1883.] 



THE AMERICAN GARDEN. 



169 



(I® ypAnt (| 



AND GREENHOUSE. 



FEEESIAS. 



In the zealous search for novelties adapted 

 to winter-forcing and to supply the insatiable 

 demand for cut flowers, many hitherto neg- 

 lected, though beautiful plants, have lately 

 come to notoriety. Among those recently 

 ■brought to notice, none are more beautiful 



FREESIA REFRACTA ALBA. 



nor deserving more attention than the 

 Freesias. 



The plant grows from a small bulb to a 

 height of about fifteen inches, and produces 

 a great quantity of deliciously fragrant, tube- 

 shaped flowers, borne in peculiar, one-sided 

 racemes. The color of the flowers of F. 

 refraeta alba, the species represented in our 

 illustration, is pure white, spotted with yel- 

 low on the lower petals. 



Their culture is very simple. In Septem- 

 ber or October they should be planted in 

 ordinary potting soil, such as is used for 

 Holland-bulbs, about six bulbs in a six-inch 

 pot. They have then to be thoroughly 

 watered and kept cool and only moderately 

 moist until growth commences, when more 

 water should be given, and the pots removed 

 to a warmer place. The succeeding treat- 

 ment is exactly like that given to Hyacinths 

 or Tulips forced in the house. Those planted 

 in September may be had in bloom in Janu- 

 ary. After flowering, water should be with- 

 held and the bulbs dried off, to be started 

 again the following autumn. 



For florists' work these flowers are remark- 

 ably well adapted, not only on account of 

 their rare beauty and delightful fragrance, 

 but also for their unusual keeping quality, 

 on the plant as well as after being cut. 



GLOET 01 THE SNOW. 



The CMonodoxa Lucittce, which is the bo- 

 tanical name of this charming spring flower, 

 is a native of Asia Minor, and is nearly allied 

 to the genus Scilla. Its azure blue flowers 

 with pure white center are produced with 

 the earliest opening of spring while snow 

 lingers yet in many sheltered spots. 



For outdoor culture the bulbs should be 

 planted form one to two inches deep, in Oc- 



tober, in rather light soil where there is no 

 danger from stagnant water. The bulbs, 

 although hardy, will flower much better if 

 lightly mulched during winter. To produce 

 best effects, they should be planted rather 

 close together and left in the ground undis- 

 turbed for several years. 



They are also well adapted for pot culture 

 in the house, requiring about the same treat- 

 ment as Crocus. 



TUBEEOUS TEOP^OLUMS. 



The common Nasturtium (Tropceolum), in 

 its many species and varieties, is a popular 

 garden annual, but many of our readers prob- 

 ably do not know that there are perennial 

 species with tuberous roots. The flowers of 

 these, it is true, bear little resemblance to 

 those of the gardens, but they are far more 

 delicate and beautiful. Most of them are 

 only suitable for pot culture in the green- 

 house, but some planted in the garden in 

 early spring bloom before autumn; and if the 

 tubers can be kept from freezing, and at the 

 South, increase, come up year by year, and 

 soon make very beautiful plants. 



All are climbers and are very useful for 

 covering rustic work. These species are, 

 Tropceolum tuberosum, speeiosum, polyphyllum, 

 and edule. All bear bright orange, yellow, 

 or red and yellow flowers in great profusion. 

 T. pentaplujllum differs from the true Nastur- 

 tiums in having the fruit a juicy berry 

 instead of a dry seed. It is a very pretty 



TUBEROUS TROP/EOLUM. 



climber with green and scarlet flowers, and 

 succeeds in the garden as well as the species 

 we have mentioned. 



The culture is to plant the tubers in May, 

 after the weather has become warm, in light 

 soil, in a warm sheltered situation ; cover the 

 spot well to keep out the frost, on the ap- 

 proach of winter ; or after the frost has killed 

 the plant, take up the tubers and keep them 

 dry until the time of replanting. One who 



has not seen them can form little idea of 

 the beauty of these plants. T. speeiosum is 

 the best, but all are very good. 



The other class have small roundish tubers, 

 are winter bloomers, and are only fit for 

 greenhouse culture. Although the roots are 

 small they produce a large plant, and to ac- 

 comodate the necessary trellis a pot not less 

 than twelve-inch should be used. Fill this 

 with rich, light soil and secure good drainage. 

 Place the tuber in the center of the pot, the 

 top level with or slightly above the surface 

 of the soil. 



GLORY OF THE SNO 



The threadlike stem will soon start and a 

 trellis should at once be provided, around 

 which the growth should be trained daily. 

 Syringe freely to keep off red spiders. In a 

 light, airy situation, with gentle waterings, 

 this growth is very rapid, and if it once be- 

 comes tangled it is almost impossible to 

 untwine it without injury. This stem, at 

 first fine as a hair, soon thickens and a small 

 bulb will soon cover a balloon trellis, which 

 is best adapted to display the flowers. If 

 well grown, the flowers will be produced by 

 hundreds, and a prettier sight it will be hard 

 to find in the greenhouse. After the bloom 

 has faded, the foliage turns yellow and the 

 root should rest and be kept dry until the 

 season for replanting. If water is not with- 

 held at this period, or the plants are over- 

 watei ed when in growth, there is danger of 

 the roots rotting. 



T. Jaratti has scarlet, yellow, and black 

 flowers; in T. tricolorum they are orange, 

 red, and purple, and in T. brachyceras they 

 are bright yellow. These three are wonder- 

 fully showy plants and very beautiful. But 

 the most beautiful of all and one of the love- 

 liest of flowers is T. azureum, the flowers of 

 which are bright blue and delightfully fra- 

 grant, and look like double Violets. The dis- 

 covery of this species in 1844 overturned a 

 pet botanical theory. It had, with some 

 show of reason, been asserted that no genus 

 where the general color was yellow or red 

 could have a blue flower ; but Tropceolum is 

 a striking exception to the rule. 



All the species are increased by cuttings, 

 which root in pure sand ; also by seed which 

 vegetates freely if the hard outer shell is 

 carefully removed. 



E. S. Band, Je. 



