378 MANUAL OF GARDENING 
above. The vessels of dark-colored glass are preferable to those ol 
clear glass, as roots prefer darkness. When the glasses have been filled, 
they are set away in a cool, dark place, where roots will form, as in 
potted bulbs. Results are usually secured earlier in water than in soil. 
To keep the water sweet, a few lumps of charcoal may be put in the 
glass. As the water evaporates, add fresh; add enough so that it runs 
over, and thereby renews that in the glass. Do not disturb the roots 
by taking out the bulb. 
Iris includes many handsome perennials, of which the blue flag is 
familiar to every old-fashioned garden. They are favorites everywhere, 
for their brilliant spring and summer bloom; and they are easy to grow. 
Most irises thrive best in a rather moist soil, and some of them may 
be colonized in the water in margins of ponds. 
Gardeners usually divide them into two sections — the tuberous- 
rooted or rhizomatous, and the bulbous. A third division — the 
fibrous-rooted — is sometimes made. 
The common and most serviceable species belong to the tuberous- 
rooted section. Here is the beautiful and varied Japanese iris, Iris 
levigata (or I. Kempfert), which is among the most deserving of all 
hardy perennials. Most of these irises need no special care. They are 
propagated by division of the rootstocks. Plant the pieces one foot 
apart if a mass effect is desired. When the plants begin to fail, dig 
them up, divide the roots, discard the old parts, and grow a new stock, 
as before. The Japanese iris needs much water and a very rich soil.’ 
Readily grown from seeds, giving bloom the second year. J. Sustana, 
of this section, is one of the oddest of irises, but it is not quite hardy 
in the North. 
Of the bulbous section, most species are not hardy far North. 
The bulbs should be taken up and replanted every two or three years. 
The Persian and Spanish irises belong here. The bulbs give rise to 
but a single stem. 
Lily. — Under this name are included bulbous plants of many kinds, 
not all of them being true lilies. It has been said of this family of 
plants that it has no ‘‘pocr relations,” each of them being perfect in 
itself. Many of the choicest kinds are comparatively unknown, al- 
