12 



HENDERSON'S BULB CULTURE. 



bulbs have a tendency to get deeper in the ground, 

 thus weakening their flowering qualities, they 

 should be replanted about three inches deep every 

 three years or so. They flower very freely in the 

 fall before the leaves appear, good strong roots, 

 giving from six to eight flowers each, the flowers 

 being large, of a reddish-purple color, and appear- 

 ing in August and September. Dormant roots 

 may be procured from September to December, 

 but should be planted as soon in September as 

 possible. 



COLOCASIA. Elephant's Ear. 



C. esculent a is a favorite '• foliage-plant" for 

 single specimens on the lawn or for bordering a 

 bed of Cannas or other tropical-like plants. It re- 

 quires a deep, rich soil, and if freely watered dur- 

 ing summer the leaves will often grow four feet 

 in length by three feet in width. The tubers 

 should be taken up after the first frost and dried 

 off carefully before being stored in a warm place 

 for the winter, to be planted next season in May or 

 June when the weather is suitable. Dormant 

 tubers may be procured from November to June. 



CONVALLARIA. Lily of the 

 Valley. 



This well-known plant, with its lovely spikes of 

 bloom, pleasing, fresh green foliage and agreeable 

 fragrance, needs no recommendation to encourage 

 its cultivation. Planted out it succeeds admira- 

 bly in a rich, loamy or heavy sandy soil, and may 

 be grown in any shady nook or even under trees, 

 if not too shady, receiving a good top dressing of 

 well rotted manure every fall. It is also forced in 

 immense quantities, New York City alone proba- 

 bly using a million or more sprays every season. 

 The Lily of the Valley is nearly all imported from 

 Germany and France, usually in single crowns or 

 "pips." The method of culture now generally 

 employed is to bring the roots in the quantity re- 

 quired for succession into a cool shed or cellar, 

 and sprinkling them enough to moisten them well, 

 keep them in this position for a week, then plant 

 them in boxes or beds of sand (a shady house 

 facing north is preferable) in rows an inch or so 

 apart, deep enough to receive the roots, and allow 

 the buds to be about an inch above the sand. The 

 house must be kept well shaded and the sand 

 freely watered twice a day with tepid water until 

 the flowers begin to develop, the temperature of 

 the sand being kept at not less than 90 degrees. 

 By this method flowers can be had in from sixteen 

 to eighteen days — fresh lots being brought in and 

 planted every eight or ten days to keep up the 

 succession. Beautiful and most interesting orna- 

 mental designs for the parlor or conservatory may 

 be produced by planting the Lily crowns in Crocus 

 pots or in pyramidal pots made specially for this 

 purpose, and pierced with holes in the same man- 

 ner. They require the same treatment as de- 

 scribed above, and if exposed to the light and 

 hardened "off" for a few days before they are 

 fully in flower, they will last several weeks in 

 beauty. By taking them in at intervals a succes- 

 sion of different designs may be kept up all winter. 

 Lily of the Valley flowers are now obtained every 

 month in the year, by placing the roots when they 

 arrive, in " cold storage " warehouses. Where the 

 temperature is kept just above the freezing point, 

 the roots can be kept dormant for twelve months, 

 it desired. In this dormant condition they are 



placed in the necessary heat and forced into 

 flower at pleasure. Dormant crowns may be pro- 

 cured from November to May. 



COOPERIA. Evening S^ar. 



A small genus of bulbous plants from Texas, 

 growing well in the cold frame or planted out in 

 spring in sandy loam and"- leaf-mould. The flow- 

 ers, which are pure white and primrose scented, 

 always expand in the evening, and are not usually 

 perfect after the first night. For effect they should 

 be planted in clumps or masses quite close to- 

 gether, and as they bloom successively from May 

 to September, there are always enough in bloom 

 to make the group interesting. Dormant bulbs 

 may be procured from November to May 



CORBULARIA. Hoop Petticoat. 



A small genus which has recently been sepa- 

 rated from Narcissus. They are quite ornamen- 

 tal and perfectly hardy, but do best with a slight 

 protection of leaves or coarse manure during win- 

 ter. Its beautiful, clear yellow flowers are shown 

 to great advantage when grown with from five to 

 six bulbs in a Ave inch pot, or in small pans, if 

 kept in a cold frame in winter and allowed to grow 

 and flower without artificial heat. Dormant bulbs 

 may be procured from October to January. 



CRINUM. 



A fine genus of bulbous plants growing from a 

 foot and a half to five feet in height. Most of the 

 tall species have large leaves and are evergreen. 

 The varieties of C. Capense are hardy south of 

 "Washington, and also succeed well in a cold frame. 

 Dormant bulbs of the latter species may be pro- 

 cured from November to March. 



CROCOSMIA. 



The only species, C. aurea, is a beautiful Ixia- 

 like plant with large, deep orange-colored flowers, 

 somewhat resembling those of a Crocus in form. 

 It is not hardy north of Washington, but is an 

 excellent subject for the cold frame or for green- 

 house culture, a dozen roots in a ten inch pot 

 forming a very showy specimen for the fall. The 

 general treatment is ' the same as recommended 

 for the Ixia, which see. Dormant bulbs may be 

 procured from November to May. 



CROCUS. 



In the great family of bulbous plants it is per- 

 haps difficult to find a genus more beautiful or 

 more generally cultivated than the Crocus. It is 

 generally represented in our gardens by about a 

 dozen species, and the innumerable varieties of 

 C. vermes, or spring flowering Crocus, which 

 grow and flower freely in almost any soil or posi- 

 tion. The margins of flower beds planted with 

 other bulbs, or of borders running parallel with a 

 walk, in clumps or masses on borders or on the 

 lawn, are positions among many others that may 

 be rendered attractive by a mass of different 

 colored Crocuses. The roots (or more properly 

 corms) can be inserted most regularly in a small 

 trench about three inches deep, placing them a 

 similar distance apart. The leaves should be left 

 alone after flowering is over until they ripen, and 

 the -oots need not be lifted unless the place is re- 

 quired for other plants in summer. In this case 

 they may be transplanted and allowed to ripen 



