456 



JOURNAL OF HORTIcaLTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ Jone 10, 1875. 



list, yet interested to knoiy a little about the classification, 

 points, and pecaliarities of this most famous flower, I will briefly 

 explain that oar Tulip, which is a taller and later variety than 

 any of the toy sorts so prettily played with in the garden game 

 of bedding, has been classed by florists in three main divisions. 



One class is termed Bizarres. These have yellow ground 

 colours, and the marking is laid-on in black or red, and in many 

 varying depths of brown. Another class goes by the name of 

 Roses. Flowers in this have a pure white ground colour marked 

 with rose, red, or scarlet. The third division consists also of 

 white-ground flowers, but the marking here is in some shade of 

 purple, from lilac to almost black : these are termed Byblcetnens. 



Each of these three classes is subdivided into two most im- 

 portant sections, depending upon the two recognised arrange- 

 ments of the marking upon the ground colour. Either it is laid 

 in beautiful styles of pencilling round the edge only of the petals, 

 or else this pencilling is joined by bold beams of colour that 

 rise like fireflashes up the petal-centre, and strike into the pen- 

 cilling of the edge with their sharp tongues. A flower pencilled 

 only is called a Feathered flower, and one that is beamed and 

 pencilled is called a Flamed flower. The feathering must not 

 break off anywhere round a petal edge, nor the flame be unde- 

 cided, scratchy, or insufficient to strike to the feather. 



The base of the flower must be pure yellow or white, as the 

 case may be; and the stamens, upon which six bold black 

 anthers stand, must be pure as the ground colour. Eich flower 

 is perfect at six petals and cannot be exhibited with more, though 

 there are often blooms with seven or eight, and the shape is 

 thus spoiled. Petals are to be broad, smooth on the edge, level on 

 the top, and of fine polished surface and substance, so bending 

 upwards from the base as to first form a good shoulder. The 

 precise proportion for the cup of the flower has been a sorely 

 vexed question. The practical solution is that we grow some 

 rather long cupped flowers, such as Queen of the North and 

 Kate Connor, and also short-cnpped fl jwers like Orion and Dr. 

 Hardy, which last are of fine propertion in this respect. 



lu Tulips raised from seed a most curious fact is noticed : 

 The young seedlings which may begin to bloom the fourth year 

 after sowing, but more generally the fifth and sixth, will, with 

 very rare exceptions all bloom self-coloured. At this stage they 

 are selected for substance, shape, and purity, colour just now 

 being of small moment, as only temporary. In this self-coloured 

 state they are called Breetlers, and season after season as they are 

 grown now one and now another will " rectify," or " break " as 

 it is termed, into feathered or Aimed flowers, or soma attempt at 

 either. The classes they will belong to is a point decided by the 

 base colour of the breeder, or by colour of base and petal con- 

 sidered together. If the base be yellow the flower is a bizarre, 

 if white a rose, or bybloemen. Roses break from a white base, 

 and pink, red, or scarlet body colours. Byblcemens form a white 

 base and body of lilac, violet or purple. A seedling with lilac 

 body and yellow base is worthless, for it will break into an inad- 

 missible flower called a tricolor. It will have two ground 

 colours — white and yellow, deriving its white through the by- 

 bloemen lilac of the breeder, and its yellow through its base as a 

 bizarre. A red body and yellow base may be kept for the chance 

 of a red bizarre, but as a rule, like the ugly duckling of the story, 

 the young swan, the plainer and weaker colours in the breeder 

 flowers generally produce the richest in the rectified state. 



It is additionally strange that the breeder or mother colour is 

 not simply driven or collected into beautiful markings on the 

 rectified petals, but that it disappears from the flower alto- 

 gether, as a mist or veil lifted off. The base colour floods the 

 whole flower with its pure white or yellow, and a new and mar- 

 vellous colour strikes in to feather or flame the petals. A few 

 bloom " rectified" from the first, and are then said to have had no 

 breeder. The separate bulbs of any one good seedling will some 

 of them break feathered and some flamed, and others in neither 

 one clear character nor another. Each bulb when broken trans- 

 mits its own character to its every offset. This is the origin of 

 " strains " in Tulips, for as each bulb leaves the breeder state it 

 becomes the founder of a strain good or bad. Hence there is 

 much in a strain as in a name in Tulips. 



The breeders are a very lovely class of flowers. Among the 

 roses especially there are the softest and most beautiful pinks 

 and reds. There is nothing gaudy, rough or rude about the 

 florist Tulips ; and though we like to break the breeders out, we 

 value them very much in their light unfigured morning dress. 

 When they will break and how to break them no one kno\*'s, or 

 probably ever will know. Many coaxings and hardships have 

 been tried upon them, and many an eccentric experiment made. 

 Change of soil and locality seem to do something — perhaps 

 more than anything— towards breaking breeders, but all seems 

 mystery, and every result past anticipating. This all makes the 

 work wonderfully speculative and interesting; ard when it is 

 seen how long is required to bloom a Tulip from seed, and have 

 it rectified from the breeder in a good strain, the prices that 

 have been paid for Tulips will seem less excessive. 



Nearly all that compete at our National Show and elsewhere 

 ftre Eaglish-brad seedlings. Wj have left the Dutch varieties 



far behind, and the appearance of fine new rectified seedlings at 

 the National has now become a most marked and interesting 

 feature of the show. Many of us are raisers ; and our worthy 

 President, Dr. Hardy, now rests upon his Tulip Uurels with 

 the honour of having raised, in his Talisman and Ajax, two 

 champion flowers in their classes. 



It wiU, of course, be seen that the rectifying of good new seed- 

 lings IS the way to improved and distinct varieties. When a 

 breeder rectifies it always adopts a shorter stature and more re- 

 fined habit. Some varieties diminish very much in height 

 when their breeders break. The foliage of the breeders is a rich 

 dark green with a fine blue bloom on it in which you might 

 write your name. It is less vigorous when tbebulb rectifies and 

 shows, long before the bud colours, a mottling and streaking 

 with lighter green — the habit of rectified Tulips, and a certain 

 sign beforehand that breeders are broken. 



For rectified seedlings special certificates of honour are 

 awarded at the National, and several obtained the distinction 

 this year. Among them— J. Forman, fea. byb. ; Duke of Edin- 

 burgh, fea. biz. ; Mrs. Cooper, a lovely fea. rose ; Mrs. Plackitt, 

 fea. byb.; Mr. Birlow's Little Annie, not open on the cold day 

 of the Show, is a gem of the first water. 



In the older and established new aorta the following were 

 shown in grand character : — 



Flamed Bizarres.— Dr. Hardy, Sir. J. Paxton, and Ajax. 



Feathered Bizarres. — Demosthenes. Commander, Master- 

 piece, Duke of Edinburgh, Paxton, and Sovereign. 



Flamed Bases. — Triumph Royal, M. St. Arnaud, Annie 

 M'Gregor, Aglaia, Kite Connor, and Mabel. 



Feathered Buses. — Heroine, Aglaia, Industry, Modesty, Mrs. 

 Lomix, Charmer. 



Flamed Byblcemens. — Talisman, and Duchess of Sutherland. 



Feathered Bijhliemens. — Bessie, Mrs. Cooper, Adonis, J. For- 

 man, Mrs. Plackett, and Violet Aimable. — P. D.Hohnek, XirAti/ 

 Malzeard, Bipnn. 



Class 1. — For four stands of twelve dissimilar'TuUps, two fefttberett and 

 two flamed ia each class.— 1, Silver cup, W. Whittaker. with Taliaman, Mabel, 

 Lord Byron, Masterpiece, Pax^oD, Madame St. Arnaud, Ducheaa ot Suther- 

 land, Seedling, Violet Amiable, Industry, Bessy, and Dr. Hardy. 2, Rev. 

 F. D. Homer, with Mrs. Cooper, Triumph Royal, Taliaman, Bessie, Modesty, 

 Demo&thenes, Dr. Hardy, Kate Connor, Ajax, Adonis. Commander, and 

 Heroine. 3, T. Mellor. »ith Heroine, Ajax, Aglaia, Paxton, Adonis, St. 

 Arnaud, Stilphor, Charles X., Chancellor, Violet Amiable. Duche-s of .inther- 

 land, and Mibel. 4. .J.Hague, with Mabel, Queen of May, Heroine. Orleans, 

 Triumph Rjya', Dr. Hardy, Ritcliffe, Paxton, Adonis, Dreaiuou,'ht, and Ajax. 



Class 2. — Seven standi of six disiimiiar Tulips, one fea hered and one 

 flamed in each class. — 1, W. Whittaker, with Besay. Talisman, Sir Joseph 

 Paxton, Ma=iterpiece, Nanny Gibson, and Sa-ah Headly. 2. T. Haynes, with 

 Duke of Edinburgh Heroine, Talisman, Triumph Royal, Mrs. Pickerill, and 

 Sir Joseph Paxton. 3, Rev. F. D. Horner, with Annie M Gregor, Bessie, Pax- 

 ton. Commander, Talisman, and Mid^sty. 4, S. Birlow, with Anuie M'Gregor, 

 Bessie, Demosthenes, Faxton, Talismau, and Heroine. 5, — Forman, with 

 Triumph Royal, Emma Brookes. Jemima Forman, Duchess of Sutherland, 

 Merit, and Masterpiece. 6, W. Lea. with Adonis, Duchess of Sutherland, 

 Triumph, Heroine, Dr. Hardy, and Masterpiece. 7, D. Barber, with Miry 

 Barber, Sarah Headly, Paxton Feathered, Pttxton, Talisman, and Mrs. 

 Pickerill. 



Class 3. — Four stands of six dissimilar Tulips, one feathered and one 

 flamed in each class. — 1, H. Housley, Stockport, with Sr Joseph Paxton, 

 Mabel, Talisman, Unnamed, Aglaia, and Amiable. 2, W. Lea. jun., with 

 Madame Arnaud, Heroine, Duchess of Sutherland, Adonis, Dr. Hardy, and 

 Demosthenes. 3, S. Smedloy, with Heroine, Triumph Royal, Sovereigu, 

 Talisman, Dr. Hard/, and Mrs. Pickerill. 4, S. Woolley, with Aylotte, Anas- 

 tasia, Adonis, Dr. Hardy, and Catafalque, 



Class 4. — For six stands of three feathered Tulips, one of each class. — 



1, T. Mellor, with Lord Lilford, 'Angelina, and Rachel. 2, Kev. F. D. 

 Horner, with Friar Tuck, and Heroine, and J. Sanderson. 3, W. Lea, jun., 

 with Heroine, Demosfhenes, and Q leea of the North. 4, C. Formin, with 

 Sovereign, Heroine, and Jemima Forman. 5, T. Ha.:ue, wi'h Duke of Edio; 

 burgh, M's. Pickerill, and Duke of Edinburgh. 6, W. Bentky, with Adojis, 

 Madam St. Arnaud, and Masterpiece. 



Class 5. — For six stands of three flamed Tulips, one of each class. — 1, T. 

 Hague, with Dr. Hardy, Duchess of Sutherland, and Triumph Royal. 2, W. 

 Whittaker. with Paxton. David Orleans, and Angelina. 3, W. Lea, with 

 Seedling, Dr. Hardy, and Triumph Royal. 4, T. Mellor, with Mabel. Chan- 

 cellor, and Storer. 5, Rev. F. D. Homer, with Triumph Royal, Duchess of 

 Sutherland, and Ajax. 6, W. Wiseman, with Dr. Hardy, Duchess of Suther- 

 land, and Henrietta. 



Class 7. — Six stands of two Tulips, one feathered and one flamed of any 

 claas. — 1, W. Whittaker, with Masterpiece and Dr. Harly. 2, C. Forman, 

 with Mary Plackitt and Sir John Franklin. 8, T. Mellor, with Sulphur and 

 Lord Deotham. 4, J. Turner, St jckport, with Heroine and Paxton. 5, H. 

 Housley, with Sovereign and Paxton. 6, C. Barnes, Birmingham, with Sarah 

 Headly and Dr. Hardy. 



Class 8. — Single Blooms. — Featliered Bizarres. — 1, W. Lsa, Masterpiece. 



2, 5, and 8, W. Whittaker, Richard Yates, Sulyhur, aud R -yal Sovereign. 



3, 4, 9, and 10, R^v. F. D. Horner, J. Sanderson, Ddmistheue^. Seedling, 

 Tiny Tim, and Garibaldi. 6, J. Hague, John BatcMe. 7, G. P.ckerill, Sir J. 

 Paxton. Flamed Bizarres. — 1 and 4, T. Haynes, Sir J. P.ixton and Lord 

 Stanley. 2 and 3, W. Lea, Dr. Hardy and Seedonj. 5 aud 6. \V. Wnittaker, 

 Seedling and Prince of Wales. 7, J. Turner, Ajax. 8, D. Barber, Ganymede. 



9, J. Atkio, Sulphur. 10, Rev. F. D. Horner, Seedliog. Feathered Byblcemens, 

 —1 and 6, W. La, jun., Adoni-s and Seedling. 2, 4, and 8, W. Whi.taker, 

 Mrs. Pickerill, Violet Amiable, and Magpie. 3, J. Morris, Q leen of the North, 

 5, J. Turner, Talisman. 7, S. Smedley, Firsttate. 9, — Barlow, Seedling, 



10, D. Barber, Alonis. Filmed Bijhlauwne. — 1, 10, — Barl iw. Nimbus, and 

 Seedling. 2, — Wiseman, Duchess of Sutherland. 3, 1). Barber, Talisman, 



4, 6, and 7, W. Whittaker, Bacchus, Lord Denman, and Alexander Magnus, 

 5 aud 8, T. Mellor Thalia and Adonis. 9, — Haines, Qieeu of the May. 

 Feathered Roses. — 1, 2, 4, 7, Rev. F. D. Horner, Heroine, Modesty, Mrs. Lo- 



