Part 6

=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.