452 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Bulbous Irises. 



Climate. — The Bulbous Irises, in their Eastern homes, are never dis- 

 appointed of their sun-ripening. During the rest-season the sun shines 

 continuously out of a cloudless sky, the herbage turns brown and withers 

 away, while the soil becomes thoroughly dried and baked for some 

 distance below the surface. Here the bulbs lie safe, warm, and dry, until 

 the coming of the call to renewed life which none can resist. The 

 already formed shoot, till now dormant, springs forth from the bulb, and 

 with unerring aim grows upwards until it pierces the soil, now bathed 

 and cooled by the spring rains. To what a different scene do the bulbs 

 emerge in our Northern climate ! 



During spring and early summer the Iris leaves are growing and 

 working, gathering food material in conjunction with the roots, to furnish 

 next season's flowers, and for the making of fresh bulbs. June comes 

 and the leaves wither off, and the bulbs should rest secure from then till 

 late autumn. The dry, hot summers and autumns that we enjoyed 

 lately suited the Bulbous Irises to perfection ; they throve and increased 

 amazingly. But what of the summer and autumn of 1902 ? The 

 dull coldness, the many rainy days, the wearisome absence of sunshine, 

 the cloud- veil which would not lift ? It is not surprising that these 

 Irises, lovers of dry warmth as they are, should have suffered considerably, 

 and that the spring of 1903 should find some of our choicest species 

 represented only by the deserted labels, the sad memorials of former 

 beauty ! Thus died Iris Bakeriana, I. Krelagei, I. Vartani, and 

 I. DanfordicB. Some of these species made a gallant effort to keep the 

 race going. In the case of the two last-named species quite a number of 

 tiny offsets were produced from the old bulbs, each of them sending up a 

 very small slender leaf. These were carefully removed from the decayed 

 bulb and replanted, and may be expected to reach flowering age three or 

 four years hence. 



Position and Culture. — The position on the rock-garden in which the 

 Bulbous Irises are grown is of the first importance. They must have 

 fullest exposure to sun and air, with a south-east aspect if possible. They 

 should be placed on the highest level, so that the rain and melting snow 

 may drain away from them, for there should be no risk of moisture 

 lodging about or dripping from higher stones. This will be the most 

 advantageous position for them during their flowering time, namely in 

 winter and early spring, and will also prove a dry situation for the ripen- 

 ing process during summer and autumn. After the foliage has attained 

 its fullest growth, which will not be until long after flowering, it should be 

 tied up in a neat bundle to a suitable stick, so as not to injure the neigh- 

 bouring plants ; for the leaves, for instance, of Iris Histrio grow twenty- 

 four inches long, and those of /. reticulata thirty-six inches. As soon 

 as the foliage is withered enough to be safely removed, not until the 

 beginning of June, then the soil beneath which the bulbs rest may be 

 covered with a sheet of glass, slightly raised on stones or wires, to keep 

 off rain and to encourage the needful work of drying. In late autumn the 

 glass should be removed, the surface of the soil should be loosened and 



