Welsh Newspapers

Search 15 million Welsh newspaper articles

Hide Articles List

20 articles on this Page

• MERIONETH PLOUGHING ORDERS.I

Advertising

Advertising

Fishing in the Ayron. (

Warning to Farmers.

LLANILAR.

CORRESPONDENCE.

HINTS FOR ALLOTMENTI, HOLDERS.

News
Cite
Share

HINTS FOR ALLOTMENT I, HOLDERS. By SPADE-WORKER. WINTER GREENS. j Most allotment-holders are very oocwrnu tive in their choice of winter green*; they prefer to rely chiefly upon such varieties of kale as cottager's, ragged Jack, and the familiar "curly," and perhaps the asparagus or sprouting kale, though the latter, a sglea- did winter and early spring ve table. is not so often seen as it ought to be. I find brussels sprouts to be one of the most satisfactory of all greens for late autumn and wink r, aud for the last three months I have been picking from some sixty plants which I put out last June. The actual buttons" are now coming to an end, but the tops of the plants remain, and even • after they are cut there will be a certain quantity of young g-reen shoots to gather. Two seasons ago I tried the Russian kale and found it satisfactory it forms a bushy plant, and its deeply incised leaves are quite ornamental. It is a very hardy plant, and supplies a lot of winter greenstuff. It rieeds just the same cultivation as other sorts of kale, that is to sav. you sow the seed in I April and plant in June and July DIGGING MADE EASY. Digging is laborious work at the best, but some people put themselves to a lot of un- necessary trouble. If your plot is ten yards wide and vou wish to dig over the whole area, I suggest that you adopt the method illustrated in the accompanying diagram. r Mark off the plot into three equal sections. Take out the soil from the starting point B, and to the depth yon intend to dig, and place it at C. I The Best-Way to Dig. a, Plot. I Dig the ground in the direction shown by the arrows. On arriving at D, fill D with soil from E. Work back to F, and fill F with soil from G. Dig back towards H, and I fill H with the soil at C. You are far less likely to get tired of the job if you follow this plan "than if you proceed to dig across the full width of the plot. THE GARDEN SWEDE. It does not appear to be generally known ¡' that sweeps will iui)plv a double crop. If they arc stored in a clamp of soil it will be found that the roots start into growth in early spring. Now, most people cut off the blanched tops or sprouts and throw them away, whereas these form a most welcome vegetable if gathered with care and cooked. If the roots are not wanted they may be planted in a box of soil and kepi: dark, and will soon produce blanched shoots. The mention of a clamp reminds me of proof I had the other day of the splendid way in which, carroty are preserved when clamped in soil; the *vp-out beautifully fresh, just as though they were lifted from the rows in autumn. They make a great mistake who store their carrots dry, as, for example, in baskets or boxes in a shed. Til fS Vi-.Ali'S POTATOES. I have o'ola .r.ed all my early potatoes, and have placed them in a i: jht, cool, frost-proof room to surout. Allotment-holders who mean to i the best of their plots are strongly a.(l is.,d to do likewise, for they will then get a heavier crop than if the tubers are bought only a week or two before plant- ing time. There is a great deal of disease among late potatoes this winter, and friends of mine who have had to buv tell me that quite half the tulers are useless. Many of my own late varieties suffered a good deal from disease, yet the early sorts, of which I have only just c cc to tlie end, were per- fectly so una. But there is always the glamour of the I)iz crop al'^ehing to the cultivation of maiiicrop potatoes, and we shall all, no doubt, continue to grow a cer- tain quantity. And. of course, if the season is a favourable one, they are very profitable. My choice of maincrop varieties is as fol- lows: Arran Chief, which 1 one of the best potatoes For heavy soil King Edward, White City, a splendid pot;:to; The Factor, and Ker,r's Pink. The lapt nnmed is a com- paratively rev,, pink varietv with an excel- lent reputation and recommended for heavy land. A good deal is heard nowadays of the new variety Majestic although all agree that it is an immense cropper, I have heard varying reports of its flavour. PRIZEWINNING HINTS. This is a method, new to me, of getting rid of moles, advocated by Mr. S. Neal, to whom a copy of "Allotment Gardening" is i awarded.. Procure a number of dead worms and mix with them a quantity of powdered nux vomica; for twenty-four hours. The mole rut: arc then opened and some of the worms placed in them. Mr. D. R. Wileman gains a prize cf "Garden Work for Every Day" for the following hint: To pre- vent mice eating peas sown in the open, place the. seeds in a mixture of soot and water, and let them .stand, for five or six hours before sowing. PRIZE COMPETITION FOR ALLOT- MENT HOLDERS. Every week two prizes are offered for the best allotment hint or recipe. The prizes consist of useful gardening books. All en- tries for this competition must be addressed "Spadeworker," care of Editor of this paper. ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. J. A. G.—(1) The correct time to plant strawberries iu barrels or elsewhere is in August or early Soenkmber. The work may be done now, but unless you obtain good plants from Gin. pots you are not likel? to get much fruit this year, though the plants would be at their best the following year. Raise the barrel or bricks, bore a few holes in the bottom and holes at 12in. apart all round. Put in pieces of brick or stone for drainage. Then fill with turfy soil. Tke plants must be put in the holes as the work of filling with soil proceeds make the soil cN'7 firm. "Hie plants cannot be put in properly after the barrel is filled with soil. (2) I do not know of such a publication. G. F.—Some of the best first early pota- toes are Witch Hill Seedling, May Queen, Sharpc's Express, Duke of York, and Eclipse. Good early peas, about 18in. high, are Lax- tonian, Little Marvel, and American Won- der; about 3ft. high. Gradus, and The Pilot. All these can be obtained from any "good seedsman. Spadeworker'' is open to give practical advice, free of charge, to readers of this paper. Replies will be sent by post if a stamped addressed envelope is enclosed. Address your inquiries to "Spadeworker/' care of Editor.

Advertising

! eotatry. ' ___I

Aber, W.A.C.

BERTH.

ECONOMY IN FOOD AND DRINK.

Machynlleth Council.

'LLANfbi

LLANDYSSUL.

Advertising

Shot Three Lions.

v Dearer Printing.

Advertising