The Gardener's New Director. 263 

 making the earth neareft to their bulbs as loofe as 

 pofTible, that their young fibres might go through the 

 mould with eafe. When they were rifing to bloflbm, 

 I placed by them fmall fticks, to which I faftened their 

 long (lalks, to prevent the wind breaking them, as 

 not any thing can be more prejudicial to them, than to 

 have their ftalks broken, or their flowers cropt by any 

 accident ; but as foon as you perceive their flowers de- 

 caying, and the feed-veflels forming, cut them off a lit- 

 tle below their tops, allowing the other part of the ftaik 

 to wither; Ilifted them every third year only, whereby 

 I had great plenty of off-lets. 



The Dutch florifts have in their catalogues a plant, 

 which they call Lrlium Perftcunit or the Perftan Lily ; 

 this flower bloffoms in April, has a pendulous or hang- 

 ing flower like a Martagcn, but is not refledled, and its 

 colour refembles that of the Double M.:rtngon; this re- 

 quires the fame culture as the Croivn Impirialsi and 

 bloffoms much about the fame tim. 



Oriental Hyacinth. 



I Come now to treat of one of the principal beauties 

 of the fpring, the Oriental Hyacinth ; and as it is a 

 peculiar favourite of mine, I fhall accurately defcribe 

 the mod beautiful fingle and double flowers, which are 

 in Mynheers Voerhelms and Van ZomptPs catalogues, 

 which flowered with me ; and after proceed to the cul- 

 ture of their old roots, and their off-fcts, and then give 

 my own practice, whereby I railed many of thefe fine 

 flowers of incomparable beauty, from feeds which I 

 faved in this country ; and ^ there is fuch a variety of 

 them, it will be neceffary to be very exud in their de- 

 fcriptions, whereby one may know what is a fine flov/cr, 

 an early or a late blower, with all its properties and co- 

 lours; and I chufe to defcribe them from tlie catalogues 

 of Mynheers Dirk and Fictre VoerhflmSy and Voerbelm i;nd 

 Van Zimftl, florifts at Haerhm in Holliindj as the flowers 

 T 2 they 



