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Farm and Garden Operations for August.

In Europe February. Average temperature

Auckland 53.6, Wellington 48.0, Christchurch 47.7, Dunedin 43.8

Farm.—About the middle of this month the peach blossoms make their appearance; nature begins to show life, but the weather is changeable, and live stock in open exposed situations will require more attention now than at any time during the winter. Talavera spring wheat sow on good soil after twice ploughing. Grass generally takes well after a crop of potatoes, sow it down in autumn with a little guano and rape. Horses must be kept up in condition—the working season is coming on. Corn, hay and carrots, with a few green oats, will keep horses in healthy working order. See that store cattle are kept up; give a little hay every night. Examine sheep every day; Draw out those lambed; put them on better feed. Give plenty of green feed to cows, that they may not fall off in milk till grass come in next month. Main crop of oats may be sown end of this month. Get work forward on favourable occasions. If weather permit and the soil Dry, plant potatoes for main crop the last fortnight of this month.

Kitchen Garden.—Get in crops; plant early potatoes on Dry light soil, new ground preferred; sow early short-top radish, lettuce, early dwarf peas, broad beans, sow peas for succession every three weeks; mould up crops of cabbage, cauliflower, savoy and brocoli; manure, dig, and trench ground to receive crops next month; celery beds trench to receive crops of cauliflower; rhubarb may be planted with plenty of rotten manure; plant in lines three feet between rows and two feet from plant to plant; cover seakale with pots; fork surface first, cover the pots with long litter to exclude air to blanch it.

Fruit Garden.—Prune established fruit trees end of this month; prune filberts when the last bloom shows, then manure and dig ground, removing suckers; prune and tie in raspberries, and fork in manure round the plants; hoe over the strawberries, then add manure on the surface to be washed down by the rain; dig round fruit trees, and manure where necessary; pears that grow freely and show no signs of fruit, have a few strongest roots cut off, or lift the tree and re-plant in the following year, it will fruit, but not large trees.

Flower Garden.—Towards the end of the month sow showy hardy annuals in borders; plant-out pansies from store beds or nursery beds or borders; add manure under each plant. Japan pinks, afterhinnums, phloxes, (herbaceous), penstemons, wallflower, pinks, carnations. picotees, and verbenas; the above bloom throughout the season. Prune and regulate roses; spring bulbs and tubers will now be in flower.

Greenhouse.—Camelias and azalias coming into flower; stir the surface, and water freely; train geraniums, and shift stocks; put in cuttings for late blooming. Chinese primulas, cinerarias, and caceolarias, coming into bloom, must have a good supply of water; encourage the latter sorts by another shift in a larger pot. Fuchsias—select a few autumn-struck cuttings, and shift into larger pots for summer flowering. Start a few amaryllis tribe; they will flower towards December. Give air to plants too confined, as they get Drawn up weak, and bloom indifferently.