AN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HORTICULTURE. 



275 



Lily of the Valley continued. 



at any season except during spring and early summer ; 

 consequently, a place should be selected for their culti- 

 vation which is not too prominently exposed. In some 

 parts of England, Lilies of the Valley are found, in any 

 quantity, growing wild in woods ; the shade and moisture 

 there secured being suitable to their requirements. Where 

 the plants are not found wild, they may readily be 

 naturalised, if the position is not too dry, nor the herbage 

 very thick. As grown outside, this plant is essentially 

 a subject for supplying cut flowers, and these are always 

 popular, and in great demand for bouquets of every de- 

 scription. Cultivated in pots, and forced into flower 

 early in spring, the Lily of the Valley constitutes an 

 invaluable subject for greenhouse and room decoration. 

 The natural flowering season is April and May, accord- 

 ing to the locality; by obtaining a plentiful supply of 

 crowns, and forcing carefully, the season may commence 

 inside early in December, and a succession of flowers 

 be secured thenceforth until June. Lilies of the Valley 

 may be propagated by seeds, which ripen freely if 

 allowed, and should be sown in spring, outside. The 

 usual method of propagation is by the numerous crowns 

 which form at the points of creeping roots or under- 

 ground stems (see Fig. 433). If clumps are allowed 

 to grow undisturbed, the crowns become too thickly 

 crowded, and do not produce such fine flowers as when 

 more space is afforded. 



Preparation of Crowns for Forcing. Size, and, conse- 

 quently, good quality, in the flowers of the Lily of the 



FIG. 434. FLOWERING STEM OF LILY OF THE VALLEY. 



Valley (as represented in Fig. 434) depend entirely on 

 the cultivation and attention given to the preparation 

 of the crowns. Immense quantities of these are 

 annually imported from Germany, to meet the demand 

 for forcing purposes in this country. It is important 

 to observe that those coming from Berlin are far better 

 for early forcing than those received from Hamburg. 

 The latter are generally much larger, but, for some 

 reason, they cannot be depended upon to start well 

 before January at the earliest. By adopting a system 

 of annually preparing crowns for forcing, excellent ones, 

 equal in every respect, if not superior, to those imported, 

 may be obtained in this country. The following is a 



Lily of the Valley continued. 



method which may be pursued : Select or prepare a piece 

 of good ground in a border, with either an east or a west 

 aspect. It should be manured and well trenched. The 

 crowns should be lifted in autumn, or at any time before 

 growth commences in spring, and placed together accord- 

 ing to their sizes. In planting, a shallow trench should 

 be cut out, the crowns placed upright in it, about 2in. 

 apart, so that their points are just below the surface, 

 and the soil filled in. Other trenches may then be pre- 

 pared and planted in a similar way, leaving a space of 

 about 9in. between them. Hoeing occasionally, to keep 

 the surface open and clean, and watering in dry weather, 

 until the leaves die away, will be all that is necessary 

 afterwards. Crowns thus treated may be lifted for 

 forcing the following winter, if required; but they are 

 much stronger if allowed to remain until the second 

 year. Young crowns being so freely produced, it is not 

 usually difficult to obtain a supply from reserve clumpa 

 or borders where the ordinary system has been in prac- 

 tice. The sizes of crowns aged respectively one, two, and 



FIG. 435. CROWNS OF LILY OF THE VALLEY. 



Preparation for Forcing, 

 a, One Year Old ; 6, Two Years Old ; c, Three Years Old. 



three years, are represented at a, 6, and c, Fig. 435. The 

 first, or small size, lifted at any time when at rest, in 

 winter, will produce nothing beyond leaves the following 

 year. From the second size, flowers of medium strength 

 may be obtained. The large ones will be certain to flower, 

 either indoors or outside, if placed under proper treat- 

 ment. Clumps for forcing are prepared by planting a 

 few crowns in a bunch, and allowing them to grow for 

 two or three years previous to lifting. It will be seen 

 that many of the crowns in such clumps cannot be of a 



