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GROWING DARWINS ^ 

 j^ IN THE GREENHOUSE 



The place of greatest ^honor, the center of the stage, the front page of the 

 trade journal — these are now the rightful positions of the Darwins, when tulips 

 are under consideration. The Darwins have long deserved such high distinction, 

 but have only attained it during the last season. 



HY <Udn't somebody think 

 WX TT of it sooner? That is the 

 \ If / question which is often 

 /^Yy^^ asked when a new and 

 serviceable article is in- 

 vented, or when a new 

 and advantageous use is 

 discovered for some old 

 contrivance or commodity. 

 Sometimes, of course, the most remark- 

 able feature of the new invention or 

 discovery ]^ its intricacy or mystery; 

 we are awestruck by the scientific 

 genius and knowledge therein displayed. 

 But just as frequently the most obvious 

 characteristic of the new device is its 

 simplicity and easy adaptability; the 

 wonder is that someone did not stumble 

 onto the idea ages ago. The beholder 

 exclaims: "Why, yes! Of course! Just 

 the right wrinkle! And as plain as two 

 plus two. The opportunity was clearly 

 visible; how did it escape notice so 

 long? Why wasn't I the lucky guy to 

 see it first and pocket the biggest 

 profits?" 



A Plunge Into Popularity. 



Such is the situation, in some degree 

 at least, with reference to tlie Darwin 

 tulips. As soon as anyone thought of 

 putting them to the test, they proved 

 themselves to be the 

 most admirable of 

 bulbous flowers for 

 greenhouse use. Why, 

 then, didn't somebody 

 think of it sooner? 

 That is the natural in- 

 quiry. The Darwins ' 

 sudden bounce into 

 popularity m a y b e 

 startling at first 

 glance. But when their 

 merits are considered, 

 the real marvel is, not 

 that they have jumped 

 into favor at one 

 bound, but that they 

 did not do the jump- 

 ing long ago. 



The lack of early 

 appreciation of the* 

 Darwin tulips is ])artly 

 explained, however, by 

 the fact that they were 

 not classified as a dis- 

 tinct race until com- 

 paratively recent 

 times. Their ])resent 

 name was given to 

 them only a little more 

 than a quarter of a 

 century ago, in honor 

 of the great evolution- 

 ist, Charles Darwin. In 



view of their relatively modern origin, 

 it is not surprising, perhaps, that their 

 l)opularity as bedding plants does not 

 date back more than abouf fifteen years. 

 The reason for astonishment is that as 

 forcing stock they were practically an 

 unknown quantity until two o^ three 

 years ago. Not until the last two 

 winters have the greenhouse Darwins 

 appeared in the wholesale markets and 

 been j)rominent on exhibition tables. 

 Tliere was a tremendous increase in the 

 importation and forcing of Darwins last 

 season, but even now only a limited 

 number of florists who specialize in bulb 

 forcing have tried them. However, 

 these few pioneers in the work have 

 been so Avell rewarded that their ex- 

 ample will surely be followed by many 

 otlier growers. 



Some of Their Merits. 



As outdoor bedding ])lants, the Dar- 

 wins are so much superior to tlie ordi- 

 nary early tulips that there is little 

 room for comparison between the two 

 classes. The Darwins, while a little 

 more expensive, have the advantage of 

 wearing better than the early section, 

 and, when left undisturbed in beds, tliey 

 flower far better the second and third 

 year than the first. The same statement 

 h:)l(ls true, also, if they are jjlanted in 



chimps in the hardy herbaceous border. 

 The Darwins are a stately race, with 

 long, strong stems. Tlie outdoor flowers 

 have stems varying from twenty-four 

 to forty inches in height, according to 

 the variety of the plants and the nature 

 of the soil. Under glass the stems av- 

 erage eighteen to twenty-four inches 

 high in February and are somijwhat 

 taller in March. 



The flowers have a wide range of 

 colors,, comprising rose, maroon, claret, 

 heliotrope, red, crimson, purjile and 

 other deep, rich shades. However, there 

 is no really pure wliite in the group and 

 there is no good yellow, unless the cot- 

 tage tulip, Inglescombe Yellow, some- 

 times called the "Yellow Darwin," is 

 included in the list. Most of the colors 

 are improved by the protection of glass. 

 In the cut flower market the green- 

 house Darwins have been bringing 

 about twice the ])rices of the ordinary 

 early tulips. They will not endure 

 hard forcing, but are of great value in 

 prolonging the tulip season and their 

 liigh prices are partly due to tlie fact 

 that they reach the market after the 

 other classes of greenhouse tulips have 

 mostly disappeared. 



Their Greenhouse Culture. 



Beiii<r natui 



Darwin Tulfps are Most Conveniently Handled in Flats. 



ally May-flowering sorts, 

 of course they can- 

 not be forced into 

 bloom successfully as 

 early as such tulips as 

 La Rdinc, Yellow 

 Prince, White Hawk 

 or Thomas Moore. One 

 or two varieties, how- 

 ever, can be flowered 

 in fine condition by 

 the middle of Feb- 

 ruary, while all can be 

 had in crop during 

 March. In the last 

 two seasons pans or 

 beds of them have 

 l)ecn attractive fea- 

 tures at the large 

 spring exhibitions in 

 New York, Boston and 

 riiiladeljtliia. 



For forcing ])iir- 

 ])0ses the bulbs should 

 be placed in flats con- 

 taining five inches of 

 soil, or in ]ians. If 

 pans are used, fairly 

 large ones are jirefer- 

 able, and for commer- 

 cial purposes 10-inch 

 sizes have p r o v e d 

 m u c h better than 

 8-iiich. As a compost 

 a mixture of fibrous 



