718 



H Y A 



THE UNIVERSAL HERBAL; 



H Y A 



shades of red purple, from the faint blush to the deep red; 

 they are also sometimes yellow. Culture and great attention 

 have also brought these plants to be very strong, and their 

 flowers to be very large and double. It seems to have been 

 brought into England some time in the sixteenth century, yet 

 the double flowers were not much esteemed, long after the 

 Hyacinth had attracted the attention of the florists. The 

 beauty of this celebrated flower was then supposed to con- 

 sist in the regularity and equality of the petals, and the uni- 

 formity of the colours. The first double flower, cultivated 

 by Peter Voorhelm, was named Mary, which variety is lost, 

 as well as the two next that were produced: the King of 

 Great Britain, which is now looked upon as the oldest 

 double Hyacinth, appeared about the beginning of the last 

 century ; it was greatly preferred to all the flowers then 

 known, and the price rose to about a thousand florins. From 

 that time the greatest attention has been paid at Haarlem to 

 the raising and cultivation of this elegant flower; and such 

 has been the rage for it, that nearly two hundred pounds 

 sterling has been given for a single root. The gardeners 

 there distinguish nearly two thousand Hyacinths by name, 

 and generally publish catalogues of them from year to year. 

 New varieties are annually produced, and whole acres toge- 

 ther are covered with this flower, in the circuit of that town 

 alone. The Hyacinths are distributed into classes, from their 

 colours ; the principal of which are, blue, red, purple, and 

 white, with some yellow ; and they are subdivided from the 

 shades of each colour : as, of the blues ; deep blue, violet 

 blue, blue purple, porcelain blue, agate blue, sky blue, 

 French gray, &c. : of the reds ; deep or full red, rose- 

 coloured, carnation, &c. : also from the mixtures of different 

 colours or shades ; as light blue with a deep blue or purple 

 eye; light red, with a deep red eye; white, with a rose- 

 coloured, blue, purple, or yellow eye ; white and red of dif- 

 ferent shades ; and blue, violet, and purple, of different shades 

 mixed ; also, yellow with a purple eye, &c. Some have their 

 petals striped with a paler or deeper colour ; and all these 

 varieties are found both in single and double flowers ; but 

 the latter only are now much regarded among florists, unless 

 it be for producing seeds, by which alone they can procure 

 new varieties. The principal properties of a fine double 

 Hyacinth are the following. 1. The stalk should be tall, 

 strong, and upright; the flowers (or bells, as the florists term 

 them) sufficiently numerous, each suspended by a short 

 strong peduncle, in an horizontal position ; the whole having 

 a compact pyramidal form, with the crown, or uppermost 

 flower, perfectly erect. 2. The flowers large, well filled with 

 broad bold petals, appearing rather convex than flat or hol- 

 low, extending to the middle of the stalk. 3. The plain co- 

 lours, clear and bright, strong, not pale ; and mixed colours 

 elegantly blended. It is a native of the Levant, very abundant 

 about Aleppo and Bagdat, where it flowers in February : in 

 our climate, it flowers in March and April. Propagation anc 

 Culture. The method of raising these flowers from seed, is, 

 first, in the middle or latter end of August to provide good 

 seed, saved from good semi-double, or such single flowers as 

 are large, and have good properties ; then procure some square 

 shallow boxes or pots, with holes to let off the moisture ; fil 

 them with fresh, light, sandy soil ; lay the surface level, anc 

 sow the seeds on it as equally as possible ; cover them hal 

 an inch thick with the same light earth ; place them so as to 

 enjoy the morning sun, until the latter part of September 

 then remove them into a warmer situation, and towards the 

 end of October place them under a common hot-bed frame 

 to protect them from hard frosts during the winter and spring 

 months, but admitting the air in mild weather. The younj 



lants will appear at the end of February, or beginning of 

 March, and must be carefully protected from frost, but never 

 covered except at night, or in very rough weather, for cover- 

 ng causes them to grow up tall and slender, and prevents 

 he growth of the roots. In the middle of April, during fine 

 weather, the boxes may be removed out of the frame, and 

 >laced in a warm situation, observing to water them in dry 

 veather, and to keep them very clean from weeds. At the 

 >eginningof May, the boxes should be removed into a cooler 

 situation, to avoid the heat of the summer, which they can- 

 not sustain. They must not be placed under the dripping 

 of trees, nor yet be watered after the blades have decayed, 

 that would rot their roots : weeding them should be 

 diligently performed. At the end of August, sift a little 

 "ight rich earth over the boxes, and again remove them into 

 i warmer situation, and treat them, during the winter, 

 spring, and summer months, as before directed ; about the 

 middle of the next August, prepare a bed of light, rich, 

 sandy soil, in proportion to the quantity of seedling plants. 

 Having levelled the surface very even, take the earth from 

 the boxes in which your plants were raised, into a sieve, in 

 order to obtain all the roots, which, if they have grown well, 

 will be about the thickness of a small quill ; these roots 

 should be placed upon the bed, about two or three inches 

 asunder, observing to set the bottom part of their roots 

 downwards, and cover them over, two inches thick, with the 

 same light earth : but as it may be impossible to get all the 

 small roots out of the earth in the boxes, let it be spread out 

 evenly upon another bed, and covered with light earth, by 

 which method all the roots, however small, will be saved. 

 These beds must be arched over with hoops, and in very 

 hard frosty weather be covered with mats, to protect them 

 from frost; and in the spring, when the green leaves are 

 above ground, if the weather should be very dry, you must 

 refresh them sparingly with water, for nothing is more 

 injurious to these bulbs than too much moisture. During 

 summer, the beds must be constantly kept clear from weeds, 

 but the plants must have no water after the blades are 

 decayed. In autumn, stir the surface of the bed with a 

 very short hand-fork, taking great care not to thrust it so 

 deep as the roots, which, if injured, generally perish soou 

 after. Then sift a little fresh, light, rich earth over the bed, 

 about an inch thick, or somewhat more, and again cover 

 them in winter, as before directed. In this bed, the roots 

 may continue two years, observing to treat tliem both in 

 summer and winter as before ; then the third year the roots 

 should be carefully taken up, a little before the leaves decay, 

 re-laying them horizontally three weeks in the ground to 

 ripen, after which they may be kept out of the ground till 

 the end of August, when they should be planted into new 

 beds prepared as before, placing them at the distance of six 

 inches asunder. Here the roots may remain till they flower, 

 during which time they should be treated as before, with 

 this difference only, that instead of covering them with mats 

 in the winter, the surface of the ground should be covered 

 with tanners' bark. When their flowers begin to shew them- 

 selves, mark all such as appear to have good properties, by 

 thrusting down a small stick near each root, which roots, at 

 the time of taking up, should be selected, and replanted by 

 themselves. When the green leaves begin to decay, take up 

 the roots, raise a bed of light earth into a ridge, the better 

 to shoot off the moisture ; laying the roots into the earth 

 again in an horizontal position, leaving the green leaves 

 hanging out of the ground from the roots, whereby the great 

 moisture contained in their very succulent leaves and flower- 

 stalks, may be exhaled, and prevented from returning to tho 





