002 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE 



August 31, 1912 



LILIES FOR GENERAL 



CULTURE. 



Though many liUes^ owing to their some- 

 what exacting requirements, can scarcely 

 be recommended for general culture, there 

 still remains a wide choice of many beau- 

 tiful kinds that can be grown under any- 

 thing like favourable conditions. 



Lilies in Pots. 



Apart from their value as outdoor 

 flowers, some kinds of lilies are extensively 

 grown under glass for the decoration of 

 the conservatory and dwelling-house for 

 grouping purposes, or for the supply of 

 cut Howers, While many can be grown in 

 this \v;iy. clioice is, as a^rule, limited 

 to vt ry lew, and those few are of easy 

 cultivation. 



Lilium longiflorum.— PiM'haps the most 

 popular of all lilios for tln' siip])]y of ciii 

 flowers is Ijiliuni lonuifhn urn. whoso silv<*rv- 



white trumpets are adniii-cd by <^vci'V(>ne. 

 Under the name of Lilium Harrisi a form 

 of this lilv rn;i v Ito obtained as dormant 

 bulbs in tin* nmiitb of Aii(z;ust, and if 

 potte{l ;it oiKM' llu v can. of conrsr. hv lia;! 

 in bloom nnub oiirlitM- than tbos(* wliirli 

 reach bcr*^ from Japan in NovcuiIkm- and 

 Derctrd)cr. Chiscly running Lilium longi- 

 floruni in popularity as a favourite lily for 

 growing in pots conu^^ 



L. s])c('i<)sum, rojjrcsented by both white 

 an<l colourcHl forms. This blooms naturally 

 towards tbo md of tlu^ summer and iji 

 earlv autumn, lint fiv ke*M)infr it in a warm 

 structure tlowcrs riuiv be had i^arlier if <le- 

 sirtMi. It is a lily rarely troubled bv in- 

 sect pests, whereas Lilium longiflorum is 

 often attacked bv grccn-lly. Though a 

 decidedly erratic lily, the 



Oolden-rayed Lily of Japan (Lilium aura- 

 turn) must on no account be jiassrd over 

 as a pot plant, as wlirw it ddcs its best 

 the bktssoins are so mauniticent as to gain 

 the a.lmii at ion of everyon(\ Of late 

 y<'ars these thret* ]ili(^s ab(»ve-menti{))ied 

 may be often seen in llowtM* mort^ or less 

 throughout tlte entire vear. This is 

 effected bv retarding the" bulbs in refri- 

 gerators till tlieir st^ason of growth is past, 

 and bulbs so treated will commence to grow- 

 as soon as thev are placed under favour- 

 able conditimis. There is now quite an ex- 

 tensive ti-ad(^ in these retarded bulbs. 

 Beside these ma r>v other easilv-grown 

 lilies are amena)>!e to cultivation in pots, 

 but they are not much grown in this way. 

 Of them especial mention may be made of 

 Lilium Rrowni, croceum, davuricum, ele- 

 gans, Hansoni, testaceum, ajid tigrinum. 



Lilies in the Open. 



It is in the open ground that many lilies 

 can be seen at their verv host, be the 

 garden that of prince or jx asant ; indeed, 

 the Madonna lily, so much admired bv 

 everyone, is often seen flourishing \n cot- 

 tage gardens, whereas in more pretentious 

 establishments it frequently fails. The 

 following lilies can all be recommended for 



outdoor cultu7*e where no exceptional con- 

 ditions prevail. 



L. auratum.— As above-stated, this is 

 erratic, but too grand a lily to be omitted. 

 It is seen at its best when"^ associated with 

 rhododendrons that are not too old or too 

 closely planted. A moderate amount of 

 peat suits it well, and it is greatly bene- 

 fitted by a good sprinkling of clean silver 

 sand around the bulb when planting. 



L Browni.— No better example of the 

 high decorative value of this lilv 

 and its adaptability for outdoor cid- 

 ture can be mentioned than the ilhis- 



AIagazine for August 17. It will be ob- L. testaceum. — The nankeen lily^ as thi^ 

 served that the bed is carpeted with low- is commonly called, is in its peculiar buff 



or nankeen tint quite distinct from all 

 other lilies. It is wnthal a very beautiful 

 and stately lily, and does well in the open 

 border. 



L . tigrinum . —The tiger lily is well 

 known as a good garden lily, and is often 

 to be seen in cottage gardens. Besides the 

 common kind there is a variety — ^splendens 

 — with brighter-coloured flowers and larger 

 blotches, and Fortunei, that blooms very- 

 late. 



Though the lilies enumerated above 

 form but a small percentage of those in 

 cultivation, they will produce a succession 

 of bloom from the flowering of pyrenaicum 

 till speciosum and tigrinum Fortunei feel 

 the effects of the cold nights in autumn, 



AV. T. 



tration of the bed of the species 

 at Kew, which appeared in the Gardeners' 



growing heaths, which serves to show that 

 a soil with at least a fair proportion of 



peat suits it w^ell. 



L. candidum. — The Madonna lily often 

 falls a prey to disease, to check which 

 various suggestions have been made, but 

 a complete cure has yet to be foiind. The 

 most favourable conditions appear to be 

 planting in a clean loamy soil, without 

 peat, leaf-mould, or manure, taking cj.-*e 

 not to put the bulbs too deep, and if trans- 

 planting is necessary, to remove them in 

 August, but when once established do not 

 shift them unless compelled to do so. 



L. chalcedonicum. — Given a good, deep, 

 loamy soil, and a season or two to establish 

 itself after planting, this, the scarlet 

 Turk\s cap, will prove an object of beauty 

 about the end of July. The blooms, from 

 tbo thick wax-like nature of the segments, 

 remain fresh and bright longer than do the 

 flowers of most lilies. 



L. croceum. — This, the old orange lily, 

 has long been grown in British gardens. 

 It is a loam lover, and will thrive in the 

 ordinary herbaceous border, where, about 

 tb(^ end of June, the rich orange-red, up- 

 right flowers are borne in great profusion. 

 A short tiuu^ since I saw a large bed in 

 which clumps of this lily were alternated 

 with blue delphiniums, and the effect when 

 the two w^ere in bloom was very striking. 



L. davuricum. — Another border lilv of 

 much merit, especially when those forms 

 known generally as Lilium umbellatum are 

 included with it. All bear upright heads 

 of showy flowers, most of them being of 

 some shade of red or terra-cotta. Among 

 the best are erectum and fulgidum. Both 

 can be obtained at a cheap rate when 

 dormant. 



L. elegans (also known as L. Thiinbergia- 

 num). — This is remarkable in most varie- 

 ties for its lowdv stature, and for the wide 

 range of colour to be found in the different 

 forms. In alutaceum the flow^ers are of a 

 buff tint, and in Van Houttei deep crim- 

 son. A sandy loam suits this lily best, 



L. Hansoni. — This species is noteworthy 

 among the members of the Martagon group 

 from the fact that it flowers well the first 

 season after planting. It starts into growth 

 very early, hence it is necessary to pro- 

 tect it by neighbouring shrubs. Dwarf 

 rhododendrons or azaleas are very suitable 

 as the soil conditions just meet the require- 

 ments of this lily. 



L. Henryi.— A tall-growing Chinese lily 

 that has proved to be of a very accom- 

 modating nature in this country. It is 

 somewhat weak in growth, and is best asso- 

 ciated with rather tall-growing shrubs. 



L. longiflorum.— Grown under similar 

 conditions to L. Browni, this lily does well, 

 and it may be associated with bright- 

 coloured flowers, from which the spotless 

 trumpets of this lily stand out in a very 

 conspicuous manner. 



L. martagon. — This species, in its several 

 varieties, is a loam lover, and seldom gives 

 satisfactory results the first season after 

 planting, but then it improves yearly. 



L. pardalinum.— This, the panther lily, 

 pushes up its six to eight-feet stems among 

 rhododendrons, the conditions there suiting 

 it well. The scarlet and yellow^ flowers are 

 very showy. 



L. pyrenaicum.— A Turk s cap, with dull 

 yellowish flowers. It will grow in the her- 

 baceous border, and is the first lily to flower 

 in the open ground. 



L. speciosum.— Equally as useful out of 



doors as when grown in pots this lily, given 



fine weather towards the end of August 



and in September, forms a striking 

 feature. 



THE POTATO CROP IN 



SCOTLAND. 



A trip through the principal potato-pro- 

 ducing districts of Ayrshire, in the closing 

 days of July, revealed the fact that the 

 bxdk of the earlier sorts of the valuable 

 tuber were then raised, and for the most 

 part disposed of. These are grown chiefly 

 in the warm, sandy soil lying along the 

 western sea-board of the coimty, and the 

 culture entailed provides employment for a 

 large number of persons, who are brought 

 from far distant places to assist in the 

 work^ more particularly that of raising the 

 crop. 



The early spring, owing to its dryness 

 and the consequent friability of the soil, 

 was extremely favourable to the planting 

 of the tubers; while after-growth, when it 

 appeared above the surface, was but little 

 affected by frosts or other very adverse 

 weather conditions, so that, :in many in- 

 stances the crops were ready for market 

 quite a fortnight earlier than usual. Not 

 much credence can, as a rule, be taken of 

 the stated weight per acre and market 

 value of these very early crops, as accounts 

 of such that from time to time appear 

 seem rather sensational, though, in all pro. 



Later or second-early 



how- 



ba bility ^ correct . 



crops of fully-matured tubers are, 

 ever, more easily estimated, and such dur- 

 ing the past week or two have been put 

 at an average of fifteen tons per acre, 

 which must constitute a record, even in this 

 much-favoured district. In private gar- 

 dens, and upon rich, deeply-cultivated 

 soils, all kinds of early and successional 

 varieties of potatoes have given excep- 

 tionally good rettirns, the tubers being 

 very numerous, large, and uniform m 

 size, and so far free from disease ; "^'^ile, 

 in regard to quality, this could hardly ^ 



Late kinds and field crops in general 

 have until now% August 12, maintamed a 

 very promising appearanlc^e, the haiilni 

 being extra vigorous and tall, remimhng 

 one of the Champion in its most pab^y 

 days. The effect the recent wet weather 

 and cloudy skies may have upon crops is 

 impossible to foretell, but among growers 



^ experience much apprehension 

 exists lest, shoidd a change to drier an<i 

 warmer atmospheric conditions not soon 

 come, disease in virulent form may set ^n- 



James Day. 



of loner 



Garlieston. 



Populus lasiocarpa.— A co^f^^f: 



tivelv new species from China, which stanas 



out from all other members of the genus 

 reason of its huge ovate cordate ^^^^'^^ 

 measuring in some instances nearly a loo 

 in width. In colour they are bright gre^n. 

 while the leaf-stalk, midrib, and principal 

 veins are red. — W. 



