1040 



MUSOARI 



MUSCARI 



prutiiinent periiuitb-segraeats, as in the true hyacinth. 

 Tliu cummon Grape Hyacinth, which e\'ery ;i^anlfii iuvf r 

 knows, is called M. botryoides, which nn-aiis "like a 

 bunch ut' f^rapes." Everybody who has any jL^Tuund for 

 i^ardeninij should have some bulbs of this couimon 

 kind.Iiatli l)lue-tlo\vered and white. All tlie otlu-r kinds 

 dHSf.riliiiit below are fanciers' plants, iiitrn-stiri^ chic-fly 

 to skilled amateurs. Among them the most remarkalile 

 is the Feathered Hyacinth {M. coinosiim , var. liurn- 

 strosain), which is a mass of lilac shreils (sec Fig. 

 U^iS). Any species of Muscari is likely to have some 

 sterile lis. at the top of the cluster wbirh are often of a 

 different color, but in the Feathered Hyacinth there is 

 no suggestion left of the urn-shaped flower, stcrih^ and 

 fertile fls. all being cut into tine strips. This attrac- 

 ti\'e plant has lately been sold for fancy i.>rices by a f<nv 

 |)rogressive florists. 



All Grape Hyacinths are very much alike and are very 

 interesting, botanically, borticulturally and from the ar- 

 tistic point of view. There an- perhaps 40 species in Eu- 

 rope, western Asia an<l northern Africa. The group needs 

 botanical revision badlv. The chiefly literary sources are 

 Baker in Jour. Linn. 8oc. vol. 11 (1871), and in G.C H. 

 9:798 (1878); also Boissier's Flora Orientalis. The 

 width of the Ivs. is an important character, and Baker's 

 measurements seem to refer to herbarium si>ecimens. 

 Live plants should be wider. (A line is a twelfth of an 

 iu.di.) W.U. 



tjrape Hyacinths are neat little early flowering bul- 

 bous plants, good-sized colonies of which give dainty 

 etfects in the border from February to May. There are 

 numerous species of these, flowering at different times. 

 They are mostly dark purple in color, either self-colored 

 or tipped with white. There are also a few white and 

 yellow forms, and several species with true blue flowers, 

 the rarest color among flowers, though this would never 

 be discovered in catalogues. 31. SsovUsiaiiiiiii, one of 

 the true blue forms, is quite the prettiest of the genus. 

 The plant known to the trade as M. liiK/nl'ifiini or Hya- 

 cinthus aznreus has the true blue of M. Szoriisinnion, 

 and is full}' a month earlier. The usual f<>rms grown in 

 gardens are mostly blue (purple) and white forms of 

 M. boiryoides. M.conicinn is very dark. The Dutch 

 catalogues offer numerous kinds to suit purses in all 

 stages of decrepitude. Muscari off^^r no dilTh-ulties in 

 cultivation. A medium soil pci-ha]ts suits thmi l)est, 

 but they are usually thrifty ;^niwrrs, and persistent in 

 the garden if foliage is all"\vi-d to riiien. They mostly 

 make offsets freely, and produce almndant seed. 



.1. X. Gkuard, 



lUbii.in, 4. Gra-icmn, :i. mo.s<'h;ituin, 1. 



atroc<vruU'unt, 15. grandiflorinii, 4, VJ,. uiunstrosuiii, l!,ir>. 



Aucheri, 0. Heldreit^liii, r>. neKlectum, 14. 



botryoides, 4. latitolium, 111. pallens, 11. 



car/ieani, 4, 12. LcIU-vrci, 4. pallidum, 4. 



a^ndfuin. 4. Ji-iicuph'rinii , 4. paradoxum, 7. 



coraosum, 2, If). linguhiUitn, 0. plumosiim. 2. 1.'. 



(fonnniilHtum, 15. -iiujcrorin-pn m . 1, polyanthum. Hi. 



compactum, 17. major, 1. raoemoKuni. VI. 



conicum. S, maJTX. 4. siiaveolrns. 1. 



iHpcadr, 1. iiiiri-;int)iuin, 0, Szovit.siuuum, 10. 



fiaviim, 1. minor, 1. 



Subgenus I. Mosohakia. Perianth 



urn-shaped, but with a relatively 



long-tubular base; segments minute, 



even for the genus, roundish, spread- 

 ing and thickened on the back I. moschatum 



Subgenus U. Leopoldia. Perianth 



obo void -urn-shaped, grooved above, 



;!-4 lines long; segments triangular, 



reflexed, not thickened on the back: 



raceme loose, and longer than in the 



next. Particularly characterized by 



the ri>ri.s|ij<.'Uous l>earde(l appearance 



of tlie sterile fls _. comosum 



'■'>. Graecum 

 Subgetms HI. Botryanthus. Peri- 

 anth more or less urn-shaped, grooveil 



or not above, 1-2 or rarely .'J lines 



long; segments triangular, usually 



reflexed; raceme dense, 1-2 in. long. 



Sterile tis. inconspicuously bi\-irde(l 



or hardly at all. 



A. Fe-rtlU fls. a Utile longer limn 

 l.r.mJ, i. e., nhoroi,]-f/Io'ljose. 



n. Lr.s. J-4: fls. IJ-.'D 4. botryoides 



i;ij. Xr.s. 5-G: fls. S-JJ ;"i. Heldreichii 



HKB. Lvs. 2-3: fJ.H. 0-10 G. lingTilatum 



AA. Fertile fls. 1% times as louy us 

 broad, i.e., obovoid-oblong. 



B. Color of fls. black-blue 7. paradoxum 



HB. Color lively dark lilac or blur . 



0. Lvs. 3-4 lines broad 8. comcum 



<'M, Lvs. 1-J lilies broad. 



D. Fls. violet, fraarant 9. micranthum 



DD. I^ls. blue, faintly odoroiisM). Szovitsianum 



MP.H. Color nearly iidiile II. pallens 



AAA. Ferllle fls. liri<e as long as 



broad, i. e., ohnr'n'iJ-ri/lind rico I. 



e. Lrs. ahnosl ryliinl'rical {.^:nl>- 



t'-rri,'] 12. racemosum 



BB. Lrs. ,>hhnn-,'nh,le 1.'!. latifoUum 



BKB. J.rs. inrnh^, i. f., .•<h-ap-.-:Jiap,'d.M. neglectum 



1.'). commutatum 

 ](>. polyanthum 

 17. compactum 



1. moschatum, WilM. (3f. siiaveolens, Fisch.). Musk 

 IIVAOINTH. Lvs. .5-0, 1 ft. long, %-% in. wide: raceme 

 l_oose, 1-^ in. long: fls. 20-.")0, blue. Asia Minor. B.M. 

 _(:i4. Gn. 2(;, p. i;j7. — Has the odor of musk. Vars. mk- 

 jor and minor are advertised. M. dipcade major and 

 utinor have appeared in the catalogue of J. M. Thorturn 

 «.^' Co. since 1878, but these names are not in Index 

 Kewensis. Thorhurn & Co. write that this is the Nut- 

 meg or Musk Hyacinth, 3Iuscari moschatum, and that 

 M. dipcade still appears in Dutch catalogues. 



Var. flavum, Lam. {3f. flctvum, Van Tubergen. M. 

 niacrociirptnn-, Sweet). Pis. yellowish (Van Tubergen 

 says clear yellow). B.M. 1565. 



2. comosum, Mill. Fig. 1437. Lvs. .'i-4, I-lK ft. long, 

 '■2-1 in. wide: raceme loose, 6-12 in. long, 40-100-fld^: 

 lower fls. fertile, olive, tipped brown, borne on long hori- 

 zontal pedicels: upper fls. sterile, blue or violet, borne 

 on long up-curved pedicels, making a corymbose cluster. 

 Mediterranean region. Orient. 



B M. 133 (as Hyacinthus co- ^ 



,,,„,s-,,.s-).— An interesting form, "^ ^P^WS 



Imt rare in cult., being great- 

 ly surpassed in itopularity by 



Var. monstrosum, H ort . «& v^^' 



Feathered Hyacinth. Fig. \»\ ^^i? 



1438. Ail the fls. sterile, and J ^/^if^ 

 <'ut up into fine shreds. Gng. 



7:290. A. F. 14:1286. Gn. 2G, M >d^^^%J5^ 



p. 137. —A charming and novel ml L^)-''ij5"*^ 



plant. Also called Fair-haired 'm\ ^—^^ 



or Tasseled Hyacinth, and ™^'^ ^'^ ^ 



Shredded Lilac. Sold also as 

 J/". t)ionsfro.'<u)n, 31. plumo- WVi^Jr [*-. 



sum, 3f. pi innosiim ■)nonslro- m\<-^'^ 'V 



sum., etc. For other trade syn- 

 onyms, see under 3L comviu- 

 latum . 



3. Gricum, Heldr. Differs 

 from M. eoinosayii in having 



its sterile flis. in a short, V^'X 



dense, conical spike, the pedi- \^^\ 



<-els of which are very short. \ 



Greece. 1437. Muscari comosum. 



4. botryoides, Mill. Com- ^Adapted from Botanifal 

 MON Grape Hyacinth. Fig. Magazme.) 



1439. Lvs. linear-lorate, .3-4 



lines wide: scape 6-9 in. long: fls. pale blue, odorless. 

 Eu., Orient. B.M. 157 (as Uyacinthus botryoides). A. 

 F. 13:1197. Gn. 26:4.53. R.B.^20:3.-The following va- 

 rieties are offered: album, cariieum, ccErulenm, lenco 

 phit'inn, Lelievrei, majus, pallidum and pallidum 

 grandiflorum. These range from white through flesh- 

 color to sky-blue. 



5. H61dreicMi, Boiss. Lvs. Hnear-flliform, subterete, 

 1^-2 lines wide: scape 4-G in. long: fls. amethyst-colored, 

 with conspicuous white teeth. Greece. Gn. 26:453. 



