SEPTEMBER 



IRISH GARDENING. 



'39 



Bulb Culture in Bowls. 



THE culture of bulbous plants in bowls is becomings 

 more and more popular every year. It is easy 

 to understand why. It demands only a slight 

 knowledge of plant requirements and maybe followed 

 by any one, even a town-dweller, who is sufficiently 

 interested to make the attempt and give the plants a 

 fair chance of success. No garden is needed. It is 

 essentially an occupation for the home. Bowls of 

 growing bulbous plants in flower give a charming effect 

 to rooms— bright in colour, refreshing in their lust)- 

 greeness, and beautiful always. 



The general effect is 

 shown in the two photo- 

 graphs here reproduced. 

 In order to secure sue 

 cess a few facts con- 

 cerning the physiolog}- 

 of bulbous plants must 

 be clearly understood 

 and intelligently applied 

 to their cultivation. A 

 sound bulb carries a bud 

 or cluster of buds from 

 which the green leaves 

 and flowers spring. The 

 leaves and flowers are 

 already formed, but they 

 are extremely small. 

 They are, when the 

 bulb is planted, in a 

 dormant state, but given 

 moisture, warmth, and 

 air they awaken into life 

 and rapidly shoot up- 

 ward towards the light. 

 As to food, this is 

 already provided in the 

 " bulb " — stored away in 

 the scale leaves of a 

 true bulb (as in Nar. 

 cissusj or in the solid 

 mass of the corm (as 

 in Crocus) or in the 

 rhizome (as in Lily of 

 the Valley). 



The water is taken up 

 of course by the newly- 

 formed roots of the bulb. It follows therefore that , for one 

 season at least, the bulb has sufficient food stored within 

 its own tissues to nourish the growing shoots and 

 flowers. Its requirements are thus reduced to a suitable 

 water supply, so long as you secure the free entrance 

 of air to the living roots, expose the foliage to 

 light, and keep the plants in a place in which the tem- 

 perature is not too cold to check development. The 

 only point of difficulty (or rather the only essential factor 

 likely to give difficulty) is to keep the roots sufficiently 

 supplied with water and with air. This is secured by 

 using as a "soil" some substance that is spongy 

 enough to hold water and air at the same time — water 

 saturating its substance, and air filling its spaces. 

 Some bulbous plants form spongy water roots, so 



Crocises grown in a Bowl 



that they can get air by downward diffusion from 

 the foliage, and these may be grown in a bowl 

 filled with pebbles and water, but in the majority 

 of cases the roots would sicken and die under this 

 mode of culture. 



The difficulty is overcome by using some sort of 

 absorbent fibre. Fibrous peat from a bog would do 

 only it is frequently too acid for ordinary terrestial 

 plants. Fairly coarse rubble formed, for example, from 

 the decay of granitic rocks is quite suitable, as we have 

 ourselves proved. Townspeople, at all events, will find 

 it more convenient to buy the fibre they require for 

 the purpose, and any seedsman will supply them with 

 one or other of the 

 advertised media for 

 bowl culture. The latest 

 of these is " Bulbolin.'" 

 We have not ourselves 

 tried it, but we have 

 seen a series of photo- 

 graphs of bulbs grown 

 in Bulbolin by Sir 

 James Mackey, Ltd., 

 two of which we are 

 permitted to reproduce 

 in this issue. 



The bowls should 

 be three-quarters filled 

 with well wetted fibre ; 

 the bulbs are placed 

 rather thickly on this, 

 and then the bowl is 

 placed quite full with 

 fibre and gently firmed. 

 It is a wise precaution 

 to put a few pieces of 

 chaicoal on the bottom 

 of the bowl, and 

 throughout the lower 

 layer of fibre. It tends 

 to keep the fibre 

 sweet. 



The bowls should be 

 kept in a dark and 

 moderately warm place 

 until the shoots appear 

 above the surface, 

 when they must be 

 placed in a fairly well 

 lighted position to secure firmness of tissue and 

 sturdyness of growth. During growth all the attention 

 required is to see that the fibre is not allowed to get 

 too dry. Care must be taken, however, not to add 

 so much water as will fill the air spaces, or else sick- 

 ness of root will be induced. .Successful culture lies 

 between the two extremes. 



As to the kinds of bulbous pl.ints that may be grown 

 in this way we may mention Daffodils of all kinds, 

 including the Polyanthus Narcissus and the Poet's Nar- 

 cissus, Roman Hyacinths, Tulips, Snowdrops, Crocuses, 

 Glory of the Snow, Squills, and Spanish Irises. 



The great charm of bowl culture is that it is clean and 

 can be conducted in an ordinary room, and gives 

 intense delight to every inmate of the home. 



