llO EVERT WOMAN HER OWN FLOWER GARDENER. 



gnryive our northern climate, and must always be kept in a cool, dry 

 place during the winter. 



In their native land, they bloom during the wet season, which shows 

 us that they require a good supply of moisture to bloom in perfection in 

 our dry, hot summers. 



These flowers were not much known until 1795, when the Cape 

 Colony was ceded to England, and her botanists and collectors of rare 

 plants seized upon them with delight. Since then they have become 

 "Florists' Flowers,'' and their successful hybridizations have greatly 

 increased their beauty and colorings. 



To grow the bulbs in perfection, they should be planted in a sandy 

 loam, enriched with leaf mould and peat. A mixture of one-half loam, 

 one-quarter peat, and one-quarter leaf mould will suit them perfectly. 



They may be planted in the open air during April or May. 



If strong manures are used in the soil, it causes the colors of the 

 flowers to run into each other, and gives them a muddy appearance. 

 The bulbs can be planted in groups or singly. Groups of three or five 

 are the most usual way of planting them. They should be set from 

 two to four inches deep, according to the size of the bulbs. As they 

 grow up, they should be tied to a light stake, from three to four feet long. 

 ' When the frost has killed the leaves, dig up the bulbs, dry them in 

 the sun, cut off" the leaves an inch from the stem, and put the bulbs in 

 a paper bag. Kept in a frost-proof cellar, they will retain all their life. 

 From one bulb, two or three bulbs will spring ; they increase rapidly, 

 and can be purchased cheaply. 



The high prices in the catalogues are no criterion of their beauty, but 

 only mark them as "novelties." 



Many bulbs are held at four dollars a root, but that shows their 

 scarcity. 



Low priced varieties will often please us quite as well, and are not 

 surpassed by the colors of the "novelties." 



Among the most beautiful of the Gladiolus, are: — 

 : Belle Gabrielle, a perfectly shaped flower, fine lilac-colored rose, 

 marked with a bright rose-color. 



Charles Dickens, delicate rose, tinted with chamois, striped with a 

 rosy carmine. 



Comte de Morny, rosy scarlet flecked with rich crimson, lower petals 

 shaded with crimson. 



