108 



CASSELL'S POPULAR GARDENING. 



tropical Asia and Africa, and has long been in 

 cultivation. It requires stove treatment. 



Culture. — The tropical Crinums are among the 

 most easily cultivated bulbs, and any one who can 

 grow Eucharis, Pancratiums, and all such-like bulbs 

 well, can succeed with Crinums. The chief point to 

 observe is that, in order for Crinums, or indeed 

 any other bulbous plant, to flower freely, the bulbs 

 must be well developed, and thoroughly ripened. 

 Hence it is a matter of importance to treat the plants 

 liberally while they are developing bulbs, by allow- 

 ing plenty of heat and moisture, and nutritious food 

 in the way of diluted manure- water occasionally. As 

 the various species of Crinum are so diverse as re- 

 gards their habit of growth, flowering season, and 

 other peculiarities, no definite rule can be laid down 

 as to when the plants will require this liberal treat- 

 ment. This must be applied when they are in active 

 growth, and this active growth generally commences 

 after the bulbs have bloomed. When new leaves are 

 being made, and offsets developed, then is the time 

 to give the plant nourishment. After the growth is 

 perfected water may be gradually withheld, and, if 

 convenient, the plants at the same time should be 

 placed in a lower temperature. This resting period, 

 in the case of most of the species, generally occurs 

 during winter, and with the warm days of spring- 

 active growth commences. In the case of the ever- 

 green kinds, they must not, of course, be kept dry at 

 any period, and they may be purchased at all seasons 

 at nurseries. The deciduous species must be kept 

 dry while leafless, and these may be purchased in a 

 dry state during autumn and winter. Being mostly 

 natives of wet places, Crinums require, as a rule, 

 more water than the generality of bulbs ; in fact, 

 during summer they cannot well have too much. It 

 is well to remember also that, like many other bulbs, 

 they do not like to be disturbed ; indeed, they thrive 

 best when pot-bound for years, so long as they re- 

 ceive nourishment in the shape of manure- water oc- 

 casionally. The best time to re-pot is directly after 

 they have flowered, potting them firmly in good- 

 sized pots, allowing ample room for soil, which 

 should consist of good fibry loam, with enough sand 

 to keep the compost open. For the strong-growing 

 kinds a little well- decayed manure, leaf-mould, or 

 crushed bones, may be mixed with the potting com- 

 post. In potting Crinums the bulbs must not be 

 inserted in the soil deeply, as it is natural for the 

 collar or neck to be above ground. In the case of 

 those species indicated above that are hardy enough 

 to be planted out in frames or out of doors, such as 

 C. Moorei, americanum, capense, the good soil must 

 have a depth of about two feet, as the bulbs must be 

 planted deep, and they throw out long fleshy roots, 

 which require nourishment. These half-hardy kinds 



always succeed best at the foot of a warm south wait, 

 and the secret of success is to leave them undisturbed 

 from year to year, protecting the bulbs during the 

 winter by a heap of ashes or leaf -mould. 



Propagation. — The simplest method of increasing 

 Crinums is by detaching the bulblets which form 

 around the parent bulbs during the season. These 

 should be detached at the potting-time, and should 

 be potted in small pots, placing a layer of sand be- 

 neath the bulb so as to induce the formation of root- 

 lets. Afterwards, the bulbs will require the same 

 treatment as adult plants. Some species throw out 

 bulb-bearing runners much more freely than others. 

 Crinums may also be propagated readily by seeds, 

 which they freely produce, as a rule. By intercrossing 

 the various species some very fine hybrids have been 

 raised. The seeds, which are round and fleshy, are 

 generally a long time coming to perfection. They 

 should be sown, as soon as ripe, on the surface of 

 shallow pans filled with ordinary potting soil, and 

 kept warm, moist, and close. In a few weeks the 

 seeds will germinate, and as soon as they are large 

 enough they should be potted separately in small- 

 sized pots. Their after-treatment, until they arrive 

 at a flowering age, is much the same as that recom- 

 mended for other stove bulbs, but as the aim is to 

 develop the bulbs into a flowering size, they should 

 not receive the alternative treatment of starving and 

 feeding which is necessary in order for mature bulbs 

 to flower freely. 



THE PEACH AND NECTAKINE 

 UNDEB GLASS. 



By William Coleman. 



PR UNING. 



OPINIONS differ widely as to the best mode 

 of pruning the Peach and Nectarine. Some 

 cut their newly-planted trees back to within a few 

 buds of the base by way of giving them what they 

 term a fair start. Others shorten moderately, some 

 not at all. The first belong to the old school, the last 

 to a school that is older than some writers, who claim 

 the system for themselves, would have us believe. The 

 middle course is taken by men who are ever ready to 

 take advantage of the two systems in order to shape 

 their trees to their ends. When Peach-trees are 

 established on open walls, shortening back to well- 

 ripened buds is often necessary ; but where the culti- 

 vator has the advantage of all the elements, including 

 fire-heat as ' now applied to modern glass-houses, 

 the strongest shoots should be ripened up to the ex- 

 treme points, and regularly furnished with wood and 

 blossom buds. 



