38 



JOURNAL OP THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



arrive they are dead. The only resource left is to send out the seed, and 

 this I am doing. 



It is hardly necessary to say much upon the mode of cultivating this 

 universal favourite : it delights in moisture and partial shade, and in a 

 good light soil it loves to penetrate its fibrous roots. It is found in 

 mountain copses sheltered by shrubs, and in the forest under trees. It is 

 well to have a plantation of Lilies of the Valley upon a southern aspect 

 if you want the flowers early, and in succession, for by this means they 

 may be gathered a fortnight or three weeks earlier than otherwise — I am 

 of course dealing with the days before retarded lilies were known — give 

 rotten manure as surface dressings and plenty of moisture during active 

 growth. The chief point to guard against in outdoor cultivation is frost, 

 this being destructive to the blooms which appear with the leaves. A 

 few spruce or other evergreen branches placed sparsely over the beds 

 afford efficient protection, and a beneficial shelter encouraging growth. 

 Preference should be given to a soft loamy soil well enriched with rotten 

 manure, though sometimes fine lilies may be grown in rather heavy loam. 

 In preparing soft loam it will be best to give a liberal admixture of leaf 

 soil and sharp sand. Whatever the soil may happen to be it should be 

 moderately firm before planting. The best time for planting is in the 

 early autumn, as soon after the foliage has decayed, selecting the crowns 

 singly and dividing them for beds likely to remain undisturbed for several 

 years. The crowns may be planted two, or even three inches apart, as 

 they do not become crowded so soon as to require thinning out. It is 

 a good plan to cover the surface after planting with one or two inches of 

 rotten manure, thorough maturity being secured only by constant applica- 

 tions of water, weak manure-water being the most efficacious. Treated 

 thus with annual dressings of manure the beds will continue in good 

 "heart" for years, and bear fine blossoms in abundance. When the 

 plants become crowded with shoots they should be thinned out, or, better 

 still, lifted and replanted, for weakly or blind crowns tend to retard 

 vigorous growth. The Lily of the Valley is now largely forced into 

 flower early, the roots being often imported from the Continent, where 

 they are grown and prepared for the purpose. It may be naturalized, too, 

 in any place sufficiently shaded and moist, and it soon spreads into broad 

 masses. There is a variety with foliage striped with gold and another 

 with double flowers, but the latter is not pretty. The finest form is called 

 "Fortius," which is much more robust than the common kind, having 

 larger flowers ; but in spite of this I think the smaller and familiar Lily 

 of the Valley we found in the woods in our childhood is the one which 

 lies the closest to our affections. 



The Lily of the Valley possesses a most beautiful curve, added to its 

 many other charms, which makes it so perfect as a decorative flower, and 

 when associated with blue forget-me-not — Myosotis palustris, found 

 growing by river banks, streams, and ditches in June, July, and August — 

 the combination is delightful — the harmony is perfect. I would suggest 

 that the lilies be arranged at the top of a glass vase, the forget-me-not at 

 the base. Such vases are easy to get, and clear glass (not coloured) lends 

 itself best, I think, to this arrangement, coming nearer to nature, and so 

 nearer to the beautiful and the true. 



