The Culture of Flowering Bulbs 



hardiness, too, permits of their being grown and successfully flowered 

 without the least aid from artificial heat. Small beds and borders 

 may be made brilliant with these flowers, and the number of bulbs 

 that can be planted in a very limited space is somewhat astonishing 

 to a novice. Unlike many other subjects, bulbs may be rather 

 crowded without injury to individual specimens. 



For the decoration of windows no other flowers can compare 

 with Dutch Bulbs in variety and brilliancy of colour. Some of them 

 are not particularly long-lived, and this need occasion no regret, for 

 it affords opportunity of making constant changes in the character 

 and colour of the miniature exhibition, which may easily be extended 

 over many weeks. And a really beautiful display is within reach of 

 those who have not a scrap of garden in which to bring an ordinary 

 plant to perfection. Unused attics and lead flats can, with a little 

 skill and attention in the case of bulbs, be made to answer the 

 purpose which pits and greenhouses serve for most of our showy 

 plants. Some of the most attractive flowering plants cannot be suc- 

 cessfully grown in large centres of population, but bulbs will produce 

 handsome blossoms even in smoky towns. 



We do not recommend the attempt to grow bulbs in the actual 

 window-boxes. It is seldom entirely satisfactory. They should be 

 treated in the manner advised under the several varieties in the 

 following pages, and just as the colours are becoming visible, a 

 selection can be made from pots or boxes for crowding closely in the 

 ornamental arrangements for the window. When the first occupants 

 show signs of fading, others can be brought forward to fill their 

 places, and this process may be repeated until the stock is exhausted. 

 Winter Aconites, Snowdrops, Squills, and Glory of the Snow fur- 

 nish the earliest display ; these to be followed by Crocuses, Tulips, 

 Hyacinths, and the many forms of the great Narciss family, until 

 spring is far advanced. 



The secret of their accommodating nature lies in the fact that 

 within the Hyacinth or Tulip every petal of the coming flower is 

 already stored. During the five or six years of its life in Holland the 

 capacities of the bulb have been steadily conserved, and we have but 

 to unfold its beauty, aiming at short stout growth and intensity of 

 colour. Of course there is an immense difference in the quality of 

 imported bulbs, and they necessarily vary according to the character 

 of the season. The most successful Dutch growers cannot insure 

 uniformity in any one variety year after year, because the seasons 

 are beyond human control. But those who regularly visit Holland 



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