and black fly and aphis are in 
evidence a good syringing should be given with some reliable 
insecticide; this is best done in the evening and washed off 
next morning with clear water. Such shrubs as the purple and 
green-leaved Peaches which have any parts of the foliage 
affected with blisters., a disease which causes the leaves to curl 
up, should also be well syringed and the damaged portions 
picked off. 
The growths of all climbing plants should be kept tied in 
and regulated and another syringing with insecticide given, a,s. 
doing this- once will not suffice- to keep them clean throughout, 
the season ; also keep wall shrubs nailed in as they require it. 
A veny fine shrub for growing in this, position is Embohlirium 
coccineum, which was so well represented at the Temple Show 
last month, and all who- saw it could not fail to admire the 
beautiful orange-scarlet, tubular blossoms, which are produced 
in great profusion. It is- evergreen, and, though succeeding 
well in the more favoured parts of the country, it should, 
around London, be grown on a- warm wall and given slight pro¬ 
tection in winter. 
Pruning Laurels. —The proper way to prune Laurels un¬ 
doubtedly is to cut each shoot with a knife, but where these 
are grown in large masses- or hedges, the shears will have to 
be re-sorted to. To keep these evergreens in good condition 
and to give them a neat appearance pruning should be done 
twice annually. 
Prunus Pissardi or P. cerasifera atropurpurea. This 
purple-leaved Plum will have made a good growth by now, 
and if this season’s shoots are pruned back it will cause them 
to- break freely, and the bright purple young leaves- form a 
pleasing contrast to the deep purple of the older foliage. 
Bamboos.—Unless already done these should be given a 
good mulching of horse manure, and a soaking of farmyard 
liquid will prove of great help to them to. make a, free and 
healthy growth. 
Fabian a imbricata.— Though a. member of the Potato 
family, it- is not surprising that this evergreen shrub is often 
mistaken for a- Heath, so closely does- it resemble- in every way 
the Ericas. At the- present time its numbers of waxy, pure 
white flowers and neat habit make it one- of the prettiest shrubs 
we have. In this locality—-twelve miles north of London—it is 
perfectly hardy in an exposed position, but in colder districts 
it is necessary to- give it the protection of a wall. 
Ononis rotnndifolia. —Though introduced from Southern 
Europe as far back as 1570, this charming Rest Harrow is by 
no means- a common plant in gardens, yet- at the- present time 
it is most pleasing. It is- very desirable a-s a rock shrub or 
for the front, of the shrubbery border, and the flowers, rose- 
pink in colour, are produced very freely two or three on a stem. 
It succeeds in almost any soil or situation, and is of spreading 
rather than upright growth, not attaining to more than 1 ft. 
in height. Propagation can be effected by separating the 
roots, or fro-m seed. E. Thatcher. 
Aldenham House Gardens, Elstree, 
The Kitchen Garden. 
Celery. — Continue to plant out the successional sowings of 
this important crop as soon as the plants are large enough. 
Where room is no- object, by far the best plan is to grow all 
in single lines, though for the latest supplies veiy good results 
may be obtained by putting two rows in a trench, providing 
plenty of room is allowed between the plants. The red 
varieties generally are much to be preferred to- white kinds 
for spring use, and Major Clarke’s is one of the very best 
keeping sorts I know. Trenches may be got out between early 
rows of Peas-, providing these are being grown a good distance 
apart, and the sticks, may be left till the young Celery plants 
are started, which will provide sufficient shade to prevent them 
flagging. See- that the earlier plantings are kept well supplied 
both at the roots and overhead, and keep- the surface soil moved 
with the Dutch hoe. 
Leeks. —Continue to blanch these as they require it by 
placing longer collars of brown paper over them ; shorten 
back the tops and lightly damp overhead in early afternoon, 
and the roots must be kept in a moist condition. The later- 
sown plants will now be ready for planting. Very good Leeks 
may be grown for spring use by boring deep holes 1 ft. apart 
and dropping in the plant to the depth of the leaves, covering 
the roots- with fine soil, and these are easily blanched as they 
grow bv filling in from time to- time with a. little of the surface 
soil. 
Winter Greens. —Many of these will now be fit for planting 
in their permanent quarters, and every spare piece of ground 
should be filled up, and in case there is not sufficient- to-receive 
them, plant between Potato's.; by carefully keeping the haulm 
away from them, little harm will happen to either. 
Ridge Cucumbers. -—Plant, out- on well-prepared beds. These, 
when well grown, are unequalled for flavour during the sum me" 
months, and amply repay a- little extra attention. Choose a 
southern aspect, and, before planting, thoroughly fumigate to 
destroy all traces of green and black aphis, and if any spare 
handlights are at command, place these over them for a, week 
or two-, to give, the plants a. good start. At all times these 
should have copious supplies of water, both a,t the roots and 
overhead, and keep the fruit cut before they get too large. 
Maize or Indian Corn, now much in request in many 
establishments., which have, been raised in heat and pricked 
out in boxes, should now be planted on rich and well-prepared 
ground in the hottest part of the garden. Every encomage- 
ment should be given it. to make a- free, uninterrupted growth 
by constantly stirring up the surface and supplying it- with 
plenty of water. 
Asparagus. —The heads- should not be kept cut too severely 
after this date, but have a. regular crop of growths- all over 
the bed. Hand-weed between the plants and hoe the alleys. 
During showery weather apply a fair dressing of patent 
vegetable manure, as the more the growths are encouraged at 
this season the better will be the results next spring. If time 
can be found, it is well to support each growth with a small 
stake, especially if extra large heads are expected, and on light 
so-ils- now is a capital time to apply a. dressing of common salt. 
Young seedling plants will derive much benefit- from frequent 
drenchings of farmyard liquid. See that each plant is pro-perl) 
singled out, and hoe among them frequently. 
Rhubarb, owing to- the severe check it received during April 
has done extremely bad in most places, and, owing to tla 
failure in many localities of the. Gooseberry crop, many wil 
be tempted to- pull from it longer than usual, which will meai 
a- severe weakening of the crowns for next- year, but a- quantit) 
should be selected that, will be required for forcing early nex 
season and be well mulched and watered. 
Mushrooms. —Continue to make-up beds in the- open, select 
ing the- coolest positions possible. The produce from thes 
open, beds will be far superior to- any grown in the ordinal" 
Mushroom houses during the summer months-. Place a goo-, 
bulk of properly prepared stable manure together after it ha 
been turned several times and sweetened; avoid taking ou 
