•_\>S(^» 



Mrt?(,AKl 



MUSCARI 



MUSCARI (Liktin uamo n>forring to tho musky odor 

 of M. iiK'schiiliiin). Liliaci;v. (lUArK Hyacinth. 

 ExivUont li:ii\ly sprinp-blootiiiii}! Inillis. 



Klowors in ract'iiu'S or spikos; poriaiith urn-shapod, 

 sliehtly or ilistinctly 'ooiistru'tiHl at mouth; scgms. 

 O-iTcntttte. I'ommonly rotloxoil; stjuiieus in a tloublo 

 cyLndricjil tubo; ovary 3-i'rllcd, scssili', nloliosc- 

 trigon:U: caps, sessile, globose; seeds subglobosi', 

 black, glistening: bulbs membranous, timiiated. — 

 About 4;"i species in Sicily, .\lgiria, iMuopcan Mcdit., 

 Spsiin, .\sia Minor, and tlic Orient. All grajie hya- 

 cinths arc very much alike and are very iiileresting, 

 botanically, horticuhurally and from the artistic jjoiiit 

 of view. The group needs botanical revision ba<lly. 

 The cliiuf literary sources are Baker in .lour. Linn. 

 Soe., Vol. U (1871), and in G.C. II.9:70.S (1S7S); 

 also Boissier's Flora Orientalis. The width of the Ivs. is 

 an important character, and Baker's measurements 

 seem to refer to herbariiun specimens. Li\e i)lants 

 should be wider. (\ line is a twelfth of an inch.) They 

 iirc something like a hyacinth, hut the (lusters are 

 smaller, and the individual fls. arc smaller and of dilTer- 

 ent shaiK>, the grape hyacinths being constricted at 

 the mouth and having () small teeth instead of the 

 prominent perianth-segms., as in the true hyacinth. 



The common grape hyacinth, which every garden 

 lover knows, is called M . botri/oUlin, which means "like 

 a bunch of grapes. " Everybody who has any groimd for 

 gardening should have some bulbs of this common 

 kind, both blue-Howcrcd and white. All the other kinds 

 described below are fancier's plants, interesting chiefly 

 to skilled amateurs. Among them the most remarkable 

 is the feathered hyacinth (.1/. comosum v.ar. 7>ioii- 

 strnsum), which is a mass of lilac shreds (see Fig. 2404). 

 Any species of Muscari is likely to have some sterile 

 flowers at the top of the cluster which are often of a 

 diflferent color, but in the feathered hyacinth there is no 

 .suggestion left of the urn-shai)ed flower, sterile and 

 fertile flowers all being cut into fine strips. This attrac- 

 tive plant has been sohi for fancy prices by a few i^ro- 

 gressive florists. 



lirape hyacinths are neat little early flowering bul- 

 bous plants, good-sized colonies of which give dainty 

 effects in the border from February to May. There are 

 numerous si^ccies of these, flowering at different times. 

 They are mostly dark puqile in color, either self-colored 

 or tipped with white. There are also a few white and 

 yellow forms, anfl several species with true blue flowers, 



the rarest color among 

 flowers, though this 

 would never be dis- 

 covered in catalogues. 

 M. Szomtsiamim, one of 

 the tnie blue forms, is 

 quite the prettiest of 

 the genus. The plant 

 known to the trade as 

 .1/. linqtdattim, or Ilija- 

 rifilhnu azuTiua, has the 

 true blue of M. SzopU- 

 xifiniim, and is fully a 

 nifinfh earlier. Theu.sual 

 forms grown in ganlens 

 .are mostly blue (purple) 

 and white forms of M. 

 hi)lri/f/id(;ti. M. ciiiiinim 

 is very dark. The Dutch 

 cat.alogues offer numer- 

 ous kinds to suit ama- 

 teurs and differing con- 

 ditions. Muscari offer no 

 fliffi('ulties in cultivation. 

 A medium .soil perhaps 

 suits them best, but 

 they are usually thrifty 

 growers, and piT.sistent in 



the garden if foliage is allowed to ripen. Thtiy mostly 

 make offsets freely, and produce abundant seed. (,I. N. 

 tlcrard.) 



INDKX. 



album, 4, S. 

 anneniiu-uiii, 0. 

 atlaulicum, l."i. 

 atrociiritli-infi, 10. 

 Aurhiri. li. 

 botr.vniilcs, 4. 

 niruli itni, 4. 

 riiriitiim, 4, til. 

 OOIllIliUlUtUIIl, 10. 



13. 



grrecuin, 3. 

 tiranilijlorum, 4, 

 ll.-lilrciiliii, 5. 

 tatifolitnu, 14. 

 Lflit'rrri, 4. 

 leuconhu'itm, 4. 

 lint^uliiluiii, ti. 

 matTiiritrpum, 1. 

 maior. 1. 

 majus, 4. 

 micnuitlium, 10. 

 minor, 1. 

 monstrosuni, 2, 10. 



niOHcliatuin, I. 

 muUiJlt>rum. l-'i. 

 lu'Klcctiun, !.'>. 

 pillions. 12. 

 palliititnt, 4. 

 paradoxuni, 7. 

 plunwsum, 2, 16. 

 potyanthuni, 17. 

 pripcox, 0, 13. 

 raceniosum, 13. 

 suaiwolrns, 1. 

 Szovitsianum, 11. 

 viotact'um, 10. 



2404. MuHcari comosum var. 

 monstrosum. 



conmsuni. 2. 10. 

 coilipiu'tuill, 18. 

 ronicum, 8. 

 dipcaili, 1. 

 flavuni, 1. 



Subgenus I. Moscharia. Perianth urn-shaped, but 

 with .a relatively long-tubular base ; .scgms. minute, 

 even for the genus, roundish, spreading and 

 thickened on the back. 



1. moschatum, Willd. (.1/. suavcoliiia, Fisch.). 

 Musk or Ni'tmkg Hyacinth. Lvs. .5-1), 1 ft. long, 

 }->-^4in. wide: raceme loose, 1-3 in. long; fls. 20-.''-0, 

 blue. Asia Minor. B.M. 734. Gn. 26, p. 137.— Has the 

 odor of musk. Seems to enjoy a warm dry border where 

 bulbs mature properly. Sometimes fails to bloom after 

 first year. Vars. major and minor are advertised. M. 

 (lipcadi major and minor have appeared in the cata- 

 logues since 1S7S, but these names have no botanical 

 staniling and represent cultural forms, of which there 

 are several. 



Var. flavum, Lam. (M. flavum, Van Tubergen. il/. 

 macrocdrpuiii, Sweet). Fls. yellowish (Van Tubergen 

 says clear yellow). B.M. 1565. 



Subgenus IL Leopoldia. Perianth obovoid-urn- 

 shaped, groovetl above, 3—4 lines long; scgms. 

 triangular, reflexed, not thickened on the b.ick: 

 raceme loose, and longer than in the next. Par- 

 ticularly characterized by the conspicuous bearded 

 ajipearance of the sterile fls. 



2. comosum, Mill. Lvs. 3-4, 1-1 '2 ft. long, J^-1 in. 

 wide: raceme loose, 6-12 in. long, 40-100-fld.; lower fls. 

 fertile, olive, tipi)ed brown, borne on long horizontal 

 pedicels; upper fls. .sterile, blue or violet, borne on 

 long upcurved pedicels, making a cory^nbose cluster. 

 Medit. region. Orient. B.M. 133 (as llijacinlJms como- 

 sus). — An interesting form, but rare in cult., being 

 greatly surpassefl in jiopularity by var. monstrosian. 



Var. monstrosum, Hort. Feathered Hyacinth. 

 Fig. 2404. All the fls. sterile, and cut up into fine shreds. 

 Gng. 7:290. A. F. 14:1286. Gn. 26, p. 137.— A most 

 interesting plant. Also called fair-haired or tasseled 

 hyacinth, and shredded lilac. Sold akso as M. mon- 

 strnaum, M. piumoautn, M . jilumosum tnonslrosum, etc. 

 For other trade synonyms, see under M. commidatum. 



3. graecum, Ileldr. Differs from M. co/nosum in 

 having its sterile fls. in a short, dense, conical spike, the 

 pedicels of which are very short. Greece. 



Subgenus III. Botryanthd,s. Perianth more or less 

 urn-shaped, grooved or not above, 1-2 or rarely 

 3 lines long; .segms. triangular, u.sually reflexed: 

 raceme den.se, 1-2 in. long. ,Sterilc fls. inconspicu- 

 ously bearded or hardly at all. 



A. Fertile fls. a little loiiyir than broad, obovoid-globose. 

 B. Ltis. 3-4: Jl.f. 12-20. 



4. botryoides, Mill. Common Grape Hyacinth. 

 Fig. 2405. Lvs. linear-lorale, 3-4 lines wide: scape 

 (H) in. long; fls. i)al(^ blue, odorles.s, 12-20. Eu., 

 Orient. B.M. 157 (as HyacinlhuH botryoides). A.F. 

 13:1107. Gn.26:1.36. R.B. 20:3. Gn.M. 2:117.— 

 The following varieties are offered: album (G.M. 51: 

 601. (1. •27:2:i5. Gn. 76, p. 106. Gn.VV. 22::«1. J.H. 

 III. 5S:46!), cdrneuni, curideum, leucoplikum, Lclieirei, 



