256 The Treatment of Japan Lilies. 



the open air. We have had a large bed out, now the second 

 year ; and though we find that their flowers fade sooner than 

 when grown in the greenhouse, still, they retain then- beauty 

 for a long time, and make a magnificent display the whole of 

 September ; probably our dryer atmosphere and clear sun 

 prevent that disfiguring of the flowers, which the writer 

 speaks of as almost fatal to their culture in the open air in 

 England. Much as we admire these in the open ground, 

 and as highly as we recommend them for out-door culture, 

 we would not on any account give up their growth in pots 

 for ornamenting the greenhouse, conservatory, or verandah, 

 in summer. They bloom with proper treatment in July and 

 August, and retain their beauty so long, that they are, in truth, 

 the most attractive objects at that season : 



The different varieties of Lilium lancifolium are, in my 

 opinion, some of the most beautiful objects that are within 

 the reach of cultivators of moderate means ; and it is a mat- 

 ter of difficulty with me to account for their comparative 

 neglect by many adAiirers of Flora's less beautiful and more 

 expensive productions, save by supposing thatlhey are but 

 little known in our rural districts. The following remarks, 

 therefore, may possibly be the means of inducing those who 

 have hitherto neglected these beautiful plants to bestow upon 

 them the attention which they merit. 



The Japan Lilies are recommended by many for out-door 

 culture, and are said to be perfectly hardy. The truth of the 

 latter statement I am not inclined to question : but the results 

 of my experiments Avith Rubrum and Album in the open 

 border have not been much to my mind ; and, from what I 

 have observed elsewhere, I am inclined to think that, except 

 in a few favored localities, these varieties will never be pop- 

 ular border-flowers in England. I have seen them in the 

 most favorable soil and situation in some of the midland 

 counties, and then they have been showing flower towards 

 the middle or end of September, a season in which the 

 blooms were no sooner expanded than they were disfigured 

 by the effects of our damp atmosphere at that period. I 



