354 Culture of Hyacinths 



cultivated by them, that I cannot refrain from remitting for your 

 perusal the few notes which I made on the spot. 



You are well aware, that the Dutch, of all other nations in the 

 world, are the most successful in cultivating bulbs for sale. I 

 might say, that they carry this art to perfection ; but the rapid 

 strides which the growing of the hyacinth has of late years made 

 in Berlin, gives me every reason to think that, in a very few 

 years, that city may rank with Holland both as to quality and 

 number. On the east side of the town of Berlin, within the 

 wallsj is a large tract of land, commonly called the Kopenicker 

 Feld ; formerly old pasture ground. Here a vast number of 

 market-gardeners have of late years established themselves ; and 

 among them men of capital and taste are to be found, who, to 

 enlarge the former, and gratify the latter, have betaken them- 

 selves to the cultivation of bulbs for the market. Among the 

 most important of these may be reckoned M. Krause in the 

 Fruchtstrasse, who has not less than seven acres planted with 

 hyacinths ; and, from a calculation which I made, above one 

 million of flowering bulbs, and half as many seedlings. From the 

 immense number grown of one sort, this field (for so I must 

 call it) has a very grand appearance ; the colours being so ar- 

 ranged as to resemble a rainbow ; beginning with a light shade, 

 which rises gradually to a dark blue, backed with red, which is 

 lightly led away into a pure white; and so on, in alternate shades, 

 to the end of the field. Just as I was entering the grounds, I 

 found his Majesty the King of Prussia, who had honoured M. 

 Krause with a visit, retiring, after having examined all the 

 different kinds verj' minutely, and having expressed himself 

 highly satisfied with the grandeur of the scene; which certainly 

 exceeds any thing of the kind I have ever witnessed. The kinds 

 which I observed he cultivates in large quantities are as follows : — 



Single Reds. — Aimable Rosette, Gellert, Madame, I'Hon- 

 neur de Sassenheim, Reine de Rouge, Riche en Fleurs, Rose a la 

 Reine, Acteur, Superbissima rubrorum, la belle Rose. 



Double Reds. — Euterpe, Grossfiirst, Hugo Grotius, II Pastor 

 fido, Rosenkranz von Flora, Superbe Royal. 



Siiigle Blues. — La belle Violette, Staaten General, Appius, 

 I'Ami de Coeur, Manteau, Vulcain. 



Double Blues. — A la Mode, la bien aimee, Nigritienne, 

 mon Ami, Due de Penthievre, Perle brillante. 



Single Yellows. — Aurore d'Or, Bouquet d'Orange, Jaune 

 Merveille, la Pluie d'Or, Aidonia. 



Double Yellows. — Bouquet d'Orange, la Favorite, Ophir. 



Single Whites. — Imperiale, Vainqueur, la jolie Blanche. 



Double Whites. — Hermine, Pass Virgo, Raath van Staaten. 



M. Krause had also, I observed, about four acres of early 

 tulips, in a very vigorous state : the late ones were not in flower. 



