t
i , i
l if e . ' I
ill
I f preserved in health, will bloom w
■ y Ihc th ird fol ..................... ..
-11 the best bed.
5179. Choice o f fulLgroivn bulbs. “ Such bulbs as have a ttained
the age of four o r live years, bloom strouger in this
c o u n try tliau any o th e r ; afterwards th ey generally decline,
c ith er oy dividing in to offsets, o r d iminishing in size and
etren g tli: b u t in Hollnnd, owing to the peculiar circumstances
o f tho soil, climate, situation, &c., tho same b u lb lias been
known to produce blossoms twelve or th irte en times, n o r is it
ever known to die merely with age.”
5180. Soil an d site, Tlio bed on which they a rc to b e planted
should bo situated on r a th e r a d ry an d a iry p a rt of th e garden ;
a soutliern aspect is to be preferred, sheltered on th e n o rth and
cast. When tho situation is lictcnninod on, th e dimensions of
th e bod should be mark ed out, an d th e soil entirely taken away
to th e depth of a t least 2 f t . ; tlio e arth in tlio bottom m u st
th en be du g u p nnd pulverised, one sp it or 9 In. deeper, and
tlie space above fllled u p with a compost eonsi.sting o f one
th ird coarse sea o r riv er s a n d ; one th ird frcsli sound e arth ;
one fourth rotten cow-dung, a t least two years old ; au d cartli
o f decayed leaves for tho remainder. These ingredients a rc to
be well mixed anil incorporated, an d ab o u t a fortn ig h t previous
to planting, tho bed should be fllled u p witli tlie compost to
ab o u t 4 in. above th e level of th e path on th e south or fro n t side,
an d 10 ill- on th e n o rth side, so as to form a reg u la r slope or
inclination towards tlic sun. Th e compost used a t Haarlem
is said to be ro tten cow-dung, rotten leaves, an d fine sand.
T h e leaves o f elm, lime, an d b irch are preferred to tlioseof oak,
chestnut, w alnut, beech, jilane, &c., whicli do n o t ro t so quickly.
Tho cow-dung is collected iu w inter from cattle, stall-fed ujion
....................... • ■ • "■ ' I o r o th e r litter. I'h e
•c th u s mixed with the
of dung, an d th e n ____________ , ..................
thick. These layers arc rciwated till tlic iicap „ 8 .
ft. c
.r 7 ft.
hig h , a layer of d u n g being uppermost, sprinkled
..lo v e r
witii a
little sand to prevent th e too powerful action of
th e sun
it. After the heap has Iain th u s for six m onths ......... , .. ..
mixed, au d thrown ui> afresh, in whicli state i t remains some
weeks to settle before it is c arried in to tlie flower-beds. This
compost retains its qualities ab o u t six or seven years ; b u t the
Du tch avoid setting iiyacintlis in i t two years successively ; in
th e altern a te years th ey p la n t tulips, jonquils, narcissuses,
crocuses, irises, &c., in the samo beds ; n o r do they venture
to set hyacinths in th e compost the first season, w hen th e fresh
m a n u re m ig h t be in ju rio u s to th em .” (Herbert, iu Hort.
Trans, vol. iv. p. 105.)
5181. Planiing. This should take place “ from the middle
of October tin th c fn id d lc of November; i f it is done earlier, the
plants will appear above gro u n d In th e m iddle of w in te r; or it
It is deferred Inter, th e roots will be weakened by th e ir n a tu ra l
tendency to vegetate. On p la n tin g th e roots, th e surface of tho
bed should be covered with a little fresh saudy e arth , about
1 in. tliick, raked perfectly smootli an d even, a n d liave the
exact situation for every b u lb m a rk ed upon it {fig. 889.), re-
889
R B W R B W R B W R
W R B W R B W R B
R B W R B W R B W R
W R B W R B W R B
R B W R B W R B W R
W R B W R B W R B
g u la rly min g lin g th e colours of red, blue, an d wliite, tlic yellows
being classed w ith tho latter. Tlie width of th e surfaco
o f th e bed m ay be 4 ft., a n d six rows may be placcil
a t8 in . asunder, th e two outslile rows b e iiir “ '
th e sides of tho bed
. . . . .'ing .........................
. 'iitly tho space between tliecentre
of each b u lb « ill be ab out OJ in. On p lan tin g liyacinths, a
little clcan sand should ho placed u nderneath, an d likewise
u pon the roots, to prevent th e e arth ad h erin g too closely to
tlicm ; tlie whole a rc th en to be covered with sound frcsli sandy
e arth , from 5 in] to 4 in. deep, according to th e size of tlia
b u lb ; when th is is completed, th e bed will bo ab o u t 8 in.
above tho level of th e walk on tlic south or fro n t side, and
a b o u t 14 in. on the n o r th ; i t will look neater, an d have a b e tter
effeet, if i t is isupported on each side with a stro n g frame of
th ic k boards or brickwork.
5182. Culture. “ In order to prcservo th e bod from very
heavy rain s or severe frosts, i t should be liooped over, a n d mats
o r canvas should be placed a t liaiid ready to cover th e bed on
such emergencies; b u t it will not be necessary to defend i t from
moderate rain s o r slight ibosts: for too freq u en t an d long
covering will deprive the roots o fth e duo action an d Influence
o f tlie air, whicli o u g h t to be avoided as mu ch as possible : it
were even b e tter to ru n tho ha za rd of in cu rrin g a slig h t in ju ry
by the omission of covering on some occasions, th an to overdo it
to the c ertain de trim en t o fth e plants. I f frost is p e rmitted to
penetrate so fa r Into th e soli as to reach tlie bulbs, especially
ab o u t the tim e th a t th e plants begin to ap pear above ground,
i t will produce a singular effect, oy causing some of tlioin to
shoot fo rth o r discharge th o ir stems an d blossoms; b u t if tho
roots become en tirely frozen th ro u g h , they a re in d anger ol
be in g destroyed. Tlie earlier sorts will begin to open au d show
colour about th e b eginning of ¿ r i l ; itw ill be p ro p er to screen
auch from th e too powerlul effects of th e sun, which, i f uot
prevented, would bleach a n d ta rn ish thoircolours, p a rticu la rly
measure, be kept back, so as to be in full bloom with tho la ter
sorts, especially If th e roots of th e early sorts have been planted
ab o u t 1 iu. deeper th a n the r e s t: i t is a very desirable object
to have an u niform bloom. I t will be necessary to support the
stems as they advance in h e ig h t; for tliis purpose, small sticks
o r wires, painted green, sliould be forced into tho ground, im mediately
beliind the bulbs, eitlier in an erect position o r lean--
lu g a little backwards, to which tlie stems are to be ratlicr
loosely tied witli small pieces o f green worsted, as soon as tliey
begin to bend, or aro in d anger o f b reak in g with tlio weiglit
of tlio corolla or bells ; th is operation m u st be repeated as they
ndvnnee in licight, for It is impossible to do i t a t one time so as
to answer tlic purpose. Wlien th e g reater p a rt of th e bed
appears iu colour, a covering or awning sliould be erected over
it an d tho patli in f ro n t : the awning should con.‘'ist of a strong
frame of wood, 10 ft. iiigh in tlio centre, an d 7 ft. a t the sides,
covered wltli Irisli o r Scotcli slicetings, o r Ilussia duck, whicii
will elfeetually keep out rain , an d adm it a g rea t degree of
lig h t ; it sliould come down close to th e boil on th e n o rtli side.
In order to preserve i t ft-om cold winds, which a rc prejudicial
to the bloom. The[covcrliig(/ii. 890.) shouldbe so constructed.
hy means o f lin e s (a ) and pulleys (&), as to be easily an d e_
pcditiously rolled up, o r le t down, as occasion requires, to
afford th e p lants tlic full bencllt of lig h t an d a ir, a t all favourable
opportunities, t’ ' ' ' ...............................................
lig h t clouds iiiterven
“ ...... ’ -■ 'oca, Olten, 111,.
..................... ................ -.............. .......... lg, am. _____ - ......... - -..........
th e evening, a t whicli tim e tiie sun lias also less power th an in
th e m iddle of th e day. A lied o f hyacinths never requires to
bo watered a t an y pe rio d ; tlie rain s th a t liappen after p lan tin g
arc generally more th a n suflicient b o th for tlie roots an d the
b lo om ; an d a fte r tlic bloom is over, th ey are r a th e r p rejudicial
th an otherwise, except when very moderate. Although coverin
g in tlie m an n er described presents an d exhibits th e bloom
to th e g rea tes t advantiigc, yet it evidently has a tendency to
weaken an d in ju re the bulbs, an d o u g h t not, therefore, to be
continued m ore th a u two or tlircc weeks a t m o s t; b u t as soon
as th e general bloom declines, the beds should be immediately
exiwsed to „ tlic .rt....open .. a . ir, an d /rt,. tiie . mats in an s.” d lioops should be ro-
....... „ -th e practice, in Holland,
to tak e u p the bulbs, ab o u t three weeks o r a m onth a fte r bloom,
in th e following m a n n e r:—As soon as th e p lants begin to p u t
on a ycllowisli decayed appe.iruncc, th ey take u p tlic roots aud
cu t on th e stem au d foliage close to, or within lialf an incli of,
th e bu lb , b u t leave tho fibres. See., a ttach ed to i t ; they then
place th e bulbs again on th e same bed sidewise, w ith th e ir
[loiiits towards th e n o rth , nnd cover them ab out iialf an inch
deep, with d ry e a tth or sand, in tlie form of a ridge, o r little
cone, over each : in this state they remain ab out three weeks
longer, an d d ry o r rijieii g rad u a lly ; d u rin g wliich, as much
a ir IS admitted as iiossibl.', b u t the bed is preserved ft-om licavy
rain s , a n d too h o t a sun ; a t th e ex piration of tliis period the
bulbs arc tak en up, an d tb e ir fibres, wiilch are become nearly
d iy , gently rulibed off; th ey a re th en placed in a d ry room for
a few days, au d are afterwards cleaned from an y soil th a t adh
e re s to them, th e ir loose skins taken off, with sucli offsets as
may be easily separated. Wlion th is dressing is finislicd, the
b u lb s a re w rapped u p i . . rt . . . .
d ry sand, where th ey r - ......................................................
p lan tin g . Another, an d loss troublesome, mode o f trea tm en t
a fte r bloom, though perhaps more hazardous, is to keep th e
bed a iry a n d r a th e r d ry , til l the stems an d foliage appear
n e arly d ried u p o r consumed;con sumed ; th is will seldom ’-----------
happen to be
OT, mo n th ........................s ; th e bulbs c
: th en to I
taken u p , cleaned from tlic fibres, soil, &c., a n d preserved 1 i)i
sand o r papers, as before directed.”
5184. Herbert says, “ th e bulbs should be placed in a
8torc»room, an d n o t suffered to touch each o tlie r; a moveable
stage o f open lattice-work, furnislicd with drawers, may be
used, an d th e u tmost a ttention should be paid to ventilation.”
A French florist, Baudry, is said {Caled. Hort. Mem,., vol. iv.
j>. 76.) to_ have lost an n u ally a n um b e r of his h y a einth-bulbs
a rising from different causes: th a t distemper commonly known
b y the appellation of tho rlng-sickncss, is of a ll others th e most
dangerous an d most difficult to c u re : in short, tlie only effectu
a l remedy is to c u t o u t th e diseased [lart, til! no brownness,
yellowness, o r other symptom of distemper,
sound p a r ' -” ...................... .
th a n th e o ______________ . . ^ , .....
tvilt, iu sucli case, o n ly be able to produce offsets, an d will
never recover its elf so as to flower again : as soon as th e operation
is performed, th e wounded p a rt should bo exposed to tho
sun, till It becomes d ry , to prevent mouldiness, and it will bo
best to rep lan t it in somo dry situation soon a fter.” “ The
Dutch,” H erbert observes, “ nro mucli troubled with th is disease
; th e cause of w hicli aiipears to bo a fiiiigiis, tlir spawn of
wlucli IS n u rtu red m the cow-dung. T h e only remedy is the
removal of tho distempered bulb, an d tlic compost tliat was in
contact with it.”
5186. Du ra tio n o f bulbs. “ Tho hy a cin th delights in a sandv
soil an d aaliuo atmosphere: consequently, i t succeeds best on
th e sea-coast, or in situations very ne ar to tlie sea. In more
fnlaiiil imrts, i t will generally be found necessary to procure au
a n n u al reinforcement of fresh imported bulbs, in order to make
Sood or sujipiy tlieileflciencics a rising from th e loss, o r impaired
eaith an d strength o f many of those th a t have bloomed on the
best bed tho preceding spring. Those who are well acquainted
with tlio hyaeintli, always allow ab o u t one bulb in twelve to
fail, notwithstanding no visible blemish o r decay is tlisccrniblo
a t the time of p lan tin g ; such generally have a corps de réserve,
in narrow deep pots, which, a t the commencement o f bloom,
th ey piunge or sink into th e bed, wherever a vacancy, or weak
sickly p lan t makes its ap p earance; by whicli means tlio u n ifo
rm ity a n d reg u la rity of tiie bed is preserved, without an y
visible defect o r a ltera tio n .” H erb ert says, “ m y own experience
UVU.-CI. OI uiicijiuuii. n e ro e rt "m y oxpc-
en.enables ables me to say, tb a t tlie nu n u rser rseryman in tlio ..........'neigli- - ’
oocl of 1/ondon m ay produce byacintli-bulbs equal, if not
or, to those imported from H o lla n d ; thougli, perhaps,
bourhood - • • •
superior.
with grea ter loss from disease, owing to big not being able to
procure ttio d u n g of cattle foil upon lia rd food, an d free from
Btra«-.” (Hort. Trans, vol. iv. p. 168.)
V o i- fiy the hyacinth. Plan t th e roots in narrow deep
pots, fllled with sandy loam, in October; plunge them in nn k
cover tlicm with old bark-leavcs o r sa n d ; they will soon throw
down roots, an d a p a rt may tlien, say in November, be plunged
in bottom licat, wliich will come into bloom by Christmas, ami
mccossiona! supplies can he taken from the store planted in
October an d a bloom th u s kojit uji tiil th ey flower in the open
] ,o 3 to force aro th e single blues an d rods.
018«. I'lou-ering hyacinths inwater.ylasses. Dark coloured
glasses arc preferred for tliis purpose to « liitc ones, an d man y
persons advise keeping tho glassc.t in the d a rk till tlie fibrous
11 the water is flrst
■otp! • • - -
7 reach tlu- fo u rth of
. , -.--'d in, it should
d a te ; b u t when th e leaves a re beginning
inch u p th e bulb. The
cK, an d ad ding a
have growi..
only ju stco v c rth o
to grow it m ay rca
water should be changed
KTf'tftiy accelerate the tiine of flowering.
0189. Jiesloring bulbs bloien in icuier to Iheir original vigour.
AS soon as they have done flowering, remove them carefully
from th e glasses with all th c ir leaves and roots, and p lan t then,
carefully in hy a cmth soil. When tlio leaves liave complcti
iplctely
withered, tak e up the bulbs, an d preserve them d ry till till the
t
¡ ¿ t e r end of October, when th ey aro to be planted in beds
th e usual manner.
Su b se ct. 2. Tùlipa G esneriim a L. ( B o t M a g . 1135.); H e x . Monog. L. and
1 ) * T u lip a n o , Ital. ; and T u lip á n , Span.
, ,5100. The tu lip is a native of the L ev a n t; it is common in Syria and
is-ti/VdCe.SrQeVd- falvs/O T tfh.selt ret.m ...brtlret mKr torvf.i /.lp-OeTr fOeT—c tI .--l_o_v_e—r _s . Accordirnt.g to Gesner, the tulip was brought to Europe in 1559............
cultivated iu England by James Garnet, in l.ITT, having
been introduced, according to Ilulduyt, from Vienna. To wards
the middle of the 17th century, the tulip became tlie
object of considerable trade in th c Netherlands ; and it rose
to Its greatest height in 1G34, and the three following years
T he taste for tulips in England was pre-eminentiv great
about the end of the 17th and the beginning o tih e 18th centu
ry ; about the year 1730 or 1740, it had declined, and given
way to the taste for botany, and for new plants from America
and other foreign countries. The tulip, however, is
still much cultivated both in Holland and England, near
large town.s.and in the la tte r country the taste for this and
other florists’ flowers is ra the r on the increase. This tribe
though generally considered expensive, Mr. Hogg, an experienced
commercial florist, and the author of some popular
works on the subject, affirms to be not more so than
other hobbies ; a hundred pounds, he says, judiciously expended,
will give a moderate-sized bed th at shall contain
as many fine varieties as 2.507 would have purchased ten
o r twelve years ago. (S u p p lem e n t to the P ra c tic a l Trea-
tp e on the C u lture o f the Tu lip , A u r ic u la , R a n u n c u lu s
D ahlia, 4 c ., 1833, p. 93.)
s abundant in Persia, and con-
5191. Varieties. Parkinson, in 1629, enumerates 140 sorts,
which were divided intoprcecoces, or e arly blowers, andso-oimcK,
o r late blowers, with an intermediate division oidubitB media,
do u b tfu l or middle blowers, which, for llio most pa rt, however,
belonged to th e sei-ofin<E. The e arly blowers have short stems,
an d tiio Due Van Thol is almost th e only v ariety in repute
among m odern florists. The g rea t variety in the catalogues is
prodncod from tho lato blowers, wliich have ta ll stems an<l
mu ch rich e r co lo u rs; of these, th e catalogue of Maddock in
1792,^contained th e names of 065_sorts. In Mason’s catalogue
for 1820 are six sorts of e arly tu lip s: four of perroquets òr
middle blowers ; 22 double sorts, an d upwards of 600 sitWle
late sorts. Th e Dutch florists class th o ir la te blowing tulips as
Prime haguets {baguette, Fr., a ro d or
w an d ): very t a l l ; flnc cups with wliito
bottoms, well broken witli flnc brown,
an d a ll from the same breeder.
Bagiicts IHgauts (supposed from Ei-
g aud, some emin en t florist’s name, or
rougcaude, red-faced) : n o t q uite so
ta ll, b u t with strong stems, an d very
, . 0 classed by El
bizarros, Feathered bizat
A B iza r r e tu lip has a yellow ground,
m a rk ed with pu rp le or scarlet o f differen
t shades. I t is c alled /fin icd , when
a broad irreg u la r stripe ru n s up
middle o f the petals, with short abi
p rojecting points, bran ch in g out
e ach sid e : flno n a rrow lines, called
arch ed an d ribbed, often extend, also,
from th is broad stripe to th e ex tremity
o f th e le av e s; th e colour generally ap pe
arin g strongest in the inside petals:
a tu lip vvith th is broad-coloured stripe,
whieh is sometimes called beamed, or
splashed, is, a t t h e ..........................
large, well-formed cups, with white
bottoms, well broken with line brown,
a n d a ll from tlie samo breeder.
Incomparable Veipo o r rts.
ls : very perfect cups,
c h erry an d rose,sc, an ar._d white ....... bottoms.
^
wcU broken with sh in in g brow...
Bybloemens, or n ex t flowers, th e fiama n d s
o f th e French florists, with buttoms
g lish florists as folp
white, or ne arly so, from different
colour''*’ variety of
B iz a n e s {bizan-e, Fr., odd, irre g u la r):
g ro u n d yellow, from different breeders,
a u d b roken with variety of coib
ru p t
row lines jo in ed o r detached, ru n n
in g u p tho centre of th e leaf, sometimes
b ran ch in g o u t au d curved to wards
tho top, an d sometimes with o u t
a n y spot or Une a t aU: th e petals are
feathered, more or less, ro u n d tho
edges or ma rg in , inside a n d o u t; tlio
pencilling, or feathering, is heavy or
broad in some, nn d lig h t o r narrow
in o th e rs ; sometimes with breaks, or
gaps, an d sometimes close an d contin
u ed a ll round.
A Bybloemen tu lip lias a white ground,
lined, marked, striped, o r variegated
with violet or purpfe, only of various
Bliades; and, wliether fea th ered or
flamed, is distinguished b y th e same
5192. r/ien an ie so /f7 ied iy « re« iwam fiM,cla sa ed u n d o rth ese
heads, being perfectly a rb itra ry , an d constantly clianging, tlie ir
in sertion h e re could be ofno use. (See th e rfn n n a i Catalogues o f
Bulbous Roois, published b y tho n u rserymen an d florists.)
Wlmt are called Selfs, or Breeders, are p rocured from seed an d
consist of one p la in colour on awliite o r yellow bottom. Tiiese
be in g cu ltivated on a d ry an d ra th e r poor soil become broken
o r variegated, an d produce new varieties. The tim e th a t
elapses before th e y break varies from one to twenty years or
more, an d sometinies tliis change never takes iflaee, so th a t
w iio o ^ r th in k s of raising new varieties of tulips from seed
m u s t bo possessed of an ample fu n d of patience an d perseverance.
Vanous plans have been suggested for promoting the
ch aracters an d ma rk s which I havo
poin ted out, an d applied to the B izarre
tulljig.
A Rose tu lip is marked, o r variegated
with rose, scarlet, crimson, o r ch erry
colour, on a white g ro u n d : an d tlie
I'cathcred rose is to be distinguislied
from tho Flamed b y th e same ru les as
described b e fore; the rose isv e ry often
both feathered an d flamed.
A S e lf or Plain-coloured tulip, properly
so called, is c ith er white or ycllo«(
which admit o f no fa rth e r ch ange:
o th e r p lain coloured tulips, whether
rod or purple, are callod Breeders, an d
aro h a rd ly wortliy of beiug exhibited
{Hogg's Supp. &c., 1853, p. 05.)
b re a k in g o f breeder tu lip s ; b u t none o f them, as fa r as we
have c ^ r learned, axe te be depended on. The most probable
18 th e fecundation of an unbroken, hy th o p o llen o f a variegated
o r broken tu lip , previously removing tho stamens from tho
flower o f th e fo n n er, before th c ir an th ers have a rrived a t
ma tu rity . Mr. Hogg, in liis SuppUnient to the p ra c tica l Treatise
on the Culture o f FlomsU' Flowers (p. 42.), seems to p u t
most faith in th is m e th o d ; b u t adds, “ I am anxiously w ait
i!’® 1“ fartlie r corroborating proofs of its efficacy.”
borne florists raise seedlings from th e ir elioicest flowers, in
tho hopes th a t tliese will bi-eak sooner th an th e seedlings
o f s o ll ^ and rensoiiing from analogy, we should thin k
decidedly th a t this would he tlie case. Wc know th a t tills
■ÍH
»