IRIDE.E. 269 



individual flowers, notwithstanding they are produced in long 

 succession, are a still greater bar to their ever becoming favourites 

 in that way. Although natives mainly of the Cape of Good 

 Hope, these bulbs are perfectly hardy in many parts of this 

 country, but they succeed best when lifted and planted annu- 

 ally, as is the practice observ-ed with regard to half-hardy 

 bulbous plants generally. They luxuriate best in a deep rich 

 sandy loam, well drained, and the ground should be well tilled 

 by deep-digging in winter ; and any manure that may be applied 

 should be well rotted, turned in pretty deep with the spade, 

 and be mixed ^^ith the soil as well as possible. I have found peat 

 a very congenial mixture to apply to the soil G/dif/o/i a.regro\yn in ; 

 they grow very luxuriantly in it, and colour \Wth remarkable purity 

 when it abounds in the compost. The best time for planting 

 for an autumn display is March, any time when the ground is 

 in proper order for planting and being worked. In dr}^ light 

 soils, and in localities that are exempt from late frosts, they 

 may be planted earlier, and successionally so late as April, for 

 the purpose of prolonging the blooming season ; but this is not 

 practicable in late, cold, or wet localities, as the bulbs rarely 

 ripen vrell if planted later than the last week in March ; and if 

 planted earlier than the beginning of that month, they are liable 

 to rot before vegetation becomes active, and to be scathed with 

 frost in May or June, if they should succeed so far. They may 

 be planted in lines or in clumps, according to fancy or the ob- 

 ject in view; if in lines, strong bulbs should be placed not 

 nearer each other than i foot each way; if in clumps, five or 

 six roots to each circle of i foot diameter will not be over- 

 much, and the bulbs may be placed about 3 or 4 inches deep. 

 I have said they succeed best in light, rich, deep, well-drained 

 loam and peat, but they are by no means fastidious as to soil ; 

 they grow well in almost every soil if not absolute clay and wet, or 

 gravelly, poor, and dry ; in the former the bulbs are very liable 

 to spot and rot, and in the latter they are equally liable to those 

 evils, and become infested \^-ith red-spider to a fatal degree. 

 Propagation is easily effected by husbanding the offsets which 

 appear in greater or less quantity at the base of the flowering- 

 bulbs. They should be stored by themselves till spring, and 

 then be sown or planted in rich soil in a warm border. Two 

 years" nursing is sufficient to bring the small bulbils of many of 

 the varieties to flowering size. Any enumeration of varieties 

 cannot be attempted here, but a few species worthy of notice 

 for the mixed border are described below. Some of them, it 

 ^^^ll be found, flower earlier than the garden varieties, to which 

 the above remarks mainly apply, and any necessarj- additional 



