86 floricultuhal gleanings. 



have the morning sun, only watering occasionally till the foliage 

 begins to wither, then let them dry up. In taking them up, be care- 

 ful to search the soil well, or you will lose some of them. When I 

 went to take up my first crop I expected to have found them about an 

 inch from the surface, but to my great surprise I found none; I con- 

 cluded, therefore, that they had all perished ; but on emptying the 

 pot of soil I found them three or four inches lower down. They are 

 about the size of peas. Plant them the next October or November in 

 pots of the same sort of compost they were raised in ; let a layer of sand 

 be laid over the surface about a quarter of an inch thick ; on this 

 place the bulbs about an inch asunder, and cover with soil about two 

 inches deep. Manage as before. The next year plant them in the 

 open ground. 



" When the plants flower, which they will generally do in four or 

 five years, preserve all those that have good-shaped cups and clean 

 bottoms, the others are not worth keeping ; for though it must be 

 confessed that many Tulips which are deficient in these properties are 

 much admired by some florists, yet I think the time is not far distant 

 when they will no longer be admitted as show-flowers, but be thrown 

 into mixtures, or cast upon the dunghill. The practice of raising 

 seedlings is becoming very general, and the continual acquisition of 

 new and good Tulips will drive the old warriors out of the field. 



" With respect to the breaking of Tulips, there seems to be no cer- 

 tain method. The most successful cultivators, whose remarks I have 

 read, could never depend upon any one of their methods. The best 

 way seems to be a frequent change of soil and situation." 



In conclusion, I beg to assure the " Juvenile Florist" that he has 

 my best wishes for his success ; and I think, if he perseveres in sav- 

 ing seed from nothing but pure varieties, that there cannot be a 

 doubt that in time he will possess varieties of his own raising ; possess- 

 ing first-rate properties ; at least such are my hopes. 



I cannot lay down my pen without also congratulating him on his 

 choice of the most fascinating branch of floriculture, for it has been 

 truly and beautifully said by a contemporary that he who does not 

 grow a bed of Tulips " misses some of the happiest hours of a florist's 

 life." Every tulip-grower will at once feel this to be true; and for 

 my part, extravagant though it may appear to the uninitiated, I can 

 take out my pocket-book in a leisure hour and look over my tulip 



