TKEATMENT OF PEKENNIALS 43 



in clumps of eight to twelve bulbs ; after the flower- 

 ing is over, the leaves should be left to die down, 

 and must not be cut off. About every third or fourth 

 year you should dig up each clump, as soon as 

 the leaves are withering, or they will become too 

 crowded. Select and replant the largest bulbs, and 

 put the middle sized and smallest bulbs into the 

 nursery bed, to grow to maturity. All Narcissi 

 like an open, sunny situation, and they increase 

 very quickly in a light, well-drained soil. 



Delphinium. These are, I think, the most beauti- 

 ful of all our perennial plants ; great clumps of 

 blue spikes, often growing eight feet high, in every 

 shade from sky blue to the deepest ultramarine. 

 They are very easy to raise from seed, and if you 

 can save some from a good light blue, and some 

 from a dark blue, you may bring up any number 

 of plants for the following year. Put the young 

 plants in a nursery bed for the first season, and 

 select the best for the flower-garden in the follow- 

 ing summer. They soon grow into large clumps, 

 and look their best so; or you may plant several 

 in a group. 



Slugs are a great enemy to the seedling plants, 

 and they must be carefully guarded against with 



