696 



NARCISSUS. 



THE ENGLISH FLOWER GARDEN. 



NARCISSUS, 



handsome may be had by the hundred 

 or the thousand at a moderate price. 



Narcissi flower in continuous succession 

 from Februaiy until June ; and when pot- 

 culture and warm-house treatment is 

 adopted, the double Roman Narcissus and 

 the Italian paper-white Narcissus flower 

 in November, and there are always some 

 Narcissi in flower from that time to June. 



Hybrid Narcissi. — The species which 

 have best lent themselves to the hybrid- 

 iser's art are N. pseudo-narcissus, N. 

 poeticus, N. montanus, N. triandrus, N. 

 jonquilla, and N. Tazetta. The type 

 hybrids are N. incomparabilis, Bernardi 

 (both found wild), Nelsoni, Barrii, Bur- 

 bidgei, Humei, Leedsii, Milneri, tridymus, 

 and odorus. There are wild and garden 

 hybrids between N. Bulbocodium and 

 pseudo-narcissus ; N. triandrus and N. 

 pseudo-narcissus ; N. jonquilla and N. 

 pseudo-narcissus ; N. juncifolius and N. 

 pseudo-narcissus ; N. Tazetta and N. 

 pseudo-narcissus ; N. Tazetta and N. 

 poeticus ; N. poeticus and N. pseudo- 

 narcissus ; and N. montanus and N. 

 poeticus ; and also N. pseudo-narcissus 

 and N. montanus; while derivative hybrids 

 have been obtained between some of these 

 hybrids and some of the parent species. 

 It is remarkable that while wild hybrids 

 and garden seedlings usually enjoy richly 

 manured soils, wild species and the white 

 varieties of the Daffodil, N. triandrus and 

 N. Bulbocodium, usually die out on deep 

 richly manured borders, but frequently 

 live on poor stony or sandy soils, on dry 

 grassy banks, or amongst the roots on 

 the sunny sides of hedges, shrubs, stone 

 walls, and trees. 



N. biflorus {Primfose Peerless) is simi- 

 lar in habit to N. poeticus, but has creamy- 

 white flowers, two on a scape, and the rim 

 of the primrose corona is scariose but 

 colourless {i.e. not purple). N. biflorus is 

 now known to be a natural hybrid between 

 N. poeticus and N. Tazetta, having been 

 found wild with its parents near Mont- 

 pellier by Mr. Barr ; and also raised from 

 its parents in the garden by the Rev. Mr. 

 Engleheart. N. biflorus is naturalised in 

 England and Ireland, but is a native of 

 Europe. It is one of the easiest of all the 

 kinds to naturalise, and spreads rapidly, 

 but is usually supposed not to bear seed. 

 N. Dr. Laumonier (Wilks) is a very fine 

 seedling of this group. 



PRIXCII'AI, .Si'KCIKS OF NARCISSI. 



N. (Corbularia) Bulbocodium {T/ie 

 Hooped Pclticoal Duff'odil)r(t\n-c^&r\\.s&V.\r\d 

 having slender rush-like leaves. In Spain it 

 grows in wet meadows during winter and 

 spring, but is dried up throughout summer 



and autumn. The types are golden- 

 yellow in Spain and Portugal, sulphur- 

 yellow in S. France, as at Biarritz and 

 Bayonne, one \ariety in the Pyrenean 

 district (N. Gra^llsii) is whitish, but in 

 Algeria grows the exquisite snowy-white 

 N. monophyllus. Hybrids between N. 

 Bulbocodium, N. triandrus, and the 

 Daffodil have been obtained in gardens, 

 and are also found wild. The main 

 varieties are conspicuus, a large, rich, 

 golden-yellow kind with green rushy 

 leaves ; tenuifolius, a small golden form, 

 having a si.x-lobed rim to the corona, and 

 very long rush lea\es which lie on the 

 ground ; nivalis, abundant in Portugal 

 and near Leon in Spain, a small golden 

 kind with short erect leaves ; prsecox, a 

 large early-blooming form, found by Mr. 



Narcissus biflorus. 



Barr in Spain ; citrinus, a pale French 

 form, varying much in size ; Grasllsii, the 

 European white ; and monophyllus, the 

 African white. These are dainty bulbs for 

 pots or for choice borders on warm dry 

 soils. They can rarely be naturalised in 

 our country. 



N. cyclamineus {Cyclamen DciffodU). 

 — A dainty but not showy species, easily 

 grown in a peat-earth rock-garden or in 

 pots of peaty compost. It seldom exists 

 from year to year in the open air. It has 

 lived on Grass in peat, and, no doubt,, 

 could be naturalised easily enough on sandy 

 peat soils which are wet in winter and 

 spring, and dry in summer and autumn. 

 In April, 1892, I saw a most lovely 

 specimen low down in a damp little 



