FIRST WEEK IN SEPTEMBER 



dahlias. Everything which will not stand the cold must 

 now be potted up or sheltered in some way. Many delicate 

 South African bulbs (such as ixias, sparaxis, nerines) grow 

 in a south border close under the conservatory wall on the 

 garden terrace far better than in pots, but they are covered 

 for the winter by panes of glass, which slant from the wall, 

 over the roots, and perhaps the hot-water pipes (inside the 

 wall) help them somewhat. Tigridias, camassias, ixiolirions, 

 belladonna lilies, and various other bulbs, with many of the 

 early irises, do well here in the same border and under the 

 same protection. Iris stylosa, indeed, will do without any 

 glass at all ; but the exquisite blossoms which it produces 

 throughout the winter should be cut in the bud, or they are 

 sure to be injured by the wind and rain. Another great 

 protection, which should be given shortly to many delicate 

 bulbs, is a raised heap of dry ashes over their roots ; this is 

 specially desirable for nerines, Japanese liliums, and gladioli, 

 all of which prefer to be kept dry in winter, but, at the same 

 time, object to be taken up and placed in paper bags an 

 unnatural way of spending the winter, which surely cannot 

 be desirable for any plant. In cold districts and heavier 

 soils it may be better to raise gladioli of the summer- 

 flowering kinds, and tigridias, and plant the clumps of 

 roots in a box of sandy soil, keeping them in a frame or a 

 cellar for the winter ; here, however (in Devonshire, with a 

 gravel soil), they both flourish mightily in the open air, with 

 conical piles of ashes over them from autumn till spring ; 

 but the position is sheltered, and the well-drained soil of the 

 terrace, no doubt, is in their favour. The Bride gladiolus 

 grows in masses from year to year all over the garden with- 

 out any special protection, and probably this lovely flower is 

 much more hardy (in a well-drained position) than it obtains 

 credit for. We force home-grown bulbs of the Bride 

 gladiolus in the vineries for winter blooming (as it is a 

 flower of which one cannot have too much), and plant out 

 the bulbs in May, so that every year they increase in the 

 garden, blooming very strongly early in June. They 

 should be planted at once, either in the garden or in boxes 



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