Chap. XI. BY SUCKEKS, TUBERS, AND BULBS. 411 



kind was propagated in the usual manner by eyes, and kept true 

 to its new colour, and, being found a more productive variety, 

 soon became widely known under the name of Taylors Forty-fold. 1 - 

 The old Forty-fold potato, as already stated, is a purple variety; 

 but a plant long cultivated on the same ground produced, not, as in 

 the case above given, a single white eye, but a whole white tuber, 

 which has since been propagated and keeps true. 75 Several cases 

 have been recorded of large portions of whole rows of potatoes 

 slightly changing their character. 76 



Dahlias propagated by tubers under the hot climate of St. 

 Domingo vary much ; Sir E. Schomburgk gives the case of the 

 " Butterfly variety," which the second year produced on the same 

 plant "double and single flowers; here white petals edged with 

 " maroon; there of a uniform deep maroon." 77 Mr. Bree also 

 mentions a plant " which bore two different kinds of self-coloured 

 " flowers, as well as a third kind which partook of both colours 

 " beautifully intermixed." 78 Another case is described of a dahlia 

 with purple flowers which bore a white flower streaked with 

 purple. 79 



Considering how long and extensively many Bulbous plants 

 have been cultivated, and how numerous are the varieties produced 

 from seed, these plants have not perhaps varied so much by offsets, 

 —that is, by the production of new bulbs,— as might have been 

 expected. With the Hyacinth, however, several instances have 

 been given by M. Carriere. A case also has been recorded of a blue 

 variety which for three successive years gave offsets producing 

 white flowers with a red centre. 80 Another hyacinth bore 81 on the 

 same truss a perfectly pink and a perfectly blue flower. I have 

 seen a bulb producing at the same time one stalk or truss with fine 

 blue flowers, another with fine red flowers, and a third with blue 

 flowers on one side and red on the other; several of the flowers 

 being also longitudinally striped red and blue. 



Mr. John Scott informs me that in 1862 Imatophyllum miniatum, 

 in the Botanic Gardens of Edinburgh, threw up a sucker which 

 differed from the normal form, in the leaves being two-ranked 

 instead of four-ranked. The leaves were also smaller, with the 

 upper surface raised instead of being channelled. 



In the propagation of Tulips, seedlings are raised, called selfs or 

 breeders, which, " consist of one plain colour on a white or yellow. 

 " bottom. These, being cultivated on a dry and rather poor soil, 

 " become broken or variegated and produce new varieties. The 

 " time that elapses before they break varies from one to twenty 



74 ' Gard. Chron.,' 1841, p. 81+. 78 Loudon's ■ Gard. Mag.,' vol. viii., 



75 Ibid., 1857, p. 613. 1832, p. 94. 



76 Ibid., 1857, p. 679. See also 79 ' Gard. Chron.,' 1850, p. 536 ; 

 Philips, 'Hist, of Vegetables,' vol. ii. and 1842, p. 729. 



p. 91, for other and similar accounts. 80 <Des Jacintho 5,' &c, Amsterdam, 



77 « Journal of Proc. Linn. Soc.,' 1768, p. 122. 



vol. ii. Botany, p. 132. 81 'Gard. Chron.,' 18+5, p. 212. 



