86 



THE SCILLA. 



ever the shade ; and any better approach to scarlet, blue, or 

 yellow, than those shades we now possess, would be highly 

 esteemed : flowers with dark eyes, very clear outsides, and 

 those with striped petals, would be held to be better than 

 selfs in general, but would give no point against form. 



THE SCILLA. 



This is a lovely genus of small bulbs, with blue, white, 

 or pink flowers. They are mostly very early flowering, 

 and are very effective as borders for bulb-beds or in masses. 



The prevailing color is blue. The flowers are produced in 

 spikes, composed of from six to twelve pendent bells. The 

 bulbs are generally hardy enough to endure the winter with 

 the protection usually given to a bulb-bed, and require no 

 further treatment than to be planted from one to two inches 

 deep in October or November, in a rather light soil : that 

 usually prepared for bulbs suits them well. When once 

 planted, they should not be disturbed oftener than is 

 required for division. 



As the individual bulbs are small, they should always be 

 grown in masses, or iij double or triple lines, as otherwise 

 they are not effective. Each species should also be planted 

 by itself. 



