ioo GARDENING FOR BEGINNERS 



is pretty in pots in the greenhouse. In some light soils the Glory of the 

 Snow increases rapidly. We enjoy the fresh blue and white flowers of 

 this plant. C. grandiflora, or gigantea, as it is also called, has larger 

 flowers of a more self shade. Plant in the autumn, and put the bulbs 

 two inches deep in any good soil. 



Colchicum (Meadow Saffron or Autumn Crocus). This is a charm- 

 ing family. The best known is C. autumnale, which produces its rosy- 

 purple flowers in September and October. There are several varieties, 

 bearing flowers of different hues, and they form a pretty picture when 

 naturalised in the grass or at the edge of a shrubbery. It is always well 

 to plant such bulbs as these, which flower late in the year, with a ground- 

 work of mossy Saxifrage, Stonecrop, Herniaria, or similar things to protect 

 the blooms when heavy rains dash up the soil and sully their fresh beauty. 

 Plant them in August, putting them about six inches deep in good loam. 

 The double white variety is charming ; it is like a white rosette. C. 

 speciosum is a splendid flower ; its rosy-purple, goblet-like flower is on a 

 stem or stalk about a foot high, and stands far out of the ground. 

 Parkinsoni is easily known by its purple-chequered flowers. The most 

 beautiful of all Colchicums is the little-known C. Sibthorpi. Instead 

 of C. Sibthorpi being nearly as large as C. speciosum, as it is sometimes 

 said to be, it is in reality a great deal larger. It is of a more attractive 

 colour than its congener, and its globular shape it seems to sit on the 

 ground like a large cup sets it off wonderfully. Moreover, it is very 

 strong and floriferous, and grows with such ease that no particular 

 rules for cultivation are required. The flowers are richer in colour than 

 those of C. speciosum, and with beautiful crimson reticulation. Autumn 

 Crocuses enjoy a cool soil. To increase them lift the bulbs every third 

 year, and replant as soon as the foliage is fully matured. Plant in 

 August. 



CrOCUS. Besides the common garden Crocus, golden, purple, white, 

 and striped, there are many other attractive species, some blooming in 

 the autumn, some in winter, and others in the spring. The winter- 

 flowering kinds will flower on a warm border outdoors and may be planted 

 two inches deep. Crocus Imperati, with purple and buff flowers, is the 

 earliest Crocus of the new year, and is sometimes in flower at Xmas. It 

 is closely followed by the beautiful mauve-coloured C. Sieberi, which often 

 opens in January. There are so many Crocuses that it is impossible to 

 do anything like justice to them in a beginner's work. The ordinary 

 Dutch Crocuses, the large yellow, purple, white, and other colours, are 

 the showiest, and may be planted as margins or in colonies in the border. 

 Near large towns especially, birds are frequently troublesome, so much 

 so that in London sparrows will peck off the florets wholesale. A few 

 lengths of thick cotton stretched across the rows stop the depredators 

 in a large measure. Poison and traps will thin out mice, which have a 

 strong liking for Crocus bulbs. It is a pity that the beautiful autumn- 

 flowering Crocuses are not more grown. The most beautiful is C. speciosus. 

 Mice are fond of it. Plant in the summer, and put the bulbs wherever 

 clouds of purple colouring are desired in autumn ; sun is necessary to 



