Septembeb 7, 1912. 



THE GARDENERS' MAGAZINE. 



683 



GROWING BULBS IN FIBRE 

 FOR HOUSE DECORATION. 



The growing of hyatinths in water used 

 to be^ and still is^ very popumr with a 

 large number of amateurs who have no 

 other facility for cultivating them success- 

 tuUy. Growing bulbs in iibre is only a 

 modified form of the water cultivation. 

 Under both methods successful flowering is 



due entirely to the nourishment the bulbs 

 receive from the water. I have never been 

 able to see much beauty in a hyacinth 

 flowering with its roots visibly dangling in 

 a glass of water^ and^ in my estimation^ 

 the fibre metihod of cultivation is in every 

 way to be preferred. If ordinary care is 

 exercised from the time the bulbs are placed 

 in the receptacles, there need be no tear ot 

 failure. It is surprising how many varie- 

 ties of bulbs wall flourish in fibre — narcissi^ 

 tulips, crocuses, liliums, fritillarias (the lat- 

 ter, perhapSj make the prettiest bowls of 

 ail), iris, lily of the valley, spirseas, etc., 

 all do exceedingly well. I have occasionally 

 had a bowl of freesias do very well, but, 

 on the whole, culture in soil is to be pre- 

 ferred for these flowers. 



One or two well-defined rules may be laid 

 down, which should be observed rigidly. 



1. Pot at the right time. 



2. lihe bulbs must all be good large spe- 

 cimens of the variety (except hyacinths, see 

 below). 



3. The bowls must be of the requisite 

 depth to suit each section of bulbs. 



the fibre 



4. Always 

 moist. 



keep 



sufficiently 



I make it a rule to pot up Roman hya- 

 cinths about August iiO, and these bulbs 

 may be flowered any time from early in 

 Xovember to Christmas. If freesias are 

 to be grown in fibre, it is imperative that 

 they be potted not after^ say, August 

 15, for if potted later, the flower scapes 

 almost inevitably go blind. There is one 

 other point about freesias which sihould not 

 be overlooked— never cover the bowls with 

 any material, as is generally done with most 

 other bulbs ; if covered, it is surprising 

 how quickly the bulb breaks and throws 

 up a weak top growth, which frequently 

 leads to the flower scapes being more or 

 less imperfectly developed. 



At any time from September 1 to 15, I 

 pot up a batch of narcissus, hyacinths, cro- 

 cus, and fritillarias. These bulbs all suffer 

 more or less from exposure to the atmo- 

 sphere, and it is advisable to pot iliem 

 not later than the date named. I may say 

 here that I prefer what are known as 

 Miniature or Dutch Roman hyacinths to 

 the larger bulbs for growing in bowls. Six 

 to nine bulbs of Miniatures in a bowl will 

 throw medium-sized spikes of flowers which 

 are decidedly more graceful and decorative 

 than three to four heavy, massive spikes of 

 largo flowers. The Miniatures, for some 

 reason, are also much more certain in 

 flowering, and if one variety only is grown 

 in each bowl instead of a mixture of 



colours, the effect is decidedly more pleas- 

 ing. 



About October 1 to 15, experience has 

 proved to be the best time for potting 

 tulips. These bulbs do not start into root 

 growth nearly so early as the foregoinj? 

 kinds, and if potted too early in fibre, are 

 liable to an attack of a green fungoid 

 growth w-hich reduces the vitality of the 

 bulbs, and frequently destroys them alto- 

 gether. Tulips should therefore only be 

 potted in fibre just before root action will 

 commence. 



The choice of fibre for potting is entirely 

 a matter of cost. I prefer cocoanut-fibre 

 to moss fibre, if obtainable at the same 

 price, as coooanut-fibre takes and retains 



the moisture more evenly and remains per- 

 fectly sweet at all times. "Whether it is 

 necessary to put shell witih the fibre is very 

 doubtful, although I have not actuallv pu't 

 it to the test. 



The method of ]u-ocedure in potting is as 

 follows : Shoot the fibre on the floor, or, if 

 only a small quantity, put it in a box, and 

 gradually moisten with water as it is being 

 turned over. The fibre should be just moist 

 enough to cling together a little w^hen 

 squeezed in the hand without water ac- 



a mistake. It is better for tlie crown of 

 the bnllis to he ratlier above the rim of 

 thel)()\vl than hvUnv it, and the bulbsshould 

 be well c()vere<l witli fibre. I frequently 

 round up the Hhrc quite an inch above the 

 rim of the bowl ; it affords extra root-run, 

 and it is quite a common thing for the 

 roots to oome out all round the edges of 

 the bowls, the roots being so strong and 

 healthy. I have also found from experi- 

 ence that tulips require a deeper bowl than 

 do narcissus or other bulbs; a bowl of less 



TULIP WHITE POn i: H A K K ER 



As grown in fibre. 



one to 

 accord- 



tually dropping from it. Have broken 

 charcoal at hand, and place a few pieces 

 in the bottom of each bowl, then fill the 

 bowls with fibre to within about 

 one and a-half inches of the rim, 

 ing to the size of the bulb being potted, 

 but, in any case, let the bowls be quite full 

 and fairly firm when finished. I have 

 noticed bowls that have had the fibre and 

 bulbs too far below the rim, and scarcely 

 any fibre covering the bulbs ; that is quite 



than four and a-half to five inches in depth 

 is too shallow for tulips, six inches is a 

 much better depth. If put in shallow 

 bowls they frequently go " blind," or if 

 they do bloom^ the flowers are in\'ariahly 

 very small. 



I mention the latter ])oint l>ecause 

 there is a tendency amongst manufacturers 

 and dealers to offer for sale quite shallow 

 bowls that look pretty, but are of little 

 use for bulb culture. As soon as the bun>s 



