TULIPIA. 79 



the three interior ones, and broader at their base. All the 

 petals should have perfectly entire edges, free from notch or 

 serrature. The top of each should be broad and well rounded. 

 The ground color of the flower, at the bottom of the cup, 

 should be a clear white or yellow ; and the various rich colored 

 stripes, which are the principal ornament of a fine Tulip, should 

 be regular, bold, and distinct on the margin, and terminate in 

 fine broken points, elegantly feathered or penciled. These are 

 the principal points of excellence, in the eyes of a florist ; yet 

 with amateurs there is some difference of opinion. 



The colors which are generally held in greatest estimation, 

 in variegated striped sorts, are black, golden-yellow, purple, 

 violet, rose, and vermilion, each of which being varied in dif- 

 ferent ways ; but such as are striped with three different colors, 

 in a distinct and unmixed manner, with strong regular streaks, 

 and but little or no tinge of the breeder, are considered the 

 most perfect, 



The cultivation of the Tulip is mystified by the elaborate 

 directions generally given for its cultivation. I have succeeded, 

 for many years, in producing very fine flowers by a simple 

 course of cultivation; the varieties in* my possession being 

 probably as fine as can be obtained from any collection in 

 Europe, having been imported, a few years since, at great 

 expense. 



The finer sorts of Tulips should always be planted in beds, 

 where there is a considerable quantity of bulbs ; but they look 

 very well when disposed in small groups, in the borders, par- 

 ticularly the more common sorts. 



The proper season for planting is in October. If kept out 

 longer, they are somewhat weakened, and will not flower so 

 finely. 



A bed for two hundred and fifty Tulips, should be thirty-six 

 feet long by four wide. The bulbs to be planted in rows, seven 

 inches apart, and seven inches distant from each other. The 

 ground being marked out, the soil should be taken out to the 

 depth of twenty inches. The rich surface mould should be first 



