LILIUM SPECIOSUM 



502 



LIMNANTHES 



and nine inches from row to row. Let them remain in 

 this bed for two or three years, then take them up, sort 

 the bulbs into two sizes, plant the largest in a bed of 

 rich earth, six inches apart in the row, and a foot between 

 each row. Several of them will flower weakly the first 

 year, but stronger the second, and will then be large 

 enough to take their place amongst the old strong bulbs. 

 The smaller-sized bulbs should be planted again rather 

 thickly, and will afford a second crop of flowering bulbs 

 the second year. The other points of summer and winter 

 culture are similar to those required by L. ca'ndidum, 

 excepting in one particular. As the flower-stems ad- 

 vance in growth, they put forth a number of young 

 roots from the stem above the bulb ; when that is per- 

 ceived, place round each stem some rough, hard pieces 

 of dung for these roots to strike into ; this will encourage 

 the flower-stems to grow strongly, and flower finely, 

 besides increasing very much the size of the bulbs below. 

 LILIUM SPECIO'SUM and its varieties. This is the 

 finest of all the genus. The petals turn back, like those 

 of the L. Ma'rtagon. It throws out roots above the 

 bulbs like L. tigri'num, but does not produce incipient 

 bulbs in the axils of the leaves, like the latter species, 

 and must therefore be propagated like L. ca'ndidum, by 

 offsets. This fine species, in the southern parts of 

 Britain, is hardy enough to bear cultivating in the open 

 air, like the rest of the genus ; but it is worthy of being 

 cultivated in pots to bloom in the greenhouse, everywhere 

 in this country, flowering in June and July, when the 

 generality of the usual inhabitants are enjoying the open 

 air. To cultivate it for that purpose, pot the larger 

 bulbs in eleven-inch pots. If bulbs are plentiful, put 

 three in each pot. Do this early in March, and use a 

 rich, sandy compost. Place them in a pit or frame 

 sheltered from frost, by covering with mats, giving 

 plenty of air in mild weather, but very little water. Grow 

 them as slowly as possible, so that they may have a large 

 strength of roots to cause a strong growth. When the 

 frosts are over, plunge them in a bed of old tan till the 

 greenhouse is thinned of its plants, and then bring them 

 into their place ; put pans under the pots, and a mulching 

 of dung on the surface of the soil. Water freely, and 

 give plenty of air. The culture in the air is the same as 

 is required by L. ca'ndidum, with the addition of a covering 

 of dry ashes over the bulbs in winter. 



LILY. Li'lium. 



LILY-HYACINTH. Sci'lla Li'lio-hyaci'nthus. 



LILY-OF-THE-VALLEY. (Convalla'ria maja'lis.) We 

 know a garden where no one can flower the lily-of-the- 

 valley well, and we also know places where it flowers in 

 the greatest abundance without any care whatever. We 

 have seen it growing naturally by the acre, in a shady 

 wood, the soil being mere sand, enriched by the fallen 

 leaves ; we have dug it out in that wood, and found all 

 the roots within three inches of the surface. We have 

 also seen it flower abundantly on a south border, in a 

 rich kitchen- garden soil. Where it refuses to succeed 

 we would make a bed for it on the north side of a wall ; 

 dig out the natural soil a foot deep, and drain the bottom ; 

 then fill up the bed with a compost of light, sandy earth 

 and rotten leaves, half of each ; press it down gently 

 when within two inches of the top ; then lay the roots 

 regularly, four inches apart, all over this surface, and 

 then cover them two inches deep, and give them a 

 good watering with a rose-pot ; and, after that, we would 

 cover the whole with an inch of quite rotten leaves, and 

 water them once a week the following summer. February, 

 or early in March, is the best time to plant them ; and 

 the third season they are in full perfection, and will last 

 for ten or a dozen years. 



Forcing. Pot them in thirty- two- sized pots, filled to 

 within three and a half inches of the rim with rich loam, 

 upon which the roots are closely placed, and then 

 covered about two inches in thickness with equal parts 

 of leaf-mould and sand ; they are then well watered, so 

 as to settle the mould about the roots ; place them on a 

 shelf near the glass, in a moist stove or forcing-house, the 

 temperature of which may range from 65 to 75, and 

 take care that the soil does not become dry. When they 

 are so far advanced that the plants show their heads of 

 flowers, remove them into a warm greenhouse, still 

 placing them near the glass, until, as they advance in 

 growth, they are withdrawn by degrees into a shaded 



part of the house, from whence they are removed to the 

 drawing-room as required, their places to be immediately 

 filled with others, which are similarly treated, and thus 

 an ample succession will be kept up. Care and attention 

 are requisite in lifting and selecting the plants for forcing ; 

 they require a minute examination to distinguish those 

 that will flower from those that will not, the only differ- 

 ence being that the buds of the former are more round 

 and short than those of the latter. Florists' Journal. 



LILY-PINK. Aphylla'nfhes. 



LILY-THORN. Catesba'a. 



LIMATO'DIS LABRO SA. See CALANTHE LABROSA. 



LIMATO'DIS RO'SEA. See CALANTHE ROSEA. 



LIME. Ci'trus me'dica Lime'tta. 



LIME is valuable as a manure, for some one or more 

 of its salts enter into the composition of every vegetable. 

 But it is not the lime of every district that is suitable 

 for the purpose. Some specimens contain a very large 

 proportion of magnesia, which, absorbing carbonic acid 

 very slowly, remains in a caustic state, to the injury of 

 the roots of the plants, and the diminution of benefit 

 from the decomposing constituents of the soil. Neither 

 can the gardener apply it to all his soils with advantage. 

 Thus, peat and bog earth are beneficial to the plants 

 grown upon them by their containing Gallic and other 

 acids, which lime removes. To garden soil of the usual 

 staple about fifty bushels of lime per acre is a sufficient 

 quantity. If the soil be clayey the quantity may be 

 doubled. A very excellent manure is formed by mixing 

 one bushel of salt with every two bushels of lime. Lime 

 cannot be applied to the soil too fresh from the kiln ; for 

 if allowed to absorb carbonic acid from the air, it is 

 rapidly converted into chalk. 



When crops are devastated by the slug, dress them, 

 some evening, so as to render the surface of the soil 

 quite white, with caustic lime, during the promise of a 

 few days' dry weather. It is instant destruction to 

 every slug it falls upon ; and those that it misses are 

 destroyed by their coming in contact with it when moving 

 in search of food. 



Lime-rubbish is the old mortar and plaster obtained 

 when brick-buildings are pulled down. It is an excellent 

 manure, abounding with the salts of potash and lime. 

 It should be reduced to powder before spreading and 

 digging in. 



LIME or LINDEN-TREE. Ti'lia. 

 LIME-LOOPER MOTH. Geometra. 



LIME-WATER. To forty gallons of clean water, half 

 an hour before using, put one peck of fresh-slaked lime. 

 As soon as it is clear it is fit for use. 



A watering-pot containing four gallons will water a 

 bed of four feet by thirty feet, or rows of cauliflowers, 

 cabbages, &c., of double the length. 



LIMNA'NTHEMUM. (FromJwm*, a swamp, lake, or 

 pool, and anthemon, a flower ; literally, the flower of the 

 pool. Nat. ord. Gentianaceae.) 



Hardy, or tender stove, floating aquatics, which, for 

 convenience' sake, may be planted in pots submerged a 

 little way below the surface of a pond or tank, but some 

 of them very soon spread all over the pond, floating 

 loosely in the water, necessitating the reduction of their 

 numbers. Offsets. Any loamy soil, leaf-mould, and 

 sand. 

 L. gemina'tum (twin), i. Yellow. June. Australia. 



1806. 

 humboldtia'num (Humboldtian). White and yellow. 



July to September. S. Amer. 1856. Stove. 

 i'ndicum (Indian). Yellow. Tropics of both Worlds. 



1792. Stove. 

 lacuno'sum (ditch). Yellow. June. N. Amer. 1812. 



Hardy. 



,, nymphceoi' des (Nymphasa-like). See L. PELTATUM. 

 pelta'tum (shield-shaped). J. Yellow. Summer. 

 Europe (Britain). Hardy. 



LIMNA'NTHES. (From limne, a marsh, and anthos, a 

 flower. Nat. ord. Indian Cresses [Geraniacea3]. Linn. 

 io-Decandria, i-Monogynia.) 



