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THE BERMUDA LILY. 



By W. Harris, Superintendent of the Hill Gardens. 



The Bermuda Lily, is so called because it is cultivated as a field crop 

 in Bermuda to supply the New York Market with * bulbs to produce 

 flowers for decorating Churches at Easter time, — a purpose for which 

 the beautiful pure white blooms are admirably suited. 



This Lily is a native of Japan and China. It is the variety eximium 

 (choice) of Lilium lonyiflonim, though it is known in Bermuda as 

 Lilium Harrisii. 



Propagation. The species of Lilium are increased by seeds, by off-sets, 

 or by detaching some of the scales from the outside of the bulbs. The 

 scales may be placed in boxes, or in open ground and covered with soil 

 after the manner of sowing seeds. If the scales are carefully detached 

 from the bulbs, the latter are not in any way injured, and may be used 

 for planting again. 



The usual method of propagation, however, is by off-sets, which are 

 generally freely produced round the old bulbs. 



Cultivation in a Garden. Lilies are herbaceous perennials. The 

 stems should not be cut down but allowed to die down after flowering. 

 No signs of growth are visible till early in the following year. Autumn, 

 when the stems have died off, is the best time to take up the bulbs, in 

 order to detach the off-sets or scales. Then replace as soon as possible 



Lilies like a light, well-drained soil, which should be highly manured, 

 and situated in a sheltered, partially shaded spot. The bulb should be 

 planted about six inches deep. 



As soon as the flower-buds are sufficiently advanced to be seen, a 

 heavy mulching of rotten manure, with plenty of water daring dry 

 weather, greatly assists in developing fine blooms. 



Pot Culture. These Lilies make splendid pot plants, and last in 

 bloom for a considerable time. The bulbs should be potted in the autumn, 

 when at rest, in a mixture consisting of good loamy soil, rotten manure 

 and sand. The method which we adopt, and which has been very 

 successful, is to lay only a couple of inches of the potting mixture over 

 the drainage in a 6 or 7 inch pot, on this place our bulb, which should 

 be sound and plump, and fill with sufficient potting material to 

 slightly cover the bulb. The soil in the pot is kept just moist till 

 growth commences, which will be indicated by the formation of a shoot 

 in the centre of each bulb. As the shoot develops, the pots are 

 gradually filled up to within half an inch of the top, with thoroughly 

 rotten manure, and watei is freely given. 



Field Cultivation in Bermuda. The system of field cultivation 

 followed in Bermuda is stated to be as follows : — 



The land is prepared by being ploughed, harrowed, etc , and very richly 

 manured as the Lilies are very heavy feeders, having a set of roots from 

 the stems as well as from the under part of the bulb. They are planted 

 in drills rather deep. The crown of the bulb should be at least 6 inches 

 under ground. This way of planting however, is adapted to light soils. 

 If the soil is heavy the bulb should not be planted quite so deep, but a 

 better shaped bulb is always obtained by deep planting ; when they are 

 shallow they split up and do not make good bulbs. 



