H Y A 



OR, BOTANICAL DICTIONARY. 



H Y A 



719 



roots, which is often the cause of their rotting after they are 

 out of the ground. In this ridge the roots should remain 

 until the leaves are quite dried off, when they must be taken 

 up, and after being cleared of all manner of filth, which 

 would be hurtful to them, they must be laid up in boxes, 

 where they may be preserved dry until September, which is 

 the proper season for planting them again. Of the Dutch 

 Hyacinths. Want of skill alone, in Mr. Miller's opinion, is 

 the cause of the frequent failure which English florists meet 

 with in the culture of these noble flowers; for he thinks 

 they may thrive at least nearly as well in England as in Hol- 

 land. The soil in which they succeed best is a light, sandy, 

 fresh rich earth, composed half of fresh earth, taken to the 

 depth only of eight or nine inches, with the sward, off the sur- 

 face of a common pasture-land, which is usually a sandy loam : 

 to this a fourth part of sea-sand, and another of rotten cow- 

 dung, which should be mixed well together, cast into a heap 

 that the turf may rot, and turned over once every three weeks 

 or a month. If this compost be made two years before it is 

 used, it will be much better : but if you must use it sooner, 

 it should be the oftener turned, that the parts may the better 

 unite. This soil should be laid to the depth of two feet on 

 the beds designed for the Hyacinths; and if you lay a little 

 rotten cow-dung or tanners' bark at the bottom, which may 

 be within the reach of the fibres, but should oi> no account 

 touch the bulb, it will be better. If the soil be very wet where 

 these beds are made, raise them ten or twelve inches above the 

 surface of the ground ; if dry, not above three or four inches. 

 Prepare the beds as follows : take all the former old earth out 

 of the bed to the depth you intend, which should be nearly 

 three feet: spread some rotten cow-dung or tan in the bot- 

 tom, six inches thick, and level. Upon this lay the above 

 compost two feet deep, levelling very even. Then score out 

 the distances for the roots, which should be eight inches 

 square, in straight rows each way: place your roots exactly 

 in the squares, observing to set the bottom part downwards ; 

 then cover the roots six inches deep with the same prepared 

 earth, taking care not to displace any of the roots; and if 

 the tops of the beds be made a little rounding, to shoot off 

 the wet, it will be of service in moist ground, provided the 

 middle of the beds be not made too high, which is a fault the 

 other way. The best season for planting these roots is the 

 middle or latter end of September, according to the earliness 

 or lateness of the season; but it is not advisable to plant 

 them when the ground is very dry, unless there be a pros- 

 pect of rain, for if the dry weather continue long after they 

 are planted, the roots will acquire a mouldiness which will 

 certainly destroy them. The beds will require no further care 

 till the severe frost sets in ; then let rotten tan be spread 

 over them to the depth of four inches : and if the alleys on 

 each side of the bed be filled up either with rotten tan, dung, 

 or sand, it will keep the frost from penetrating through the 

 sides to the roots of the plants. In very hard winters it will 

 be proper to lay peas-haulm or straw over them, which will 

 keep out the frost better than mats, and, lying hollow, will 

 admit the air to the surface of the ground, and also permit 

 the exhalations to pass off, whereby the earth will be kept 

 dry, and the roots be prevented from rotting, which is often 

 the consequence of covering the beds too closely. This light 

 covering must be removed in mild weather, and used only in 

 very hard frosts, for where the beds are covered with tan or 

 sea-coal ashes, no common frost can penetrate through : 

 and if these coverings be suffered to remain in mild weather, 

 the flower-stems will be drawn up to a great height, and 

 become very weak : and the footstalks of the flowers will be 

 long and slender, and therefore incapable of supporting the 



bells, which is a great disadvantage to the flowers, one f 

 the greatest beauties of which consists in the regular dis- 

 position of their bells. When the hoops are fixed over the 

 beds, the rotten tan should be 'nearly all removed as care- 

 fully as possible, that the leaves may not be bruised or injured. 

 It had better be done by hand, as the flower-stem of the Hya- 

 cinth will be then breaking out of the ground. When the 

 flower-stems have reached their height, before the flowers 

 expand, place a short stick down by each root, to which, 

 with a wire formed into a hoop, the stem of the flower should 

 be fastened, to support them from falling; otherwise, when 

 the bells are fully expanded, their weight will incline them 

 to the ground, especially if they are not screened from the 

 wind and rain. During their season of flowering they should 

 be covered in the heat of the day from the sun and heavy 

 rains, and frosty nights; but the morning and evening sun, 

 with gentle showers, they ought to enjoy. With this manage- 

 ment you may continue your Hyacinths in beauty at least 

 one whole month, and sometimes more, according to their 

 strength, or the favourableness of the season. When their 

 flowers are quite decayed, and the tops of the leaves begin 

 to change colour, you must carefully raise the roots out of 

 the ground with a narrow spade, or some other handy instru- 

 ment, which is what Dutch gardeners call lifting them. In 

 doing this the instrument must be carefully thrust down by 

 the side of the root, being cautious not to bruise it, as well 

 as to put the implement below the bottom of the root ; then, 

 by the forcing of the spade on one side, the fibres of the root 

 are raised, and separated from the ground. This is intended 

 to prevent their receiving any more nourishment from the 

 ground ; for by imbibing too much moisture at this season, the 

 roots frequently rot after they are taken up. About a fort- 

 night after this operation, the roots should be entirely taken 

 out of the ground, and carried to beds upon which the morning 

 sun only shines, and laid upon a ridge with their leaves out, to 

 drain off the moisture, as before directed. Here they should 

 remain until the green leaves are entirely decayed, which 

 perhaps may be in three weeks' time. The Dutch gardeners 

 term this the ripening of the roots, because it causes them 

 to become firm, smooth in the outer cover, and of a bright 

 purple colour : whereas the roots which are permitted to re- 

 main undisturbed till the leaves and stalks are quite decayed, 

 will be large and spongy, with their outer coats of a pale 

 yellow colour; for the stems of many of these flowers are 

 very large, and contain a great quantity of moisture, which, 

 if suffered to return into the roots, would infallibly destroy 

 many of them. After they are ripened, take them out of the 

 ground, and wipe them clean with a soft woollen cloth, 

 taking off all the decayed parts of the leaves and fibres, 

 putting them into open boxes where they may lie singly, and 

 be exposed to the air, but carefully preserved from moisture. 

 They should not be suffered to remain where the sun may 

 shine upon them ; and may be thus preserved until September, 

 which is the season for replanting them. You must then 

 separate all the strong-flowering roots, planting them in beds 

 by themselves, that they may make an equal appearance in 

 their flowers. The offsets and smaller roots may be planted 

 in a separate bed for one year, to acquire strength, and at 

 the end of a second year will probably be as vigorous as the 

 older roots. The single and semi-double flowers should be 

 planted also in a bed by themselves, where they must be care- 

 fully sheltered, as before directed, especially from frost, until 

 the flowers are blown ; at which time their covering should 

 be entirely removed, the open air admitted, and the flower- 

 stalk supported with sticks, which, though the weather may 

 soon deface the beauty of their flowers, is yet absolutely 



