34 



THE NEW JAPAN LILIES. 



seen by the mesh of white roots emitted on 

 the surface of the soil, and which, with 

 those below, are the greedy recipients of 

 any reasonable quantity of richness that 

 may be administered in the form of liquid 

 manure or guano ; under these influences 

 and judicious shiftings of the bulbs to 

 larger pots, the luxuriance is truly asto- 

 nishing, strong bulbs throwing up thick, 

 robust stems of three to four feet, covered 

 with a dense white bloom, alike significant 

 of the adaptation of the soil and tempera- 

 ture in which they delight to revel. 



When the floAver buds are developed, 

 the Lilies should be removed to the tem- 

 perature of the green-house, the nearer the 

 light the better. The bloom being past, 

 the plants should be watered more sparing- 

 I3', and when a disposition for dormancy is 

 evinced, by the waning yellow foliage, this 

 may be entirely dispensed with — the stalks 

 cut down, the pots removed to the potting 

 bed, or a place where they are dry or pro- 

 tected against frost, there to remain until 

 the appropriate season for recommencing 

 operations. In this state of rest, the bulbs 

 should not be taken out of the pots, but it 

 is well to examine them once a month, and 

 if very dry, to give them a careful water- 

 ing. Of the ultimate hardiness and adap- 

 tation of the Japan Lilies and their off- 

 spring to our gardens, I intend to satisfy 

 myself, by experiments, the ensuing year. 

 Yours, M. P. Wilder. 



JSosion, June 10, 1647. 



Remarks. — We are greatly indebted to 

 Col. Wilder, for the foregoing excellent 

 practical notes, which he has given our 

 readers, regarding the Japan Lilies — per- 

 haps the finest of all the present floral no- 

 velties of the day. 



Col. Wilder has, we believe, the largest 

 collection of these Lilies in the country, 

 having not only been among the first to in- 

 troduce them, but also equally successful 

 in their cultivation. We had the pleasure 

 of seeing some of the cross-bred seedlings 

 raised by him, at an exhibition of the Mas- 

 sachusetts Society, which were, if possible, 

 more beautiful than any of the original 

 species ; and we anticipate, among those of 

 his own production, now about to bloom for 

 the first time, some A'arieties of great deli- 

 cacy and brilliancy. 



We understand that the Japan Lilies 

 produce seed more freely in the United 

 States than in European gardens. It is 

 also not a little remarkable, as we believe 

 there is no parallel to it in Europe, that all 

 the hybrids produced by Col. Wilder, that 

 have yet flowered, have a strong resem- 

 blance to the rarest and finest species — 

 Lilium speciosum. 



We have only to add our testimony, 

 from experience here last winter, that these 

 Lilies have proved hardy in the open bor- 

 der, Avith a slight covering of earth only ; 

 and there can scarcely be a doubt that they 

 will soon take their place among the love- 

 liest ornaments of the parterre. — Ed. 



Invigorating Fruit Trees. — The papers 

 often contain notices of the advantages of 

 applying ashes, charcoal, lime, &c., to fruit 

 trees, to increase their growth ; these are 

 often beneficial in moderate quantities, and 

 occasionally eminently so in certain condi- 



tions of the tree or soil ; but the treatment 

 which is most strikingly beneficial, and in 

 the greatest number of cases, is to make 

 the soil deep and rich, and to keep it clean 

 and mellow, by constant cultivation. Hence 

 the selection of stony ground is bad policy. 



