1835.] 



FARMERS' REGISTER. 



499 



it cannot be supposed will flower as well as when 

 in pots; but they have a very beautiful appearance, 

 and flower sufficiently strong to render them high- 

 ly desirable. 



For this purpose, the earliest kinds should be 

 selected; and we would state, that we prefer sin- 

 gle to double ones, or at least, an equal number 

 of each, for the following reasons: the spikes are 

 much taller, the bells far more numerous, the co- 

 lors more vivid, and the fragrance very powerful; 

 indeed, in some of the best kinds, the bells are so 

 profuse as to form a complete pyramid of flowers. 

 If attention is given to the following simple ob- 

 servations, no fear need be entertained of disap- 

 pointment. 



Select good large solid bulbs, especially for 

 glasses; we have often seen it stated in the com- 

 munications of experienced growers, that "small 

 bulbs are worse than useless;" it is labor lost, to 

 cultivate those which are sold at auction; they are 

 the mere refuse of the Dutch florists, such as 

 would be thrown away as worthless; the roots are 

 weak, and would fail to flower well if put in their 

 natural element, the earth; much more so if in an 

 artificial one of water. How frequent we have 

 heard complaints that bulbs start well, make a ra- 

 pid growth of an inch or two, and then stop; the 

 flower stems dying ere a flower opens. This is 

 from the cause that there is not sap enough stored 

 in the bulb the preceding year; and it must conse- 

 quently make a premature and sickly growth the 

 following one. Unless attention is paid to the se- 

 lection of first rate bulbs, disappointment must 

 certainly ensue. All complaints arise from this 

 cause; and if cheap bulbs are cultivated, cheap 

 looking flowers must also repay amateurs for their 

 care. 



Management in glasses. — The bulbs may be 

 put in the glasses any time from October to Janu- 

 ary; when a succession of flowers is wanted, they 

 may be put in every fortnight. Place in the bulbs, 

 and then fill up with water just so that the bottoms 

 of each will be immersed an eighth of an inch; 

 then put the glasses in a dark cool room until the 

 roots have protruded a half an inch, orso, which is 

 generally in about ten days. They should then 

 be exposed to the sun, light and air, as much as 

 possible. If they receive the sun on one side 

 only, turn them round every two or three days to 

 prevent their growing crooked. Change the wa- 

 ter once a week; if the glasses get very dirty, draw 

 out the roots carefully, and give them a thorough 

 washing. The water should not be allowed to 

 freeze. Any pure water will do; but rain water is 

 the best. 



After bulbs are grown in water, they are not 

 worth saving; as it will take three or four years to 

 recover their strength. 



Management in pots. — To bloom hyacinths to 

 perfection, the pots should be seven inches in di- 

 ameter and ten inches deep; plant only one in 

 each pot; it is almost unnecessary to say, that it is 

 folly to expect to procure fine flowers from a bulb 

 in a pot scarcely large enough to hold a crocus. 

 Put in some broken potshreds in each pot; fill 

 them up with the soil before recommended, and 

 place in the bulb, just covering it; give the pot a 

 gentle knock to settle the soil. Select a dry spot 

 in the garden, and dig a hole eighteen inches 

 deep; place in the pots, and cover them up with 

 the earth six or more inches in depth; upon the 



approach of frost, cover them with dry leaves, 

 sea-weed or hay. They should all be planted at 

 one period, during the month of November. 



Two or more pots can be taken up at any time 

 throughout the winter, thus giving a succession of 

 flowers from January until April. If there is no 

 garden to place the pots in, they should be put in 

 a box in a cool cellar, and covered with earth in 

 the same manner. This is the method we have 

 practised, and have never failed in blooming them 

 well. We have had the main stems of some sin- 

 gle ones eighteen inches high, with upwards of 

 fifty bells, forming a pyramid of flowers more than 

 twelve inches in height. It cannot be supposed 

 that a bulb, set in a pot and immediately forced 

 into growth, will flower strong; they must acquire 

 roots first to support the foliage. 



When they are in flower, give them plenty of 

 water, by placing pans under the pots, and keep- 

 ing them constantly filled. We have seen ma- 

 nure water recommended, but we havenever, our- 

 selves, tried the experiment; cease to give water 

 when out of flower, and discontinue it altogether 

 when the leaves assume a decaying appear- 

 ance. 



Roots that have flowered in pots are but little 

 injured, and will bloom tolerably strong the next 

 season, if set out in the ground; the same bulb 

 should never be set in a pot two successive years, 

 but by shifting them alternately, from the pot to 

 the garden, they may be made to flower vigorous- 



The management, of the hyacinth in beds, to 

 flower them to perfection, will be given in some 

 future number. 



As many of our readers may not know what 

 constitutes the properties of a fine hyacinth, we 

 extract the following from Maddock's Florist'e Di- 

 rectory: 



"The stem should be strong, tall, and erect, 

 supporting numerous large bells, each suspended 

 by a short and strong peduncle or footstalk, in a 

 horizontal position, so that the whole may have a 

 compact, pyramidal form, with the crown or up- 

 permost flower perfectly erect. The flowers 

 should be large and perfectly double; that is, well 

 filled with broad, bold petals, appearing to the eye 

 rather convex than flat or hollow: they should oc- 

 cupy about one-half the length of the stem. The 

 colors should be clear and bright, whether plain, 

 red, white or blue, or variously intermixed and di- 

 versified in the eye: the latter, it must be con- 

 fessed, gives additional lustre and elegance to this 

 beautiful flower. Strong, bright colors are, in ge- 

 neral, preferred to such as are pale." 



The following is a list of superior kinds, and 

 may serve to assist some in making their selec- 

 tions: 



Double white. 



General Washington. 

 Prince of Waterloo. 

 Triumph Blandina. 

 La Deese. 

 Miss Kitty, rosy eye. 

 A la Mode, rosy eye. 



Single white. 



Grand Blanch Imperial. 

 Grand Vainquier. 



