338 



CASSELL'S POPULAR GARDENING. 



flower- spikes begin to appear. By this time the 

 soil will have become perfectly dust-dry, therefore 

 the plants should be well saturated with water, after 

 which the flower-spikes make rapid growth. As the 

 spikes attain their full size in September, the foliage 

 begins to push up, and from that time onwards till 

 the spring, the plants must not be allowed to be- 

 come dry, but care should be taken to maintain the 

 foliage in good health. If the pots are full of 

 roots, and the plants vigorous, an occasional dose 

 of manure-water may be given. This will assist 

 the plants much. It must be remembered that 

 JVerines, like a good many other bulbs, thrive best 

 when pot-bound, therefore the plants should not 

 be re-potted until the pots become so full of 

 bulbs as to be unduly crowded. Potting should 

 be done after the flowering season is just past, then 

 the plants will have plenty of time to fill the pots 

 with roots before the spring. The soil should be 

 good, two parts of loam, one of sand, one of manure, 

 and one of leaf -mould. The plants should be potted 

 firmly, one good-sized bulb in, say, a 4^-inch pot. 

 JVeriues propagate themselves rapidly, and one bulb 

 will soon fill a good-sized pot with its offspring. The 

 bulblets should be separated at potting-time. A 

 good place to grow the bulbs in is a brick pit, 

 which can be sufficiently heated in winter to keep 

 out frost. This is all the heat necessary. Full ex- 

 posure to the sun during summer, with the lights 

 on, will ripen the bulbs, and when the plants are in 

 bloom they may be taken into the green-house, where 

 they would remain in perfection for several weeks 

 during September and October. 



Ornithogalum {Star of Bethlehem). — A nume- 

 rous genus, containing but few species worthy of 

 attention. Some are quite hardy, others require 

 green-house culture, and among the latter are some 

 extremely beautiful plants. The species vary a good 

 deal in stature, but there is a great resemblance 

 among the various kinds. All produce their flowers 

 in clusters, on short or tall stems, and are generally 

 white. 



The hardy kinds are chiefly natives of Europe. The 

 most desirable to cultivate are 0. comosum, exscapum, 

 Narbonnense, latifolium, nutans, pyramidale (one of the 

 best, its flower-stems being a yard high, surmounted 

 by dense flower-clusters), 0. umbellatum, the common 

 Star of Bethlehem, and tenuifolium. These all have 

 white flowers, and are of the simplest culture, 

 thriving in any common light garden soil in any 

 position. 0. umbellatum is a capital plant for 

 planting in masses in the rougher parts of the 

 garden ; and 0. nutans is particularly well adapted 

 for naturalising where the soil is light. Its flowers 

 are not showy, being greenish-white, but they are 



elegantly borne on nodding stems. They may be 

 all propagated by bulblets and seeds. 



The green-house kinds are valuable plants. There- 

 are three species worth attention ; these are 0. 

 Arabicum, aicreum, and thyrsoides. The first has tall 

 spikes of flowers, about an inch and a half across, 

 pure waxy- white, wuth black centres. 0. aurcum is a 

 dwarf grower, with large flowers, of a rich golden- 

 yellow ; and thyrsoides is similar to Arabicum, but its 

 flowers are pure white. These are excellent for pot- 

 culture, and as they flower in summer, they are of 

 considerable value in the green-house. Ordinary 

 light potting-soil will do for them, and three or four 

 bulbs may be put in a 6-inch pot. 0. aureum is a 

 scarce plant, but the other two are plentiful and 

 cheap. They should be procured in autumn and 

 potted at once, or kept till spring. Some grow the 

 two white kinds in frames with other Cape bulbs. 



Pancratium. — Nearly allied to Hymenocallis, 

 previously described; indeed, the two genera are 

 commonly confused, so much do the species resemble 

 each other. The Pancratiums are natives of tropical 

 and sub-tropical countries in various parts of the 

 world, not confined, as Hymenocallises are, to tropi- 

 cal America. For instance, some are natives of South 

 Europe and North America, as well as Asia. There 

 are about a dozen species, several of which are in 

 cultivation. All have beautiful white flowers, mostly 

 large and fragrant, produced in large clustered heads 

 on short stems, rising above the foliage, which is 

 often broad, handsome, and evergreen. One of the 

 best known tropical species is P. Zeylanicum, a beau- 

 tiful plant from the East Indies. It has large bulbs, 

 broadish evergreen leaves, and large, white, and very 

 fragrant flowers. 



The hardier kinds are natives of North America 

 and South Europe. Among those is P. Illyricum, 

 of dwarf growth, with narrow leaves, and bearing 

 clusters of large white flowers on stems about a foot 

 high. It is a native of South Europe, and may be 

 grown either in pots in green-houses, or in a warm 

 border. P. maritimum and parviflorum, also South 

 European plants, are similar, their white flowers 

 being deliciously fragrant ; and P. Carolinianum and 

 occidentale, both natives of sea-coast regions of the 

 southern States of North America, are worth at- 

 tention. 



Culture. — The tropical species of Pancratium may 

 be grown under precisely the same conditions as re- 

 commended for Hymenocallis. The half -hardy kinds 

 may either be grown in a frame or green-house in 

 pots, or in warm sunny borders, well drained and 

 raised above the level. In southern districts these 

 out-of-door bulbs may be left out during the winter 

 if protected from frosts by mulching, but in colder 



