LILIUM 



THE BULB BOOK 



LIMNOCHARIS 



L. umbellatum. — A Siberian species 

 with large heads of erect orange-red 

 flowers. Many lilies of garden origin 

 are grouped under this, being prob- 

 ably hybrids between L. crocenm, L. 

 elegans, and L. davuricwn. The 

 colours vary from orange to orange- 

 red, apricot and almost scarlet, special 

 names being given to some forms, 

 such as aurantiacum, grandiflorum, 

 punctatum. Cloth of Gold, etc. 



L. 'Wallaoei. — A Japanese Lily in- 

 termediate between L. elegans and L. 

 Maximoiviczi. It has roundish bulbs, 

 1^ to 2 ins. in diameter; densely 

 leafy green stems about li ft. high, 

 mottled with brown ; and clear pale 

 scarlet flowers about 3 ins. long, 

 spotted with brown inside towards 

 the base. {Garden, 1897, f. 1103.) 



L. 'Washlngtonianum. — A fine 

 Californian Lily, 3 to 6 feet high, with 

 long and narrow bulbs composed of 

 loose scales, often measuring 7 to 15 

 ins. in circumference, but in a native 

 state sometimes as much as 28 ins. 

 The drooping funnel-shaped flowers 

 are 3 to 4 ins. long, pure white, tinged 

 with purple or lilac, and sweetly 

 scented. {Fl. d. Serr. tt. 1975-6; 

 Gartenfl. t. 170; Elwes, Lil. t. 10.) 



Mr Carl Purdy mentions a variety 

 called minor, from the base of Shasta 

 Mountain. It has ovate compact 

 bulbs, slender stems, rather narrow 

 lance-shaped wavy leaves five to eight 

 in a whorl. 



L. yoshidai. — This is said to be a 

 new species, vnth sweet-scented 

 flowers like those of L. Browni {Gard. 

 1905, Ixviii. 238, f.). 



L. jrunnanense. — A native of the 

 mountains of Yunnan, W. China, at 

 an elevation of 6000 ft. It has 

 roundish bulbs about 1^ ins. in 

 diameter, smooth stems 1' to 2 ft. 

 high, and narrow leaves H to 2 ins. 

 long. The drooping pink and un- 

 spotted flowers are widely expanding. 



and from H to 2 ins. long. It is a 

 very distinct and pretty little species. 

 LiLiUM Diseases. — Sometimes a 

 fungus known as Botrytis cinerea 

 attacks ^e plants, forming orange- 

 brown specks on the stems and leaves, 

 etc., ultimately becoming covered with 

 a delicate grey mould. O ther fungoid 

 diseases also attack the plants. In- 

 fected portions should be burned, the 

 plants then being sprayed with a 

 solution of liver of sulphur (2 oz. to 3 

 gals, of water), or heavily dusted over 

 with flowers of sulphur after syring- 

 ing or a heavy rain. When grown in 

 greenhouses, the worst pest probably 

 is the green-fly, which attacks and 

 cripples the tips of the flowering 

 shoots. By syringing the plants regu- 

 larly with nicotine and quassia solu- 

 tions, or by vaporising the houses 

 from time to time, these pests can be 

 kept in check. 



LIMNOCHARIS (limne, a marsh ; 

 chairo, to delight in ; in reference to 

 its habitat). Nat. Ord. Alismaceae. — 

 The best -known members of the 

 genus are described below : — 



L. Humboldt! {Hydrocleis Commer- 

 soni). — A charming aquatic from 

 Buenos Ayres, having whitish cylin- 

 drical root-stocks, broadly oval or 

 roundish leaves which float on the 

 surface of the water, and bright 

 yellow flowers from July to Septem- 

 ber. Each bloom is over 2 ins. 

 across, and consists of three roundish 

 inner segments, three smaller green 

 outer ones, and numerous orange- 

 yellow stamens in the centre. {Bot. 

 Reg. t. 1640.) 



To keep this plant alive during the 

 winter months outside, the rhizomes 

 should be planted at least a foot 

 below the water-level. They may, 

 however, be grown in pots or tubs, 

 and sunk in the water in June, and 

 taken up again in October or Novem- 



347 



