CuAr. XI. BY SUCKERS, TUBERS, AND BULBS. 411 



kind was propagated in tlie usual manner by eyes, and kept true 

 to its new colour, and, being found a more productive variety, 

 soon became widely known under the name of Taylor's Forty-fold.''^ 

 The old Forfy-fvld potato, as already stated, is a purple variety; 

 but a plant long cultivated on the same ground ]n-oduced, not, as in 

 the case above given, a single white eye, but a whole white tuber, 

 which has since been propagated and keeps true/'' Several cases 

 have been recorded of large portions of whole rows of potatoes 

 slightly changing their character."^ 



Dahlias propagated by tubers under the hot climate of St. 

 Domingo vary much ; Sir E. Schomburgk gives the case of the 

 " Butterfly variety," which the second year produced on the same 

 plant "double and single flowers; here white i^etals edged with 

 " maroon; there of a unifoi*m deep maroon."''' Mr. Bree also 

 mentions a plant " which bore two different kinds of self-coloured 

 " flowers, as well as a third kind which partook of both colours 

 " beautifully intermixed."''* Another case is described of a dahlia 

 with purple flowers which bore a white flower streaked with 

 purple.''^ 



Considering how long and extensively many Bulbous plants 

 have been cultivated, and how numerous are the varieties produced 

 from seed, these plants have not pcrhajis varied so much by offsets, 

 — that is, by the production of new bulbs, — as might have been 

 exi)ected. With the Hyacinth, however, several instances have 

 lieen given by M. Carriere. A case also has been recorded of a blue 

 variety which for tliree successive years gave offsets producing 

 white flowers with a red centre.*"^ Another hyacinth bore *'^ on the 

 same truss a perfectly pink and a perfectly blue flower. I have 

 seen a bulb jiroducing at the same time one stalk or truss with fine 

 blue flowers, another with fine red flowers, and a third with blue 

 flowers on one side and red on the other; several of the flowers 

 being also longitudinally striped red and blue. 



Mr. John Scott informs me that in 1862 Imatopliyllum miniatum, 

 in the Botanic Gardens of Edinburgh, threw up a sucker which 

 differed from the normal form, in the leaves being two-ranked 

 instead of foiir-ranked. Ihe leaves were also smaller, with the 

 upper surface raised instead of being channelled. 



In the propagation of Tulips, seedlings are raised, called sel/s or 

 breeders, which, " consist of one j^lain colour on a white or yellow. 

 " bottom. These, being cultivated on a dry and rather poor soil, 

 " become broken or variegated and produce new varieties. Tho 

 " time that elapses before they break varies from one to twenty 



'« ' Gard. Chrou.,' 1841, p. 81+. '» Loudon's ' Gard. Mag.,' vol. viii., 



'5 Ibid., 1857, p. 613. 1832, p. 94. 



■« Ibid., 1857, p. 679. &e also '*> 'Gard. Chron.,' 1850, p. 536 



Philips, 'Hist, of Vegetables,' vol. ii. and 1842, p. 729. 

 p. 91, for other and similar accounts. *" ' Des Jacinthes,' <5;c., Amsterdam, 



'' ' Journal of Proc. Linn. Soc.,' 1768, p. 122. 

 rol. ii. Botany, p. 132. " 'Gard. Chron.,' 1845, p. 212. 



