IXIA. 167 



come very fine distinctions were made by the specialist. 

 1 he species are all of great beauty, producing flowers of 

 many colors, pink, rose, crimson, orange, yellow, 

 cream-col ~r, white and variegated. In many varieties 

 these colors are strangely blended, but always clear, and 

 the markings entirely distinct. They make splendid 

 pot plants for the conservatory or greenhouse ; in fact, 

 there are but few plants more showy. They should be 

 potted, sa/'twelve in a six inch pot, in rich, light soil, 

 in October, and set aside until they commence to grow, 

 w r hen they should be brought into full light, in a moder- 

 ately warm greenhouse. They will come into flower in 

 midwinter, and remain objects of great beauty for some 

 weeks. After flowering, and the bulbs have perfected 

 their growth, they should be dried off, and kept dry and 

 dark until the first of October, when they should be 

 repotted. The offsets, which are produced freely, should 

 be thrown away, as they do not flower until the second 

 year, and the bulbs are so cheap that it does not pay to 

 grow them. These bulbs can also be grown in a cold 

 frame, but they must be insured' against both frost and 

 excessive moisture. If grown in a frame, the bulbs 

 should be planted two inches apart and three inches 

 deep. Few of the species are in cultivation, the garden 

 varieties having superseded them. The following, how- 

 ever, are well worth growing : 



I. aulica. Tall, pink, eighteen inches, or two feet 

 high, flowering in April and May. 



I. conica. An orange colored species, about a foot 

 high, flowering in April and May. 



I. crispa. A curled leaved blue sort, flowering in 

 April and May. 



I. erecta. White, about one and one-half feet 

 high, flowering in May and June. There is also a flesh- 

 colored (incarnata), and yellow (luted] variety. 



I. incarnata. Rich flesh-colored, flowering in 

 June and July, nine inches high. 



