Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 12.djvu/269

257 HAEDY PERENNIALS.] HORTICULTURE 257 58. The Lily (Lilium) is a very popular family of hardy bulbous flowers, and one which takes a high position in public estimation. The species arc very handsome, and some of them have long been grown. They are so numerous and varied that no general cultural instructions will be alike suitable to all. Some species, as L. Marta- gon, candidum, chalcedonicum, Szovitzianum, and others, will grow in almost any good garden soil, and succeed admirably in loam of a rather heavy character. L. chalcedonicum has an especial dislike to peat, which on the other hand suits the tiger lily (L. tigrinum) well, and is indispensable for the beautiful American L. superbum and canadense. The choice and more delicate species, such as the grand L. auratum, speciosum, and Krameri, which have come to us in recent times from Japan, the Californian L. Humboldtii, par- (lalinmn, &c., and the splendid hybrid L. Parkmanni, are more particular as to soil, and require a deep bed of mixed turfy loam and peat, with plenty of sharp grit, and a cool moist bottom. The margin of rhododendron beds, where there are sheltered recesses amongst the plants, suit many of the more delicate species well, partial shade and shelter of some kind being essential. The bulbs should be planted about 6 inches below the surface, which should at once be mulched over with half-decayed leaves or cocoa- iibre to keep out frost. Dr Wallace, who has paid much attention to the culture of these plants, remarks, in his Notes on Lilies, that &quot; Lilies require, so far as their roots are concerned, a cool bottom, abun dant moisture, aiid for most kinds a free drainage.&quot; He also recommends to &quot;plant deeply, say 6 to 8 inches, so that the roots may easily get into a moist subsoil, and be sheltered from the scorching drying influence of the sun s rays, to plant early in the autumn, so that the roots maybe at work all the winter, and to plant in a cool shady border, not exhausted by the roots of trees, where the roots may always obtain moisture, and yet not be saturated.&quot; The noble L. auratum, with its large white flowers^ having a yellow band and numerous red or purple spots, is a magnificent plant when grown to perfection ; and so are the varieties called rubro-vittatum and cruentum, which have the central band crimson instead of yellow. Of L. speciosum, also Japanese, the true typical form and the red-spotted and white varieties are grand plants for late summer blooming in the conservatory. The tiger lily, L. tigrinum, and its varieties Fortunei, splendidum, and flore-pleno, are amongst the best species for the flower garden, L. Thunbergi- anum and its many varieties being also good border flowers. The pretty L. Leichtlinii and colchicum, with drooping yellow flowers, and the scarlet drooping-flowered L. tenuifolium make up, with those already mentioned, a series of the finest hardy flowers of the summer garden. The Indian L. giganteum is perfectly distinct in character, having broad heart-shaped leaves, and a noble stem 10 feet high, bearing a dozen or more large deflexed, funnel-shaped, white, purple-stained flowers ; and the Chinese L. cordifolium is similar in character, but dwarfer in habit. For pot culture, the soil should consist of three parts turfy loam to one of leaf-mould and thoroughly rotted manure, adding enough pure grit to keep the mass porous. If leaf-mould is not at hand, turfy peat may be substituted for it. The plants should be potted in October. The pots should be plunged in a cold frame and protected from frost, and about May may be removed to a sheltered and moderately shady place out-doors to remain till they flower, when they may be removed to the greenhouse. This treatment suits the gorgeous L. auratum, the splendid varieties of L. speciosum, and also the chaste-flowering trumpet-tubed L. longiflorum and its varieties. 59. The Lobelia is familiar in gardens under two very different forms, that of the dwarf-tufted plants used for summer bedding, and that of the tall showy perennials. Of the former the best type is L. Erinus, growing from 4 to 6 inches high, with many slender stems, bearing through along period a pro fusion of small but bright blue two- lipped flowers. That which is called sjieciosa offers the best strain of the dwarf lobelias, but the actual varieties are being constantly superseded by new sorts. A good variety will reproduce itself suffi ciently true from seed for ordinary flower borders, but for formal bedding arrangements it is necessary to secure exact uniformity by propagating from cuttings. The herbaceous lobelias, of which L. fulgens may be taken as the type, may be called hardy except in so far as they suffer from damp in winter; they throw up a series of short rosette-like suckers round the base of the old flowering stem, and these sometimes, despite all the care taken of them, rot off during winter. The roots should either be taken up in autumn, and planted closely side by side in boxes of dry coal ashes, these being set for the time they are dormant either in a cold frame or in any airy place in the greenhouse ; or they may be left in the ground, in which case a brick or two should be put beside the plants, some coal ashes being first placed round them, and slates to protect the plants being laid over the bricks, one end resting on the earth beyond. About February they should be placed in a warm pit, and after a few days shaken out and the suckers parted, and potted singly into small pots of light rich earth. After being kept in the forcing pit until well established, they should be moved to a more airy greenhouse pit, and eventually to a cold frame preparatory to planting out. They should have a loamy soil, well enriched with manure ; they require copious waterings when they start into free growth. These tall-growing lobelias make good pot plants, for which purpose the suckers should be parted and the strong ones only potted singly in autumn ; they should be placed in a warm pit to induce them to root freely, transferred when well established to an airy greenhouse shelf, and shifted on frequently during spring till they occupy pots a foot in diameter. The soil should be a very rich loam, top-dressing being given when they are coining into flower, and a very free supply of water is essential. They may be raised from seeds, which, being very fine, require to be sown carefully ; but they do not flower usually till the second year except they are sown very early in heat. A few good sorts are Carminata, Distinction, Excellent, Peach-blossom, liuby, and Victoria Eegina. 60. The Narcissus is a garden flower of great beauty and consider- Nar- able variety of form. The species are all bulbous plants of low cissus. stature, and are with few exceptions perfectly hardy. There are five well-marked sections. The Hoop-petticoat Narcissi, sometimes separated as the genus Corbularia, are not more than from 3 to 6 inches in height, and possess grassy foliage and yellow or white flowers. These have the coronet in the centre of the flower very large in proportion to the other parts, and much expanded, like the old hooped petticoats. The common hoop-petticoat, N. Bulbocodium, has comparatively large bright yellow flowers ; N. tenuifolius is smaller and somewhat paler; N. citrinus is paler and larger; while N. monophyllus is white. The small bulbs should be taken up in autumn and replanted in January or February, according to the state of the season. They bloom about March or April. The soil should be free and open, so that water may pass off readily. A second group is that of the Pseudo-Narcissi, constituting the gcimsdjax of some botanists, of which the daffodil, N. Pseudo-Nar cissus, is the type. In this the corona is also very large and pro minent, but is more elongated and trumpet-shaped. Of this group the most striking species perhaps is N. bicolor, which has the perianth almost white, and the coronet deep yellow ; it yields two fine varieties, Horsfieldii and Empress. N. ceriums (moschatus) and N. cernuus plenus are double and single forms of a cream-coloured species of great beauty; and besides these there are N. lobularis, nobilis, obvallaris, Telamonius, maximus, and others, amongst the most stately of the species, besides N. minor and minimus, which are miniature repetitions of the daffodil. All these grow well in good garden soil, and blossom from March onwards, coming in very early in genial seasons. Another group, the Mock Narcissi, with coronets of medium size, includes the fine varieties of N. incomparabilis, one of which is known as butter-and-eggs, N. poculiformis (montanus), N. odorus and odorus minor (Queen Ann s jonquil), N. juncifolius, and others. The hardier forms of this set thrive in the open border, but the smaller sorts, like Queen Ann s jonquil, are better taken up in autumn, and replanted in February ; they bloom freely about April or May. The Polyanthus Narcissi form another well-marked group, whose peculiarity of producing many flowers on the stem is indicated by the name. In these the corona is small and shallow as compared with the perianth. Some of the hardier forms, as N. Tazetta itself, the type of the group, succeed in the open borders in light well- drained soil, but the bulbs should be deeply planted, not less than 6 or 8 inches below the surface, to escape risk of injury from frost. Many varieties of this form of narcissus are grown. They ad mit of being forced into early bloom, like the hyacinth and tulip. They vary with a white creamy or yellow perianth, and a yellow, lemon, primrose, or white cup or coronet ; and, being richly fragrant, they are general favourites amongst spring flowers. The jonquils, noticed above, as well as the double white narcissus, are also grown in pots for early flowering; and the polyanthus narcissi are sometimes used for bedding out in the spring garden. The following varieties are good : Bazelman major, Gloriosa, Sir Isaac Newton, white with yellow cup ; Grand Monarque and White Pearl, white with pale yellow cup ; Paper White, pure white, early ; Bathurst, Perle d Amour, and Sulphurine, yellow with yellow or orange cup; and Grand Primo, a very fine yellow. These are planted or potted about October, and treated in the same way as the hyacinth. There remains another little group, the Pheasant s-eye Narcissi (N. poeticus), in which the perianth is large, spreading, and con spicuous, and the coronet or cup very small and shallow. These pheasant s-eye narcissi, of which there are several species or well- marked varieties, as N. radiiflorus, poetarum, recurvus, &c., blossom in succession during April and May, and all do well in the open borders as permanent hardy bulbs. N. biflorus, the primrose peerless, a two-flowered whitish yellow-cupped species, is equally hardy and easy of culture ; N. gracilis is yellow-flowered and blooms later, as does the yellow-flowered N. Jonquilla, better known as the jonquil, of which there are single and double flowered varieties, the latter species being a great favourite. 61. The Pceony is a remarkably showy plant, of which two very dis- Paeony. tinct types occur in gardens : one the stout-growing herbaceous XII. - 33