58 GLEANINGS FROM OLD AUTHORS ON GARDENING. 



ARTICLE "VI.— Gleanings from Old Authors on Gar- 

 dening. No. I. By Tulip a. 



Following the example of Snowdrop, I send you a few extracts 

 from a work published in 1730, by John Cowell,. of Hoxton, 

 called the " Curious and Profitable Gardener." 



Tulipa. 



London, lOtli January, 1835. 



OBSERVATIONS ON TULIPS. 



1st. — "One of my curious Correspondents informs me, that 

 the Tulip was brought to us from Dalmatia, in the year 1560, 

 [Loudon, in his Encyclopaedia, states 1559,] by the famous 

 Gesner, and was then called, in that country, the Grand Turk's 

 Turbant." 



2nd. — "A French Gentleman observes, that such offsets of 

 Tulips as weigh a French Crown in Gold, will bring a flower." 



3rd. — " It is a good rule to take every dry part, which ap- 

 pears of a Brown or Black Colour, from each Tulip Root, before 

 you plant it." 



4th. — " Be careful in this plantation of Seedling Tulips, to keep 

 them clear of weeds, and you may expect the fourth year some of 

 them will produce flowers ; and then 'tis advisable to draw out such 

 as bring Red Colours or Yellows, and fling them away, for they w ill 

 never break to be fine Flowers. In the mean time, save such as 

 are of a Grideline Colour, of a Purple and of a Flesh Colour, as 

 also such as have blossoms of the Colour of a Peach Blossom, or 

 of a Violet ; these will make excellent good Breeders ; some of them 

 may, perhaps, break the first year of Blowing ; but if you have 

 plain Tulips of the Colours I mention, you need not despair, for 

 they will break sooner or later into stripes." 



5th. — " Those whose Flowers have the thinnest leaves will break 

 the soonest ; and on the contrary, the very thick leaved Flowers 

 will be much the longest before they break into Stripes." 



6th. — " If, when you have a good stock of Breeding Tulips, you 

 cannot have patience to wait for their natural course of breaking 

 into Stripes, you may take the following method, as is practised in 

 Flanders by the greatest Artists : — Take the plaister of old walls, 

 wherein there is a great deal of lime, and powder it very fine ; mix 



