BULBOUS PLANTS. 



169 



these, when bearing on their tops crowded clusters 

 of drooping tells, surrounded by a crown of foliage, 

 are unrivalled ior stateliness throughout the whole 

 range of bulbous plants. The Crown Imperial is 

 not fastidious as to soU; light or heavy are alike 

 suitable to it, but it has a preference for a deep 

 sandy loam, well enriched by manure. In such 

 a soil it attains its fullest development, and goes 

 on increasing itself year after year with rapidity. 

 It looks well in any position, but nowhere better 

 than when a group of it nestles in a shrubbery nook, 

 and then its flowers backed by greenery are seen to 

 the best advantage ; besides, it is partial to a little 

 shade. The only bad treatment the Crown Imperial 

 dislikes is tjiat common among nurserymen of leav- 

 ing its bulbs out of the ground too long. It is this 

 that weakens them and iuduces decay. The great 

 fleshy bulbs have but a very short resting period, 

 for no sooner is the current year's growth perfected 

 and ripened than the bulbs begin to send out new 

 roots in order to gain strength for the support of the 

 following season's growth. Therefore, it is necessary 

 to buy Crown Imperials as early in the season as 

 possible — say about August — and no time should 

 be lost in re-planting them where they are intended 

 to remain. Wben once well established the bulbs 

 should not be transplanted for years. The ill-suc- 

 cess with this noble plant may often be attributed to 

 disturbing the bulbs. Neither should the stems be 

 cut off; they should be allowed to decay and die 

 down of themselves. A hot summer greatly benefits 

 Crown Imperials, as the bulbs are ripened better, and 

 a fine yield of bloom invariably follows. There are 

 now many named varieties, the best being the fol- 

 lowing : — Aurora, a fine yellow ; the double yellow 

 (lutea plena) ; double red [rubra plena) ; rubra maxima, 

 one of the finest, the fiowers being a bright Venetian 

 red, and larger than usual. Maxima luiea, the large 

 yellow, is a companion variety to rubra maxima; 

 Orange Crown, orange-red; Crown upon Crown-, a 

 peculiar variety, having two heads of flowers, one 

 tier being above the other ; Sulphurine, bright 

 orange-yeUow, and Slagzwaard, a kind with flattened 

 (fasciated) stems and deep red flowers. There are 

 also several variegated-leaved kinds, the principal 

 of which are — aureo-marginata, gold-edged leaves ; 

 argenieo-variegata, silver-striped leaves; "William 

 III., white-edged leaves. These variegated sorts 

 produce a fine effect by their foliage, but their 

 flowers are rarely so flne as the others. These are 

 the best among the numerous sorts in English and 

 Dutch gardens. 



F. hamtehateensis.— This, the Sarana Lily, is 

 distinct from all other Fritillaries, its flowers being 

 almost black. Its stems rise from six to eighteen 

 inches high, terminated by from one to three bell- 



shaped flowers, about an inch across. It is a 

 very hardy plant, and strong enough to be grown 

 without protection. It thrives admirably on a 

 well-drained and sheltered rockery. It is known 

 also as Lilium. Similar to this species, but taller, 

 and more floriferous, are F. tristis and Gneea, both 

 of which have very deep purple, almost black flowers. 



F. latifolia. — This is similar to the Snake's-head 

 (F. Meleagris), but may be distinguished at a glance 

 by its much broader leaves and larger flowers, 

 and altogether more sturdy growth. It, moreover, 

 flowers fullj- a fortnight earlier than the Meleagris. 

 varieties. The Dutch bulb-growers, tholigh they 

 class the two sets of varieties together, distinguish 

 them by broad-leaved early flowerers, and narrow- 

 leaved late flowerers. The growth of latifolia ranges 

 from six to twelve inches high, and each stem bears 

 one or more flowers, varying in the different kinds, 

 in all shades of purple, Klac, yellow, and almost 

 black. They grow vigorously in any ordinary gar- 

 don soil, either in sun or shade, but best exposed, 

 and when planted in masses are capable of pro- 

 ducing some extremely pretty efiects during May. 

 There are about a score of varieties now in cultiva- 

 tion, the best of which are those named : — Adam 

 Smith, Black Knight -(with almost black flowers). 

 Captain Marryat, Caroline Chisholm, Cooper, 

 Dandy, Jerome Howard, Marianne, Maria Gold- 

 smith, Pharaoh, Eembrandt, Shakespeare, and Van 

 Speyk. In these will be found a wide range of 

 subtle colours, none of them very brilliant, though 

 pleasing. 



F. maoroplnjlla. — A handsome species from the 

 Himalayas, known also as Zilium Thompsonianum. 

 It produces pink flowers on stems about a foot high. 

 It is not thoroughly hardy and requires frame or 

 cold green-house culture. It thrives better planted 

 out than in pots, and a bulb will sometimes grow 

 for three or four seasons without flowering. 



F. Meleagris (Snake's-head). — Though this plant 

 is a native, it is not common in gardens, particularly 

 the varieties of it. These number about half a 

 dozen, and are named alba, white ; pallida, light 

 purple ; nigra, almost black ; purpurea, deep purple ; 

 angustifolia, long narrow leaves and violet-purple 

 flowers; Agathe and Clochette. In these, except 

 in the white varieties, the flowers have the handsome 

 chequered markings peculiar to the Fritillaries, 

 very pronounced. The plant is altogether more 

 slender and more graceful than F. latifolia, and when 

 seen in little groups in sunny borders, the various 

 kinds are pretty. They thrive in any ordinary good 

 garden soil, and are quite amenable to forcing into 

 flower early. "When grown in pots, the soil in this 

 case should be very sandy and enriched by leaf- 

 mould. The forcing must be gently carried out, 



