By W. D. Drury, 



io— On Hardy 

 Bulbs and Tubers. 



First to greet us in the spring, and the last to linger with us, 

 giving to our gardens brightness even in the depth of winter, is 

 it any wonder that bulbs and tubers, as ordinarily understood, 

 appeal so strongly to hardy plant lovers ? Indeed, having regard 

 to the numerous claims that they have upon the gardener's 

 attention, the wonder rather would be if they did not have 

 such a hold. From the very earliest times bulbs, at any rate, 

 have been viewed with favour, as witness the tender, nay, 

 almost loving care that was lavished upon them by those 

 gardeners of a bygone age like Parkinson. They were amongst 

 the first plants that were utilised for the beautification of 

 English gardens, and thus for their early associations, if for 

 naught else, they are at least entitled to respect. Apart, how- 

 ever, from what may be termed the sentimental aspect of the 

 question, they have claims, and just ones, upon the attention 

 of every practical gardener : their chasteness, or it may be 

 their gorgeousness of colouring, their ease of culture, their 

 general adaptability, and, in the majority of cases, their 

 permanence, entitle them to it. 



To fully realise the important part they play, and their true 

 decorative value, let us for a moment think of our gardens say, 

 shorn on the one hand of those spring harbingers the Snow- 

 drops, the Crocuses, the Scillas, the Snow Glories, the Snow- 

 flakes, the Hyacinths, the Tulips, and the lesser known, though 

 no less deserving Fritillaries ; or on the other of the Anemones, 

 the Winter Aconites, the Cyclamens, and several others. Under 

 the most varying conditions of soil, situation, and temperature, 



