FLOWER-GARDENING. 79 



IXIAS. 



These are tender, but very free flowering bulbs, producing 

 on tbeir stems, wbicb vary in height from six inches to two 

 feet, very delicate flowers of various colors, as orange, blush, 

 white, purple, green, crimson, scarlet, and some have two or 

 three colors blended in the same plant. There are, in all, 

 upwards of twenty species, which may be cultivated in the 

 green-house, by planting the bulbs in pots in September or 

 October, and placing them near the light, and watering them 

 sparingly until they begin to shoot. There are some pure 

 white, and others yellow, growing in various parts of the 

 country. Among the foreign genera are several species. Of 

 the Jfartaffon, or Turk's Cap Lilies, there are some beautiful 

 varieties ; as the Caligula, which produces scarlet flowers ; and 

 there is one called the CroAvn of Tunis, of purple color ; besides 

 these, are the Double Violet Flamed, the White, the Orange, 

 and the Spotted. These are all hardy, and may be planted in 

 various parts of the garden, by taking out a square foot of 

 earth, and then, after manuring and pulverizing it, the bulbs 

 may be planted therein before the setting in of winter, at 

 different depths, from two to four inches, according to the size 

 of the bulbs. Some of the Chinese varieties are very beauti- 

 ful, as the Tiger, or Leopard Lily, and the dwarf red, Lilium 

 concolor. There are others with elegant silver stripes, which 

 are very showy, and there is one called Lilium superbum, that 

 has been known to have twenty-five flowers on a single stalk. 



Besides those just enumerated, there are some others 

 which are generally cultivated in green-houses, as the Calla^ 

 or Ethiopian Lily ; and the following, which have been known 

 to endure our winters, by protecting them with mulch or 

 leaves. Lilium longifiorum^ in two varieties, produce on their 

 stalks, which grow from twelve to eighteen inches high, beau- 

 tiful rose-colored flowers, streaked wdth white, which are very 



