December 4, 1806. ] 



JOURNAL OP HOUTICULTUUE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



419 



WEEKLY CALENDAR. 



THE GLADIOLI'S IN 1866. 



T is a generally aceepti 1 

 aying Unit "We live and 

 learn, ' and woe especially 

 to that florist who has ar- 

 rived at that wretched stale 

 of self-sufficiency, when he 

 trunks he has no m ire knowledge to acquire. He will be 

 surely left behind in the onward march of ilorieidtural and 

 horticultural skill. On no flower has, I venture to say, 

 this increased knowledge told more than on that beautiful 

 autumnal gem. tho Gladiolus. 



"When, a few years ago, the Gladiolus came into culti- 

 vation, it was considered, and that by thoughtful men who 

 knew what they were about, that it required to be grown 

 in very poor soil, and if the soil was not poor enough it 

 was to be made so. Now the soil can hardly, il is said, be 

 too rich ; and my friend Mr. J. F. Lombard, of Dublin, in 

 a letter to a contemporary, has shown how he : 

 liis Gladiolus by a system of the most liberal treatment. 

 Again: I remember when it was advised always to pick 

 out the largest and strongest bulbs for planting: m 

 hear that moderate-sized bulbs are the best. This I can 

 confirm. "When I received the new ones last autumn from 

 M. Eugene Verdier I was somewhat disappointed at the 

 size of the bulbs, as they were none of them bigger than a 

 walnut. I said nothing, however, and when the bloomiu: 

 time came they produced, I am glad to say. splendid spikes 

 of bloom ; and more than this, there was a variety of Mr. 

 Standish's raising, which I considered one of his very best, 

 but the bulb of which I had lost. There were, however, 

 five or six little bulblings, not one of them larger than a 

 Marrowfat Pea. These I put into a pot; and when they 

 were about ti inches high— apparently but a single blade 

 of grass — I turned them out into the ground. What was 

 my astonishment to lind them all producing a fine spike of 

 bloom ! and when I took them up they, or rather the new 

 bulbs, were as big as Walnuts — ready for a finer bloom, I 

 hope, next year. In these two points, then, our opinions 

 and our practice have been modified, and probably there 

 are other points on which we may have yet something more 

 to learn. 



In the article to which I have alluded the writer speaks 

 of bulbs planted in poor soil producing more increase than 

 those iu rich soil. It may be so. but it is not my experi- 

 ence : but there is an immense difference in varieties as 

 to their power of producing increase, some rarely giving 

 more than three or four bulbs, others literally teeming with 

 progeny. Thus, for instance, of Mons. Lebrun d'Albanne 

 I planted two bulbs, and I am within bounds when I say 

 there were four hundred bulbs of various sizes, from that 

 of a hazel nut to a pin's head : not only were they clustered 



No. 297.— Vol. XI., New Series. 



underneath and around the conns, but over the sides, anil 

 in every possible place. Eleanor Norman, again. OH " : 

 Mr. Standish s varieties, is a very prolific bearer; but of 

 other kinds, both French and English, I have never been 

 able to obtain more than three or four, though grown in 

 the same bed as those already mentioned. I am 

 than ever convinced that the great requisite in hai i 

 good bloom is to have the bulbs well ripened. I do not 

 think that they suffer from being taken up when the stalks 

 are comparatively green, but I do think that they 

 from being left in the ground after they have ripened i 



With regard to the late or early blooming of varieties I 

 hardly think that much dependance can be placed on any 

 of them, as far as my own experience goes. Thus, Madame 

 de Vatry has generally been with me an early bloomer ; 

 this season it was one of the latest I had : so that I do 

 not t Link any rule can be laid down. My experience, then, 

 has led me to these points : — 



Bidbs. — Be sure licit the bulbs which you save yourself, 

 or those whieh you purchase, are thoroughly well dried, and 

 in planting reject any that have black spots around and 

 on the base of the bulb. They may he planted in a sepa- 

 rate corner of the garden if you are anxious to save the 

 variety, for such a bulb may produce a tiny offset that may 

 lie planted : but it is sure to make a blank in your best 

 bed if you plant it there. Do not choose for planting the 

 largi t sized bulbs, but those of a medium size ; they will 

 flower better, and give more satisfaction. 



— Manure highly in tho autumn: dig in plenty ol 

 old Cucumber-frame dung, and let it remain until planting 

 time, unless there be much frost, when turning it up and 

 sweetening it by exposure will lie of great benefit. 



Planting — Lit this be done according to the s. 

 The end of February or beginning of March is a very good 

 time. Even if the bulbs have speared a little do a 

 afraid to keen them out of tho ground until you have a 

 favourable opportunity. When planting, open the place 

 where the bulb is to be. put in a little light soil, with a 

 considerable qaamtitf of silver sand, and plant the crown of 

 the bulb about ■'! inches below the surface. Let the space 

 between the bulbs be about 1 foot each way. You will 

 lose nothing by giving them plenty of room — it is more 

 easy -to go ai them. Of course yon may plant them 



more thickly- if you are pressed for room. 



After-cultivaXi<m. — Keep all clear of weeds. If the 

 weather is dry for a long lime give copious waterings — they 

 are of g» ..: \ clu>. Top-dress if you think your soil is not 



g I enough. The effect of shading has not been much 



tried ; I am inclined to think, if judiciously managed, it 

 would be of great advantage. Tie up the flower-stems by 

 placing stakes and then weaving list in and out amongst 

 them. 



Propagation. — You will generally obtain, although not 

 always, an increase of large bulbs, some breaking into two 

 or three : but this cannot be expected from small bulls. 

 and. indeed, some large-sized ones never break, and only 

 one large conn is again formed over the old one. Where 

 there is an increase in the small fry. what is done with them 

 must depend on the sorts and the desire to increase stock. 

 No. 910. -Vol. XXXVI., Old Series. 



