TIGER-FLOWERS AND COMMELINAS. 



BY AN AMATEUR, NEW-YORK. 



I. The Tiger-flower. — I see your cor- 

 respondents make frequent inquiries about 

 Verbenas, Scarlet Geraniums, and other 

 plants for "bedding out;" but I rarely see 

 any notice taken of two of the most splen- 

 did species for summer and autumn bloom- 

 ing in beds. I mean the Mexican Tiger-flow- 

 ers, {Tigridia pavonia and T. conchiflora.) 



For gay colouring and striking appear- 

 ance, nothing that will flourish in the open 

 border can compete with the Ti- 

 ger-flowers. Their open cup-like 

 blossoms, either of a rich orange- 

 crimson, as in the Peacock Tiger- 

 flower (T. pavo?iia,) or a chrome 

 yellow, as in the Shell Tiger- 

 flower, (T. conchiflora,) spotted in 

 both species, with rich purple and 

 dark crimson in the bottom of the 

 cups, have a brilliant and showy 

 effect, entirely in keeping with 

 our ideas of what a Mexican flow- 

 er should be. 



These flowers open in the 

 morning, and fade before eve- 

 ning ; but as each flower stem 

 produces several flowers in suc- 

 cession, a bed three or four feet 

 in diameter, containing a couple 

 of dozen bulbs, will produce a constant show 

 of blossoms every day from July to Novem- 

 ber, — forming one of the most attractive 

 spots in the whole flower garden. 



The Tiger-flowers are bulbous plants, 

 growing from one to two feet high. As 

 our bright summers ripen the bulbs as per- 

 fectly as in their native country, they would 

 be as common in our flower gardens as Tu- 

 lips, were it not that the bulbs must be 

 taken up and sheltered from the frost in 



winter. This, however, is so easily done 

 that no lover of fine summer flowers will 

 grudge the ten minutes' labor, necessary, 

 at the approach of winter, to preserve the 

 bulbs till spring. The easiest and most 

 successful way of keeping them, is to take 

 them up as soon as the first frost has touched 

 the tops, lay the entire plant in some shel- 

 tered place for a couple of days to dry, then, 

 after cutting off the tops, lay the bulbs in 



Fig. 111.— The Tiger-flower. 



a shallow box, mixing and covering them 

 with dry sand. This box may be then set 

 away on a shelf in any part of the house or 

 cellar, (or under the stage of the green- 

 house,) where frost will not reach it, and 

 there it may remain till the following 

 spring. Indeed, we take no pains, except 

 to cut off the tops, throw the bulbs in a 

 box, covered with a lid, and place the box 

 under the stage of our green-house. 



The Tiger-flower will grow and bloom 



