632 



CALOCHORTUS 



CALOCHORTUS 



tinent from Wash, to Mex., and some of them in the 

 interior country. Nearly all the species are in cult. 

 Monogr. by J. G. Baker, Journ. Linn. Soc. 14:302-10 

 (1875); and by S. Watson, Proc. Amer. Acad. Arts 

 and Sci. 14:262-8 (1879). See also Colochorti in 

 the Sierra Nevada, by George Hansen, Erythea, 

 7:13-15; A. Davidson, Erythea, 

 2:1-2,27-30; Mallett. Gn. 1901, 

 60:412, vol. 61, pp. 185, 203, 220; 

 Carl Purdy, Proc. Calif. Acad. 

 Sci., 3d ser., vol. 2, No. 4 (1901). 

 Calochprtuses extend into Brit- 

 ish America, and a few, belonging 

 to a peculiar group, are found in 

 Mexico; the remainder are natives 

 of the United States, from Ne- 

 braska to the Pacific Ocean. 

 While the generic characteristics 

 are unmistakable, the species and 

 even varieties 

 have the most 

 variable incli- 

 nations as to 

 soil, exposure 

 and climate. 

 The Colorado 

 Desert and 

 the summits 



of the Sierra Nevada, the heavy 

 clay lands of Californian valleys, 

 the volcanic soils of the foothills 

 and the meadows of the North- 

 west, each has its own representa- 

 tives of this beautiful tribe. The 

 character of the genus can be 

 treated better under the various 

 groups. Nearly every known spe- 

 cies is in cultivation to some ex- 

 tent. Some are readily grown, 

 others present considerable cul- 

 tural difficulties; but while there 

 are some that probably will 

 always be difficult to cultivate, 

 there are many species and the number in- 

 cludes the very best that can be grown suc- 

 cessfully by anyone who is willing to give a little 

 special care to them; and there are a few that 

 possess such vigor and hardiness as to be 

 adapted to extensive cultivation. 

 All calochortuses are hardy in the sense of with- 

 standing extreme cold, but they will not endure alter- 

 nate thawing and freezing nearly so well; and thus there 

 is the paradox of their going safely through severe 

 eastern or European winters and suffering the loss of 

 foliage in mild ones. They should be planted in the 

 fall, and it is better to plant late, so that leaf-growth is 

 delayed until spring. Diverse as are their natural 

 habitats, one soil will answer the needs of all. A light 

 loam, made lighter with sand or sawdust, powdered 

 charcoal, or spent tan-bark, is best. Excellent results 

 have been secured with a mixture of equal parts of a 

 good light loam and spent tan-bark, with a little broken 

 charcoal. Wallace, one of the most successful English 

 growers, recommends making a bed sloping to the 

 south, composed of leaf-mold and road grit in equal 

 parts, with a smaller proportion of sharp sand. The idea 

 is to have a light and porous, not [too stimulating soil, 

 with perfect drainage. Wallace recommends covering 

 the beds with reeds to throw off the heavy rains. The 

 same end may be attained by such thorough drainage 

 that the rains pass through quickly. In New York, 

 they have been carried through the winter safely under 

 a covering put on before the ground freezes hard. 

 It is well to keep a few leaves about the shoots for a 

 time and to have extra leaves at hand to be used when 

 frost threatens. It is better to lift the bulbs as soon as 



they ripen, and replant in the fall. Water sparingly at 

 all times. Under suitable conditions they are hardy 

 and tenacious of life, but excessive moisture, either in 

 air or ground, is not to their liking after the flowering 

 season arrives. Theoretically, all calochortuses of Sec- 

 tion A (star and globe tulips) should have shade, and 

 all mariposas (AA) sunshine; but the light shade of a 

 lath-house suits all alike, giving much finer bloom in 

 the mariposas. The flowering season extends over three 

 months, according to species. 



They take well to pot culture with similar soils and 

 treatment. While not to be forced rapidly, they con- 

 siderably anticipate their out-of-door season. The 

 same treatment can be used in coldframe culture, but 

 they must not be coddled too much. 



A. Blossoms or fr. more or less nodding (unless No. 4)-' 



inner perianth-segms. strongly arched: Ivs. long 

 and glossy, not channeled. (Eucalochortus.) 



B. Fls. subglobose, nodding: st. usually tall and branch- 



ing. GLOBE TULIPS. These have a single long 

 and narrow shining If. from the base, and slen- 

 der, flexuous, leafy sts., the perfection of grace in 

 outline. The fls. are exquisite in delicacy of 

 tints. Woodland plants. 



1. albus, Douglas (Cyclobdthra dlba, Benth.). Fig. 

 747. Strong, 1-2 ft. high, glaucous: fls. globular, 

 pendent, 1 in. across, of a satiny texture, delicately 

 fringed with hairs, very strongly inarched or practically 

 closed. Calif. B.R. 1661. F.S. 11:1171. Chaste and 

 delicate. The form from the Coast Range is the Pearl 

 calochortus of gardens; the form from the Sierras with 

 fls. less strongly inarched and at length opening slightly 

 is the C. albus of horticulture. 



Var. amdenus, Hort. (C. amoenus, Greene). Like C. 

 albus, but rose-colored, lower and more slender: fls. 

 opening in full bloom. Fresno and Tulare Co., Calif. 



2. pulchellus, Douglas (Cyclobdthra pulchella, Benth.) . 

 Stout, glaucous, 8-16 in., usually branching: fls. yel- 

 low, strongly inarched but parts not overlapping; 

 sepals shorter than petals, ovate-acuminate, yellow 

 tinged with brown on the back; petals ovate, obtuse, 

 1 in. or less long, canary-yellow, with long silky hairs 

 above the gland. Cent. Calif. B.R. 1662. 



3. amabilis, Purdy. Habit like C. albus: sts. stout, 

 usually branching in pairs: petals clear yellow, very 

 strongly inarched so that the tips overlap each other 

 much like a child's pin-wheel; gland lined with stiff 

 hairs that cross each other; petals margined with a line 

 of stiff hairs. Cent, and N. Calif. 



4. G61dyi, Watkins. Possibly C Benthamii x C. 

 amabilis. Sts. several, freely branched, bearing 15-20 

 fls.: Ivs. narrow-lanceolate: fls. erect, 1 in. across, straw- 

 yellow, inner surfaces covered with long silky sulfur- 

 tinted hairs and a few shorter crimson hairs deep down 

 in the cup; petals rounded and 'very hooded. Appar- 

 ently of garden origin. 



