LILIACEyE. 299 



0. arabicum {Large-floive7'ed O.) — This grows about i foot or 

 18 inches high, producing an umbellate corymb of pure-white 

 flowers. The leaves are narrow, linear, and channeled. Na- 

 tive of Sicily and the Levant and northern Africa. Flowers in 

 April. 



0. exscapum l^Short-scaped O.) — About 4 inches high, with a 

 wide-spreading corymb of white flowers. The leaves are linear, 

 with a silvery middle line. Flowers in April. Native of Italy. 



0. narbonnense {Narbo7me O.) — About i foot or 18 inches 

 high. The scape terminates in an oblong raceme of white 

 flowers. The leaves are narrow, linear, and channeled. Flow- 

 ers in June and July. Native of France and Italy. 



0. umbellatum ( Commo7i Star of Bethlehe?n). — About 6 to 9 

 inches high, with linear, channeled leaves, having a silver^' line 

 down the centre. The scape supports a wide-spreading corymb 

 of pure-white flowers. Flowers in April, ]\Iay, and June. Na- 

 tive of southern and central Europe, and in Britain at least 

 naturalised. 



Scilla (Squill). — This is a lovely genus of chiefly early-flower- 

 ing bulbs. They are indispensable where spring flowers are in 

 request for any purpose, whether for furnishing cut-flowers or 

 decorating the parterre or rockwork or mixed border. They 

 are easily cultivated in almost all kinds of soil, but prefer good 

 strong rich loam to any other, and dislike light, dry, sandy earth 

 most. They are best left undisturbed if doing well ; and as 

 they do not, in most cases, increase very rapidly by ofl'sets, and 

 so become quickly overcrowded, there is little reason for fre- 

 quent removals ; and in soils which do not agree well with them 

 there often ensues considerable disaster therefrom. This ap- 

 phes mainly to the very early and smaller species, such as S. 

 bifolia and its varieties, and S. sibirica and its varieties. Others, 

 such as 6*. italica and S. nHta?is, being more fertile in the pro- 

 duction of oftsets, may be divided more frequently ; but they, 

 too, make the finest displays when left undisturbed for years 

 together. When division becomes necessar)', it should be at- 

 tended to immediately after the foliage declines. 



S. amcena {Pleasing Squill). — This is a handsome and vigor- 

 ous species. It is sometimes grown as -5". sibirica, to which it 

 is related and bears some resemblance. The leaves, when the 

 plant is growing in congenial soil, are often a foot long and an 

 inch broad, and are pale but lively green, flaccid, and nearly 

 equal in width throughout, and abruptly sharp-pointed. The 

 flower-scape varies in height from 6 to 9 inches, is erect, and 

 sharply angular, and supports several large, flatly-bell-shaped 

 flowers, with six wide-spreading divisions. They are dark porce- 



