Chapter II: Introduction (1)

The cultivation of Bulbous Plants has reached a point of popularity at the present day that it has never before attained. And there is every reason to believe that this popularity is increasing from year to year as more people become better acquainted with these plants, and the ease with which the great majority of them may be grown in almost any garden. Indeed there are now so many kinds of bulbous plants that there is no difficulty in making a selection to suit the smallest garden or the most modest purse.

Of course, some kinds, such as Tulips, Daffodils and Narcissi, Hyacinths, Crocuses, Snowdrops, Scillas, Bluebells, Chionodoxas, Grape Hyacinths, Lilies, Colchicums, Gladioli, and Montbretias, will be always probably amongst the first favourites with garden lovers. But there is no reason why the Mariposa Lilies and Star Tulips, the Brodiaeas and Millas, the Sternbergias and Fritillarias, and many others should not in the course of time become almost equally popular when they become better known.

Some kinds of bulbous plants have been known in British Gardens--and no doubt in continental ones also--ever since such a thing as gardening proper came to be distinguished from mere agriculture. Our native or naturalised bulbs--such as the Snake's Head Fritillary (_Fritillaria Meleagris_), the Yellow Star of Bethlehem (_Gagea lutea_), as well as the white ones (_Ornithogalum nutans_, _pyrenaicum_, and _umbellatum_), the Autumn Crocus (_Colchicum autumnale_), the Lent Lily or Daffodil (_Narcissus Pseudo-Narcissus_), the Snowdrop (_Galanthus nivalis_), the Snowflake (_Leucojum vernum_), the Grape Hyacinth (_Muscari racemosum_), the Squill (_Scilla verna_), and the Bluebell (_S. festalis_), the Martagon Lily (_Lilium Martagon_), and the Wild Tulip (_Tulipa sylvestris_) have been grown as garden plants for 400 years or more.

The great monastic establishments were the seats of gardening as of learning, and it is in connection with them we find the first traces of bulbous or any other plants being intelligently cultivated. Besides the plants mentioned, our earliest garden records show that such bulbous plants as the Dog's Tooth Violet (_Erythronium Dens-Canis_), the Crown Imperial (_Fritillaria imperialis_), _Gladiolus communis_, the Garden Hyacinth (_Hyacinthus orientalis_), the Madonna Lily (_Lilium candidum_), the Poet's Narcissus and the Jonquil (_N. poeticus_ and _N. Jonquilla_), the Star Hyacinth (_Scilla amoena_), the Lily of the Field (_Sternbergia lutea_), and Gesner's Tulip (_T. Gesneriana_), were among the first kinds cultivated from the beginning of the 16th century, and they are all more popular to-day than ever. Following these we find such Tulips as _suaveolens_ and _Clusiana_, the yellow-flowered Onion (_Allium Moly_), the Cloth of Gold Crocus (_C. Susianus_), the Byzantine Gladiolus (_G. byzantinus_), and others in the 17th century. The beginning of the 18th century saw the introduction to our gardens of the Belladonna Lily (_Amaryllis Belladonna_), and later on the Babianas, Ixias, and other Gladioli like _blandus_, _cuspidatus_, and _cardinalis_.

It is to the 19th century, however, that we owe not only many introductions of new kinds, but also the development of the great enterprise that has been shown in their extensive cultivation, and the natural methods of using them in the garden.

To this period, and especially to the latter half of it, belong most of our fine Lilies, Bulbous Irises, Mariposa Lilies and Star Tulips, Brodiaeas, Chionodoxas, Scillas, and American Dog's Tooth Violets. It has also been the age when the florist's varieties of Gladiolus, Daffodils, Tulips, Hyacinths, and Crocuses have been brought almost, if not quite, to the acme of perfection by intelligent cultivation and careful selection.

All this has led to the growth of many kinds of bulbous plants having become a huge industry. Dutch bulbs have for many generations been famous, and many kinds will, no doubt, continue to retain their hold upon the public owing to the undoubted advantage of the climate under which they are grown. But experience has proved that such bulbous plants as Tulips and Daffodils at least can be grown equally well in some parts of the British Islands, notably in Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, the Scilly Isles, and parts of Ireland. It has been stated that over five hundred millions of bulbs are used for decorative purposes in Great Britain alone every year, and that the value of imported bulbs ranges from L5,000,000 to L8,000,000 annually.

The growth of Daffodils and Narcissi alone in the Scilly Isles within the past forty years has been nothing less than phenomenal. Mr. T. A. Dorrien-Smith, of Tresco Abbey, has stated that the first lot of flowers was sent to Covent Garden Market about 1865, and realised L1. It was not, however, until about 1880 that Daffodil growing in these Islands became at all remunerative, and some idea of their growth since then may be gained from the fact (vouched for by the same authority) that 65 tons of flowers were exported from the Scilly Isles in 1885, 85 tons in 1886, 100 tons in 1887, 188 tons in 1888, and 198 tons in 1889; and on one day alone--the 25th February, 1896--30-1/2 tons of Narcissi, comprising 3,258,000 blooms in 4,849 boxes, were shipped to Penzance for market. Cultivation on such an extensive scale, of course, means a considerable reduction in price, and, from a commercial point of view, ordinary Daffodil growing may be said to have reached bedrock prices a long time ago.

However, of late years, our American cousins have taken a keen interest in the importation of bulbs from Europe, and as gardening is a comparatively new industry in that extensive country, we may expect that it will afford a good market for many years to come. Not many years ago certain kinds of Tulips, Daffodils, Hyacinths, &c., were a drug in the English markets, and could be had at a very low price. Since, however, the Americans have become fond of bulb-growing, these particular kinds have advanced considerably in price, in some cases 100 to 150 per cent., because it so happened they were just the sorts that were liked on the other side of the Atlantic.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.

It is curious to note in this respect that almost every part of the temperate and sub-tropical regions of the globe have contributed some class of bulbous plants now to be found in cultivation. Central and Southern Europe and Northern Africa have supplied us with various Daffodils and Narcissi, Tulips, &c. From Asia Minor and Turkestan, the Chionodoxas, and many bulbous Irises and Fritillarias have been introduced. California and other parts of North America have produced the Mariposa Lilies, all the Dog's Tooth Violets, except the common British one, the Brodiaeas, &c., while South Africa has given us the Gladiolus, Montbretias, and Tritonias, Crocosma, and other beautiful plants. And the Lilies, which form a large group in themselves, are to be found in almost every temperate clime north of the equator (see page 95).

When these facts are borne in mind, the reader will readily understand the necessity of trying to imitate, as far as possible, in our own climate the various natural conditions under which these plants are found.

PLATE 2. SCILLA SIBIRICA MULTIFLORA (7) GALANTHUS NIVALIS (8) CHIONODOXA LUCILIAE (9) HYACINTHUS AZUREUS (10)

SOMETHING ABOUT BULBS AND CORMS.

There is so much confusion of thought as to what a "bulbous" plant really is, that it may be as well at the beginning of this volume to endeavour to clear up the haziness that exists in regard to the matter. It seems to be taken for granted that any plant with a swollen or thickened stem or rootstock is a "bulbous" one. And this impression is no doubt confirmed when one consults the bulb catalogues issued by nurserymen. In these publications--chiefly, no doubt, for the sake of convenience and to avoid unnecessary extra expense in printing--a large number of plants are enumerated as if they were really bulbous. It is, therefore, not at all unnatural that the amateur should come to the conclusion that everything mentioned between the covers of a bulb catalogue should be truly bulbous in nature. Even some publications on bulbous plants have adopted the same loose nomenclature. Thus we find such non-bulbous plants as Aconites, Anemones, Dahlias, Dicentras, Day-Lilies, Hepaticas, Solomon's Seal, Astilbe japonica, Tropaeolums, Lily of the Valley, Corydalis, Torch Lilies, Paeonies, Christmas Roses, and many others described as "bulbous" plants, while some that are really so, and worthy of cultivation, are not even mentioned.

Some of the plants referred to above have thickened stems or roots, and will be found described in their proper places in the companion volume to this--"BEAUTIFUL GARDEN FLOWERS." They belong to several different families of plants. True bulbous plants, however (with which we may include those having "corms"), are confined to very few families. Indeed, they are restricted to one of the two large groups of flowering plants, viz., that in which the leaves usually have parallel veins, and the flowers have their parts in circles of three or six. This group of plants is known to botanists as "monocotyledons," and is still further distinguished by having only _one_ seed-leaf, as may be seen when the seeds of any of them sprout, as shown in the Tulip, p. 35.

It is within the limits of this definition, therefore, that all the plants described in this book come. They all have parallel-veined leaves, and the parts of their flowers are in "threes" or "sixes," as may be seen by consulting the coloured plates.

PLATE 3. BULBOUS IRISES I. HISTRIO, (11) I. BAKERIANA, (12). I. KOLPAKOWSKYANA, (13) I. DANFORDIAE, (14) I. PERSICA (15)

There is an apparent contradiction to this rule in the Daffodils (Narcissi) in which the "trumpet" or "corona" in the centre makes a seventh organ. A similar growth may be seen in such bulbous plants as the Eucharis, Hymenocallis, Pancratium, &c., that are usually grown under glass. This corona is analogous to the ligules or scale-like outgrowths so noticeable on the petals of the Campions (Lychnis), the chief difference being that in the Narcissi the ligules are joined together, become much larger, and often constitute the most attractive feature of the flowers.

=Definition of a "Bulb".=--Perhaps the very best-known example of a true bulb is the common or garden Onion. Another example is shown in the sketch of a Hyacinth and Tigridia.

Illustration: TUNICATED BULB OF HYACINTH in section showing "Disc," and Scale Leaves _s. l._

Illustration: TIGRIDIA BULB, Showing thick Contractile Roots.

The bulbs of Daffodils, Tulips, Snowdrops, Scillas, &c., all conform very closely to the Onion in structure. It will be noticed that at the base of the Hyacinth, for example, is a flattish or deltoid mass of tissue. This is called the "disc" and is really the stem portion of the bulb. On the upper surface it bears a number of thick scaly leaves packed very close together, and rolled round each other, with the flower-spike in the centre; while from the under surface, the roots emanate when growth takes place. It may be easily imagined by the reader that if the "disc" were drawn out lengthwise, and if a space separated one scale-leaf from another, that the bulb would be very similar in appearance to an ordinary leafy stem. Nature, however, has a certain object in view in modifying the stems and leaves in such a manner that they are tightly packed away when at rest, within a brown protecting coat, so that they resemble the large scale-protected flower-buds that may be seen in winter on Horse-chestnuts, Lilacs, Ash, &c. The thick scale-leaves are really storehouses in which food has been stored up by the larger and broader green leaves that perform the functions of assimilation, respiration, &c., above the ground during the growing period.

When the bulb begins to grow, the food in the thick scale-leaves is drawn up to supply nourishment to the flower-stem, until the new green leaves can manufacture or elaborate a fresh supply in the sunlight from the raw materials drafted into them from the soil by the roots. Under favourable circumstances more food is elaborated than is necessary for the wants of the plant, and then extra growths or young bulbs called "offsets" are developed at the base, or rather the side, of the older bulb.

It should be mentioned here, however, that all bulbs do not vegetate in the same way. In many cases the original bulb persists for several seasons, as in the Daffodil and Hyacinth, for example; but in others it vanishes completely during the period of growth, and is absorbed, or swallowed up, as it were, by the flower stem. The most common example of this among bulbs is the Tulip, to which more detailed reference has been made at p. 133.

=Kinds of Bulbs.=--Most true bulbs are constructed like the Onion, Daffodil, Snowdrop, or Hyacinth, in having the scale-leaves rolled round each other, forming different layers or coats. Such bulbs are said to be "tunicated." In the case of the Liliums, however, the scale-leaves only lap over each other at the edges, and are arranged spirally round the central axis. These bulbs are called "scaly," or "imbricated," and are shown in the annexed sketch on p. 12.

The individual scales are much thicker at the base than at the apex, and in the case of tunicated bulbs, they are also thicker on one side than the other. By this arrangement, the various "coats" can be rolled round each other more tightly, and without wasting any space.

Illustration: SCALY BULB OF LILY.

=Definition of a "Corm".=--In outward appearance, many corms are so much like bulbs, that the two terms are interchangeable and loosely applied, at least, among gardeners. By cutting a "corm" through the centre lengthwise, a great difference, however, will be noticed in the structure. In the bulb, the "disc" is small and unimportant, while the scale-leaves upon it are the most conspicuous feature. In the "corm," on the other hand, the "disc" is the all-important feature, and is devoid of any thick scale-leaves upon it. The new growths appear on the top or sides, and the lines round the circumference show where the sheathing papery scale-leaves were attached. In the "corm" then, it is the disc, and not the scale-leaves, that is the great storehouse of food.

PLATE 4. DAFFODILS ELLEN WILLMOTT, (17. MDME. DE GRAAFF, 18. HORSFIELDI)

=Growth of a Corm.=--The vegetation of the corm is very remarkable, and somewhat resembles that of the Tulip. When a corm commences to grow, the reserve material within it is used up for the benefit of the flowers and leaves. The result of this absorbing process is that by the end of the season the old corm has almost vanished, or is reduced to a dry shrivelled, woody, and lifeless mass, incapable of further growth, and attached to the base of the new corms, as shown in the annexed sketches of Gladiolus and Crocus on page 14.

These new corms are the direct result of the work that has been done by the green leaves in the daylight, and after a period of rest, they go through precisely the same process the following season--vanishing themselves, but leaving others behind to carry on the work of producing flowers, and, if possible, seeds.

Illustration: GLADIOLUS. _o. c._ old corm; _c. r._ contractile roots; _n. c._ new corms with "spawn" (_s_.) at base.

Illustration: CROCUS CORM. _o. c._ old corm; _n. c._ new corm with growths.

=The importance of Green Leaves to Bulbs and Corms.=--If the reader wishes to be successful in growing bulbous plants in his garden he must have very great respect for the green leaves of his plants, and always endeavour to keep them in the cleanest and healthiest possible condition. From what has just been said about the production of new bulbs in the Tulip, and new corms in the Crocus and Gladiolus, it is obvious that the leaves play a most important part. Indeed, without their aid there would be neither bulbs nor corms to carry on the work of the plants from year to year. In the form of carbon-dioxide the leaves eat up the carbon and oxygen from the atmosphere. Under the influence of sunlight the gas is decomposed, so that the oxygen is given off again into the air, while the carbon is retained for the production of starch and other materials. These are elaborated in the cells of the leaves, and after undergoing certain changes pass down the stems and are stored up in the bulbs or corms beneath the surface of the soil. It is only _green_ healthy leaves that can perform this important work satisfactorily. When the foliage therefore begins to turn yellow and wither, it may be taken for granted that its work for the season is coming to a close, and the bulbs or corms are going to enjoy a well-earned rest. It should, perhaps, be mentioned also that leaves can only become green in day light; and although some bulbous plants like a certain amount of shade, it would never do to exclude the light from them altogether, or even to plant them in places where they could not get an adequate amount of sunshine, or diffused light, during the day.

SOIL FOR BULBOUS PLANTS.

Comparatively few of the bulbous plants mentioned in this volume will require anything better than ordinary good garden soil that has been deeply dug, contains a certain amount of well-decomposed manure, and is well-drained so that the water freely passes away. Such a soil will give general satisfaction, with the least amount of trouble, especially if it is inclined to be light rather than heavy.

To secure really first-class results, however, the soil in beds or borders that are to be planted with bulbs should be particularly well-prepared in advance. A heavy soil, that is, one inclined to hold water, and of a clayey nature, will require a good deal more labour to bring it into a proper condition than a soil that is already friable and in a fair state of tilth. The heavy soil should be not only deeply dug to a depth of two feet or more, taking care not to bring the lower layers to the surface in the operation, although they should be turned over and pulverised as much as possible where they are. Plenty of sand or road-grit should be incorporated with a heavy soil, not only to keep it "open," but also to increase its warmth--a matter of some importance in our cold wet winters. The upper layer of soil, say a foot from the surface, may be still further improved by the admixture of old cow-manure and soot. In very bad soils, powdered quicklime may also be added, not only to absorb superfluous moisture, but to render the soil sweeter and more fertile. On no account, however, should fresh, rank manure be dug into the soil just before the bulbs are planted, as the heat and gases generated by its decomposition are often injurious to the extremely tender tips of the young roots.

PLATE 5. (DAFFODILS 19. CYCLAMINEUS, 20. TRIANDRUS ALBUS, 21. PRINCESS MARY OF CAMBRIDGE, 22. GLORIA MUNDI, 23. SIR WATKIN)

An ordinary good garden soil--that is, one that is regularly dug, hoed, manured, and cropped with some class of plants--will only need to be well dug for bulbs, and to have some well-decayed manure and soot incorporated with it a week or two before planting. For some bulbs, such as the Mariposa Lilies (Calochorti), some of the bulbous Irises, and a few other kinds, it may be necessary to take particular pains with the preparation of the soil for them. Attention has been specially called to plants of this nature, where such has been considered necessary. It should be remembered that when bulbous plants are attacked by fungoid diseases, referred to at p. 145, it is very often the result of a badly prepared soil, and not to any inherent defect in the bulbs.

HINTS TO BEGINNERS.

There is a beginning to everything, and the cultivation of bulbous plants is no exception to the rule. It is probable in many cases that the beginner at bulb-growing falls into precisely the same errors as the beginner with other classes of plants. The most common error of all, perhaps, is that he wants to grow at once every bulbous plant known. He sees a book, like the present one for example, and admires the beautiful pictures of bulbous plants in it. The result may be--and I hope it will be--a keen desire to invest in the bulbs that can produce such charming blossoms. But this keen desire should be tempered with discretion. His garden may be only a small one, and perhaps already stocked with many other plants. As he cannot hope to get the whole of Kew Gardens into it at once, it would be as well to start with only a few _kinds_ of bulbs. I do not mean of a _few bulbs_ of _many_ kinds, as he is almost sure to be disappointed in the results. In these days of imperial thought it is no use thinking of producing an effect in a garden with six bulbs of either Snowdrops, Crocuses, Tulips, or Daffodils. It is as well to think of the larger bulbs like the Lilies and choice Hyacinths in _dozens_; of the medium sized ones like Tulips, Daffodils, Tritonias, and bedding Hyacinths in _hundreds_; and of the smaller ones like Crocuses, Snowdrops, Spanish Irises, Scillas, Chionodoxas, and Bluebells in _thousands_. The dearer and choicer kinds are better left alone, perhaps, until some advance has been made with the others.

=Buying Bulbs.=--To buy bulbous plants in dozens, hundreds, or thousands of course means money. The beginner, however, is not advised to buy large quantities of _all_ the kinds mentioned to begin with, as the cost might be prohibitive, or the convenience for their proper treatment inadequate. What is strongly recommended, however, is to start with a large number of any one, two, or three kinds as can be afforded one year, instead of frittering away the same amount of money over a few bulbs each of perhaps a dozen different kinds which will fail to produce the anticipated effect later on. It is much better, for instance, to buy, say 100 bulbs of cottage or Mayflowering Tulips, than to invest in 100 bulbs belonging to eight different genera.

The 100 Tulips would make a fine show in the garden, because there would probably be enough of them; whereas the other bulbs, although quite as handsome in their own way would be lost, or at least inconspicuous, owing to the small number of each in flower at the same time.

If only one or two kinds of bulbs can be bought in sufficient quantity each season, with care they can be increased each year afterwards, and need not be purchased again. This will permit of the purchase of a sufficient number of one or two other kinds the following year, and as these will increase and multiply in the same way, there will be quite a large number of excellent bulbs available at the end of a few years. Each season there is a larger and better display than the preceding one, and that is a result very rarely attained, even after several years' labour, and a lot of money has been spent, when the principle of having only a _few_ bulbs of _many_ kinds is adopted.

If the effect is not produced the first season, enthusiasm is likely to be killed, or the interest in bulb-growing may be seriously diminished.

The beginner is strongly advised to start with such easily-grown and effective bulbs as Tulips, Daffodils, and Spanish Irises, afterwards adding Montbretias or Tritonias, Gladiolus, Liliums, Chionodoxas, Scillas, Snowdrops, Grape Hyacinths, Crocuses, &c., according to fancy. Of course all these may be started with, but as stated before, each kind should be purchased in sufficient quantity to make a bold and effective display when in blossom.

PLATE 6. DAFFODILS (24. GRAND MONARQUE, 25. SOLEIL D'OR, 26. WEARDALE PERFECTION, 27. LULWORTH)

=A Word of Warning.=--Beginners must not run away with the idea that the largest bulbs give the most blossom. In many instances this is very far from being the case--notably with the florists' Hyacinth--which is a most deceptive bulb. Small heavy bulbs are much better than large light ones--that is light or heavy according to their size. In Daffodils, too, there is a good deal of variety in the shape and size of different varieties, some being naturally smaller than others, and yet capable of throwing fine blossoms. All healthy bulbs, no matter to what genus they belong, should be firm and solid, and not soft and pappy to the touch. A distinction must also be made between well-ripened "flowering bulbs," and those often advertised as "planting bulbs." The latter are perfectly sound, but being merely offsets from the "flowering" bulbs, are not likely to flower the first year after planting, although a few of the stronger ones may do so. When one can afford to await a couple of years, "planting" bulbs offer a cheap means of stocking a garden, as a thousand can be purchased for a few shillings.

The other hints, necessary for a beginner, will be found in the following pages attached to the different groups of bulbs or corms he may wish to grow.

HOW DEEP SHOULD BULBS BE PLANTED?

This question has been agitating the minds of gardeners for some considerable time, and has given rise to a certain amount of discussion. Some advocate very deep planting, on the strength of having discovered the bulbs of such plants as Snowdrops, &c., a foot or more beneath the surface of the soil without any decrease in vigour. On the contrary, it has been contended that the plants have shown unusual sturdiness, notwithstanding the amount of reserve material the bulbs must have expended before the leaves were able to reach the light. It is natural that bulbs that are left in beds and borders for a few years without lifting should be found at a greater depth than is generally recommended for the planting of new bulbs. In the course of time the soil is turned up more or less deeply, and any bulbs in it are almost sure to be buried deeper than they were before; or frequent top dressings of soil or manure may have been given, and thus place the bulbs still further from the light. It is possible, however, that bulbs get buried deeply owing to the downward pull of their own contractile roots referred to below.

Although I am not going to recommend very deep planting, there is one great advantage in having bulbs in the open air well covered with soil, viz., that the temperature of the soil at one, two, or three feet is often as much as 20 degrees higher than it is immediately on the surface during very cold and frosty weather. This is a wonderful provision of Nature for the protection of all kinds of roots and bulbs beneath the soil in winter.

In the following pages the average size of the bulbs or corms of different genera is given. It will be noticed that they vary from half an inch in diameter in some of the smaller Narcissi, to three, four, or five inches in some of the Liliums. Between these two extremes there are nearly all shapes and sizes, and it is not unnatural that the amateur should be somewhat puzzled as to the depth he ought to plant any particular bulb.

For planting bulbs in the open air, I venture to propound a safe general rule, viz.:--_cover a bulb or corm with about twice its own depth of soil_. Thus a bulb one inch through from top to bottom would be planted about three inches deep, so that it would be covered with two inches of soil. The adoption of this principle means fairly deep planting in the case of large bulbs. There are a few exceptions, however, to this rule, but they have been noted in the proper place.

Illustration: DIBBER.

The actual planting of bulbs in formal beds may be done with either a garden trowel or dibber. The trowel is better for the larger bulbs like Liliums, and may of course be used for smaller bulbs if found to be more convenient. The dibber is useful for making holes at very regular distances apart in the lines, and into each hole a bulb may be dropped in, afterwards covering it over with soil.

Illustration: _Wrong_ and _Right_ way of planting Bulbs with Dibber.

A blunt dibber as shown in the sketch, will be found more useful than a pointed one for the work, although it may not be pushed into the soil so readily. The danger of a sharp-pointed dibber is shown in the sketch. A fairly large bulb is liable to be hung up in the hole as its diameter is greater than that of the dibber at a certain depth. Under these circumstances roots would not be emitted so readily from the base, as when the bulb is resting flat on the bottom of the hole as shown in the sketch to the right.

PLATE 7. GARDENIA NARCISSUS (28) POET'S NARCISSUS (29) HYACINTHUS AMETHYSTINUS (30)

THE NATURAL SINKING OF BULBS AND CORMS.

In connection with the question of planting, attention may be directed to a very interesting and remarkable power possessed by the roots of many bulbs and corms. A glance at the sketches of Gladiolus, Tritonia, Nothoscordum, and Lilium, will show the reader some thick fleshy roots with conspicuous rings on them. They are readily distinguished from the finer fibrous roots, and, as may be readily supposed, their functions are quite distinct. To thoroughly understand what these thick-ringed roots are for, the reader will remember what has been said at page 13 about the way in which the old corms of Crocuses and Gladioli disappear, or are surmounted in autumn by new ones. If the plants were not disturbed for several years, one would imagine that as the new corms were always produced _on top_ of the old ones, they would sooner or later come through the surface of the soil, and thus run the risk of being either parched by drought, or shrivelled up by the heat of the summer sun; or, again, of being frozen to death in winter. And yet, examination of the corms will show that the new ones are quite as deep down in the soil, if not deeper, than their predecessors. This remarkable state of affairs to preserve what may be called the _status quo_ is entirely due to the action of the thick, ringed roots referred to above. These roots usually strike straight down into the soil. When they have gone as far as Nature intended them to, they begin to contract much in the same way apparently as a worm does when going into its burrow, and for this reason they have been called "contractile."

Illustration: NOTHOSCORDUM BULB. Showing Contractile Roots.

Illustration: TRITONIA CORMS.

During the process of contraction a tremendous force must be exerted to enable the roots to pull the corms or bulbs down to their proper level in the soil. The passive resistance of the latter is overcome, and as a result its particles are pressed much closer together than they were before.

Sometimes this pulling power of the roots is exerted horizontally instead of vertically, and this accounts for the spreading of many bulbous plants like Tulips, Grape Hyacinths, &c., over a large area in the course of a few years when left undisturbed.

=Bulbous Plants without Contractile Roots.=--Some bulbous plants have not the advantage of contractile roots to keep them down in the soil, so they must secure this desirable end by different means.

Illustration: COLCHICUM. _o. c._ old corm; _n. c._ new growth; _o. r._ old roots.

Illustration: BULBOCODIUM. _o. c._ old corm; _n. c._ new growth; _o. r._ old roots.

A glance at the sketches of Colchicum and Bulbocodium will show a peculiar method of growth. The new corm instead of being produced on top of the old one, is developed at the side. Note, however, that the new corm is not on the same level as the old one. That would be no advantage whatever. Therefore it takes, as it were, a step _downwards_, so as to be well out of reach of mowing machines, rats, and mice, and other enemies, and also probably because it knows it will be much warmer in winter when several inches below the surface. The same principle seems to be employed by the bulbs of the Dog's Tooth Violets (_Erythronium_), as may be seen from the sketch--the new bulb to the right being distinctly lower than the older one to the left.

Illustration: ERYTHRONIUM.

PLATE 8. FRITILLARIAS (31. MOGGRIDGEI, 32. WALUJEWI, 33. MELEAGRIS ALBA, 34. RECURVA)

PROPAGATION OF BULBOUS PLANTS.

Perhaps there is no one class of plants that have so many ways of being easily increased as bulbous plants proper. Some kinds, _e.g._, Liliums, Alliums, may be increased in four different ways--from offsets and "spawn," scales, bulbils, and, last of all, seeds.

=Offsets.=--The great mass of bulbous and cormous plants, however, are so readily multiplied by detaching the offsets from the parent bulb or corm, that the other methods are rarely employed except by trade growers. Nearly all hardy bulbous plants produce offsets freely. These offsets represent a superabundance of nourishment that has been elaborated in the leaves, and very often there are several smaller ones attached to the base of the larger ones that have been produced in precisely the same way.

In the case of Daffodils, Tulips, Hyacinths, Crocuses, Gladiolus, and a host of others, the new offsets are pressed against the sides or on top of the older ones. In the drawing of the Tulip (p. 30), three new bulbs are to be seen surrounding all that is left of the old bulb. This latter has practically vanished up the main axis from the disc to produce flowers and leaves--hence it follows that the Tulip bulb somewhat resembles the corm in its vegetative characters. The bulbs taken out of the soil in early summer are not those that were planted the previous autumn.

Besides "offsets," some plants produce numerous small vegetative bodies called "cloves" or "spawn." These are shown in the drawing of the Gladiolus (p. 14), where two strong flowering corms have been developed on top of the old shrivelled one. At the base of each of these are numerous small outgrowths among the contractile roots. If these growths or spawn are taken off and stored in sandy soil until spring, they may then be planted in special beds, and in the course of two or three years will reach the flowering size.

Illustration: Tulip. _d._ disc of old bulb; _f. s._ flower and leaf-stalk which have eaten up old bulb; _n. b._ new bulb and offsets.

The Liliums are a large and interesting group of bulbous plants. Many of them produce offsets freely round the base of the old bulb. There are several species, however (_e.g._, _canadense_, _Grayi_, _maritimum_, _pardalinum_, _Parryi_, _superbum_), which have creeping rootstocks or rhizomes, and the new offsets are produced along these at intervals as shown in the drawing.

=Division.=--Bulbs or corms are rarely cut up for purposes of propagation. The best example in which this method of increase is practised is the Gladiolus. The larger corms, if they show two or more crown-growths, may be carefully cut down between them with a sharp knife. The cut surfaces may be dipped in soot, not only to dry it more rapidly, but also to prevent any stray spores of fungoid diseases from germinating.

Illustration: RHIZOME (_r_) WITH OFFSETS.

=Leaf-Scales.=--The thick, fleshy, deltoid scales of many of the Liliums will develop buds at the base, as shown in the drawing, when detached and inserted almost vertically in sandy soil. In about three or four years flowering bulbs can be produced by this means.

A somewhat analogous process is adopted with Hyacinths. The old bulb is slashed across the base of the disc two or three times into the fleshy scales. The cut surfaces dry up, and by-and-bye small buds or bulblets, as shown on the sketch of the Lily scale, make their appearance. In due course these bulblets are detached and planted in light sandy soil. The propagation of the florists' varieties of Hyacinths by this means is not altogether satisfactory, as the old bulbs themselves undergo a deterioration in our variable climate.

Illustration: Scale leaf (_s. l._) of Lily bulb showing new growth (_n. b._) at base.

PLATE 9. TULIPS (35-38)

=Bulbils.=--These are vegetative growths--neither seeds, bulbs, nor offsets--that appear in the axils of the aerial leaves, as shown in the sketch. Many Liliums, like _bulbiferum_, _tigrinum_, _speciosum_, _Leichtlini_, and some of the Alliums produce them with great regularity. It is thought that bulbils are borne by some plants and not others, because the conditions for the fertilisation or ripening of the seeds are not favourable. In such cases, therefore, Nature has provided such plants with this means of reproduction by bulbils, rather than allow them to run the risk of dying out altogether. In Kerner and Oliver's "Natural History of Plants" it is stated that "There are two forms of Orange Lily indigenous to Europe. One (_Lilium croceum_), occurring especially in the Pyrenees and South of France, almost always ripens fruits and forms no bulbils in its leaf-axils. The other (_Lilium bulbiferum_), found in the valleys of the Central and Northern Alps, hardly ever fruits, but is characterised by the bulbils it produces in the axils of its leaves; bulbils which disarticulate in autumn and are scattered by the wind. But there is no difference noticeable in the structure of the flowers in these two Orange Lilies, and it is difficult to explain their difference in mode of propagation, save on the assumption that in the regions where _Lilium bulbiferum_ grows those insects are wanting which should convey its pollen from flower to flower. As the Orange Lily possesses no arrangements for autogamy (_i.e._, self-fertilisation), no fruits are formed in the absence of insect visits. It appears that this plant has lost the capacity for autogamy; at any rate, if a stigma be pollinated with pollen from the same flower on plants in a garden, no result follows. On the other hand, offshoots in the form of numerous bulbils are produced by _Lilium bulbiferum_, by means of which it is propagated and dispersed. In several valleys of the Central Alps it does not flower at all, and thus obviously depends entirely upon its bulbils for propagation."

Illustration: BULBILS in leaf-axils.

The bulbils should not be detached from the stems until the latter are quite ripe, and the foliage shows signs of withering. They may be sown as if they were large seeds. They possess the advantage over seeds, however, inasmuch as they produce flowering bulbs two or three seasons before the bulbs from real seeds come to maturity.

=Bulbous Plants from Seeds.=--The would-be raiser of bulbous plants from seeds must be gifted with a good deal of patience, and be systematic in his methods, otherwise he will find it is no sinecure to wait from five to ten years before a flower appears from the seeds he sowed at the beginning of those periods. Even when the blossoms do appear, the great majority of them are likely to be inferior in almost every way to their progenitors. The raising of bulbous plants from seeds, therefore, is not likely to find many enthusiastic disciples among amateur growers, who, as a rule, are content to cultivate the varieties that have been evolved by generations of gardeners. Under these circumstances it is most fortunate that bulbous plants can be so readily multiplied by offsets. Of course, in large gardens and nurseries, where there is a trained staff of men, it is a comparatively easy matter to save and sow a certain quantity of seeds each year. After the first period of waiting is over, each season sees a fresh lot of seedlings burst into blossom. Any particularly fine forms are marked, and afterwards increased by means of the offsets or bulbils.

Illustration: TULIP SEEDLING. _b._ young bulb; _r._ first root; _s. l._ seed leaf; _s. c._ seed-coat.

The annexed drawing shows a seedling Tulip. The germination is very similar to that of the common garden Onion. The swollen portion at the base represents the first stage in the development of the bulb, and each year for six or seven seasons sees it increase in size, and ultimately large and strong enough to blossom.

=Sowing Seeds.=--The seeds of all the perfectly hardy bulbous plants may be sown in the open air, in beds specially prepared for the purpose. The soil should be a light sandy loam with a good sprinkling of leaf-mould in it. The "drills" may be drawn about one inch deep, and as the seedlings in many cases are left to look after themselves until they bloom, the seeds should be sown very thinly--two or three inches apart--so as to allow for future development. It would scarcely be wise, in the case of choice or rare varieties, to trust the seeds to the open air. They may, however, be sown in pots or pans, and after two or three seasons' growth they will be large enough for transferring to the open air. The seeds of bulbous plants may be sown in spring if they ripen late in the year; or in early autumn if they ripen in summer.

LIFTING AND STORING BULBS.

PLATE 10. TULIPS (39-42)

As all bulbous plants have a period of rest at some season of the year, it is a matter of some little importance whether the bulbs or corms in the soil shall be taken up, or left in the ground from year to year. It will be noticed in many instances in the following pages that certain kinds are recommended to be left in the ground for three or four seasons without being disturbed. This practice may be adopted with advantage when bulbs are naturalised in the grass, the rock-garden, by the sides of lakes, &c., and in thin shrubberies or borders, where they are not likely to be rooted up during the year.

In the formal flower beds, however, in which Tulips, Daffodils, Hyacinths, Crocuses, &c., are planted for a display in spring and early summer, it is necessary to lift them after flowering, not only to make way for the summer "bedding" plants, but also to allow of the beds being re-dug and re-arranged if necessary.

The best time for lifting the bulbs is usually when the leaves have commenced to turn yellow. Some do this earlier than others, but in all cases, it is a sign that growth has ceased, and that bulbs or corms in the soil are ripe, and will be improved by a period of rest.

=Storing.=--When lifted by means of a fork, the bulbs may be spread out to dry, either in the sun, or in some dry and airy shed. After a few days they may be gone over and cleaned by hand, taking off the old leaves, and putting the offsets or bulbils in separate receptacles from the large and well-ripened bulbs that are to be used for next year's display. The bulbs lifted in early summer (_e.g._, Tulips, Daffodils, Hyacinths, &c.) may be spread out in thin layers--not heaps--upon shelves in a cool, airy shed, where they can remain without injury until the time of planting in autumn comes round.

In the case of bulbs or corms that are lifted in autumn when the leaves begin to fade, like the Gladiolus, the same process of cleaning is gone through, but care must be taken to keep them where the frost will not touch them during the winter. It is a good plan to store them in dry sand or earth in shallow boxes, and place them in dry, airy cellars or sheds until the spring.

COMBINATIONS OF BULBOUS AND NON-BULBOUS PLANTS.

While bulbous plants alone, especially when used in large quantities, make an effective display in the garden, they can be made much more attractive by the exercise of a little art and a pleasing combination with other plants that come into blossom at the same period.

In the first place, true bulbous plants, like Tulips, Daffodils, and Bluebells for example, that flower at the same time may be mixed together for planting in grassy banks, or near the margins of lakes, &c., where they are not likely to be disturbed for several years. Similar combinations may be made with Snowdrops, Chionodoxas, Scillas, Leucojums, Crocuses, &c., that appear in the spring; and with Colchicums, autumn-flowering Crocuses, and Sternbergias in the late autumn.

In the next place, the grace and beauty of bulbous plants proper are enhanced by judiciously mixing them with plants of a non-bulbous nature. Among these latter may be noted the following as being particularly useful:--Wallflowers, Forget-me-Nots, Polyanthuses, Primroses, White Arabis (_A. albida_), and Yellow Alyssum (_A. saxatile_), Violas and Pansies, the Winter Aconite (_Eranthis hiemalis_, and _E. cilicica_), Silene, Aubrietia. These are all useful for planting in the autumn at the same time as the bulbs of Tulips, Daffodils, Hyacinths, Crocuses, Snowdrops, Scillas, Chionodoxas, &c. Where formal beds are necessary the non-bulbous plants may be put in first, leaving sufficient space between the plants for the insertion of the bulbs afterwards.

To secure effect and contrast, a little skill, or rather knowledge, of the different plants used, is necessary. Haphazard and careless combinations are not to be encouraged in the formal flower-beds. It would be a mistake, for instance, to mix three or four different kinds of bulbs (_e.g._, Snowdrops, Tulips, Daffodils, or Hyacinths) with Wallflowers, Forget-me-Nots, or any of the other plants mentioned above. The effect would be ludicrous, and give the beds a higgledy-piggledy appearance. Nor would it be wise to use one kind of plant in such a way that the other would be smothered or practically concealed from view. This could happen easily with combinations of such plants as Wallflowers or Forget-me-Nots, and such bulbs as Crocuses, Snowdrops, &c.

The true idea of combination should be such that one plant is really as prominent as the other when in blossom--each one, in fact, lending and borrowing at the same time some charm from the other. Colours of course play an important part in this scheme, and care should be exercised at the time of planting _not_ to combine Yellow Polyanthuses, Yellow Wallflowers, or Yellow Violas, for instance, with Yellow Tulips or Daffodils; and so on.

PLATE 11. HYACINTHS (43-46)

The following are a few suggested combinations that will look well:--

1. =Violas= (Blue), beneath White, Red, or Yellow Tulips or Daffodils.

2. =Violas= (Yellow), beneath White or Scarlet Tulips or Hyacinths.

3. =Violas= (White), beneath Scarlet or Yellow Tulips or Daffodils.

4. =Wallflowers= (Red), with Yellow, White, or Orange Tulips or
Daffodils.

5. =Wallflowers= (Yellow), with Scarlet, Pink, White, or Red Tulips.

6. =Forget-me-Nots= (Blue), with all Tulips, Red and White Hyacinths,
and Daffodils.

7. =Aubrietia= (Purple), with Tulips or Daffodils.

8. =White Arabis=, with Tulips, Daffodils, or Hyacinths.

9. =Yellow Alyssum=, with red-flowered or white-flowered Tulips or
Hyacinths.

10. =Silene= (Rose), with White or Yellow Tulips and Daffodils.

NATURALISING BULBOUS PLANTS IN THE GRASS.

Although it has only been recognised of late years, owing chiefly to the teachings of Mr. Robinson, there is no place so natural perhaps for the artistic display of bulbous plants as in some piece of grass-land, whether it be a meadow, a sloping bank, the margin of a piece of water, or even a lawn. Every lover of bulbous plants, however, cannot gratify his individual tastes as to where he would like his bulbs to blossom, and he must perforce make the best of the piece of ground--large or small as it may be--that happens to be at his disposal. In large parks and gardens there is no difficulty, or there ought to be none, in securing suitable sites to show off the natural graces of the various bulbous plants recommended for the purpose in this volume. And even in small suburban gardens, where one often sees a piece of grass lying bare and cheerless in winter, a better use might be made of bulbs. Ce n'est que le premier pas qui coute. Once the initial cost and labour of getting the bulbs beneath the turf is over there is joy ever afterwards, and keen anticipation in watching the spring and autumn Crocuses, Sternbergias, Snowdrops, Snowflakes, the smaller Fritillaries, the Chionodoxas, Scillas, and Bluebells, Narcissi, Grape Hyacinths, and even Tulips, when one is not in too great a hurry to get the mowing done early in the year. One group or another of these plants (to which may be added the tuberous winter Aconite, with its glistening yellow blossoms) may be grown in the smallest of gardens, and will brighten them year after year without trouble or expense, until, perhaps, they become so crowded, that lifting and re-planting becomes essential to prevent suffocation.

BULBOUS PLANTS UNDER TREES AND SHRUBS.

Early flowering bulbs are capital for planting beneath deciduous trees on lawns or in large parks and gardens. The bulbs bloom at a period when the trees are leafless, and therefore sufficient sunlight is able to percolate through the bare branches for their benefit. Such kinds as Snowdrops, Scillas, Chionodoxas, &c., are excellent for this purpose, and may be left for several seasons without disturbance, provided they get a top-dressing of well-decayed manure during the autumn. Before the trees expand their leaves, the bulbous plants beneath have finished their work for the season, so the absence of light during the summer does not interfere with them in the least. On the other hand, however, they enjoy the cool refreshing shade of the tree foliage, which prevents them from being shrivelled up.

BULBOUS PLANTS FOR CUT FLOWERS.

There are comparatively few of the bulbous plants mentioned in this volume that are not fit to be cut for the adornment of bowls, vases, &c., in the dwelling house. Some kinds, of course, are much better suited for the purpose than others, and it would be difficult indeed to surpass the elegance of the Daffodils, Tulips, Wood Hyacinths, and Bluebells in the spring and early summer. Following these we have numerous Liliums--white, yellow, orange, red, variously blotched and speckled, and provided with long wiry stems that are often a great advantage. The late summer and autumn flowering kinds are best represented by the Montbretias, Tritonias, Gladiolus, Brodiaeas, and Sparaxis. The dwarf-flowering bulbous plants, like Snowdrops, Crocuses, Grape Hyacinths, Chionodoxas, Colchicums, Sternbergias, Leucojums, &c., although they look charming in bold masses in the garden, scarcely afford much length of stalk to enable them to be used with great effect in bowls, vases, &c., by themselves. As a groundwork to taller-stemmed blossoms, however, they are often found to come in very useful.

It is, perhaps, scarcely necessary to say that the more simply and naturally flowers are "bunched" the better they look in room decorations. Very often indeed, it is difficult to improve on a bunch of flowers picked at random in the garden and placed in bowls of water as they are--with stems of various lengths, and the blossoms facing in different directions. That some people have extraordinary notions as to what a "bunch" of flowers really means may be gathered from an inspection of any ordinary local flower show in the kingdom. At such exhibitions a "bunch" of flowers is generally as large, flat, unwieldy, and squatty as possible--the various kinds being jammed together as if they were "sticks" of Asparagus done up for market. Educated judges have been endeavouring for some years to get an improvement in the method of putting bunches of flowers together, but with very little success up to the present. The same old order of things prevaileth.

PLATE 12. LEUCOJUM VERNUM, (47) MUSCARI CONICUM (48), ERYTHRONIUM JOHNSONI (49), TECOPHYLAEA CYANOCROCUS (50).

=When to pick Flowers.=--Of course, when people want flowers they will pick them at any time--if they happen to be in their own gardens, not in other people's. It may be as well, however, to remind the reader that if picked either early in the morning--the earlier the better--or in the evening after sunset, flowers last much longer in a cut state, than if they are picked at any other period of the day. Perhaps the very worst time to pick flowers is from mid-day to 2 or 3 o'clock--especially in summer. The heat takes a good deal of substance out of the blossoms, and many get so "blown" that if cut at that particular period of the day, the petals never recover, but drop off in a few hours. Tulips are well-known examples of this. In the morning and evening, the petals close up to a point--really to prevent the pollen from getting drenched with dew or rain. But when the sun shines, they open out, and lie well back from the stamens so that insects may be lured to take the pollen from one flower to another. In this state the blossoms should not be cut or pulled as they will last but a short time.

The water in which flowers are stood should be fresh and clean. If some time has elapsed before the flowers are placed in it, about an inch or so of the stems may be cut off with a sharp knife, so as to allow a layer of fresh cells to come in contact with the water. Some flowers last much longer than others in a cut state, and the period may be prolonged a little by putting a pinch of salt, or a little clean charcoal in the water at the same time.

BULBOUS PLANTS FOR COLD GREENHOUSES.