CLIBRANS, Importers and Growers of Flower Bulbs, 
Hints on the Cultivation of Select 
Hyacinths. 
The universal cultivation of this most beautiful flower is to a great extent due to its adaptability both to in and out- 
door treatment In its season— from December to May for the greenhouse, and April and May for open ground— few 
flowers can compare with it for richness, effectiveness, and variety. To the amateur we trust the following simple 
directions for its culture will be found useful, and the cultivator who follows them may expect with certainty 
well-flowered plants, whether grown in the open garden, in glasses, or flower pots in the greenhouses. 
HYACINTHS IN POTS. 
SOIL. — It is scarcely advisable to buy bulbs if the cultivator 
does not make a suitable preparation of soil for the bulbs when 
bought, and we are convinced from a fairly long-experience with 
retail buyers, that in too many cases the goods bought, whether 
much bulbs, seeds, or plants, do not produce as good a result, and 
as pleasure or profit as they should do, owing to the buyer not 
making proper preparation in the way of compost. For Hyacinths 
in pots the quality of the compost is very important, and it ought, 
when practicable, to be prepared several months before it is re- 
quired for use. The mixture must be light and rich, yet open ; 
obviously, to make it light and rich, we require thoroughly good 
leaf mould, clean and well rotted, and the best of manure ; cow 
manure by preference, at least one year old, and if two years old 
so much the better. For the ingredients of our compost there 
should be about one-third of really good turfy loam with plenty 
of fibre, another third ofjreally old manure ; to this add about 
one-sixth part of leaf mould and one-sixth of fine charcoal and 
coarse sand. New manure will simply ruin this compost for bulb 
growing. The whole of the above should be mixed together if 
possible several months before it is required, placed in a sunny 
position, and turned over several times to free it from worms, &c. 
If the Autumn be a very wet one, a few boards should be put on 
to keep the heavy rains from soaking through it. 1 he compost 
should be used in a moderately damp condition, so that it may 
not be necessary to water as soon as the bulbs are potted. 
POTS AND POTTING. — 5-inch pots should be used for 
ordinary purposes, and inch if intended for exhibition. If new 
pots are used, they should be soaked in water for some hours before 
using ; old pots, well washed, are far preferable to new ones. One 
large crock and three or four smaller pieces over it are all the 
drainage that is needed, as the compost should be passed through 
a sieve, and the rough portions placed at the bottom of the pots 
over the crocks. When potting, the apex of the bulb should be 
level with the top of the soil ; the pot should therefore be filled 
up to the right height to place the bulb on, then a slight sprinkling 
HYACINTHS 
The single varieties are best for this purpose, and with careful 
attention very fine specimens may be grown, as the treatment is so 
simple. From the middle of October to the middle of November 
is the proper time to place the bulbs in glasses, which should be 
quite clean. Sweet rain water is the best for the bulbs. If spring 
or other hard water be used it should be boiled to take away the 
hardness. Fill each glass so that the water does not quite touch 
the base of the bulb, adding one or two small pieces of charcoal 
or a few grains of salt to keep the water sweet, and place them in a 
cool, dark, airy place or cellar for a few weeks. Examine in about 
a fortnight, and remove any decayed or slimy substance from the 
base of the bulbs. Change the water every three or four weeks, 
or oftener if discoloured, or if it smells disagreeably. In adding 
fresh water it must be the same temperature as that taken out. 
When the roots are about four inches long the glasses should be 
of sand ; place the bulb on this without pressing the soil down, 
surround the bulb to the right height, then press moderately firm. 
All small bulbs and offsets should be broken off the base of the 
bulbs before potting. Stand the pots out of doors in some open 
space, where they will be quite exposed to all sorts of weather, on, 
by preference, a bed of ashes ; put a little sand or cocoa fibre 
over the top of the bulb, and then cover six inches deep with a 
plunging material, such as ashes, sand, cocoa fibre, &c. If the 
weather is dry, in about a week after potting give a heavy water- 
ing, sufficient to go through the plunging material and the compost 
also, but if there is rain this is not necessary ; neither should it 
be done for late potting if the nights are frosty. 
TIME TO POT. — To bloom at Christmas the bulbs should be 
potted about the middle of September, and the whole of the pot- 
ting completed, even for the latest lots, by the end of October. 
After this date the bulbs will begin to deteriorate if kept out of the 
soil, and as a consequence be a source of dissatisfaction to the 
grower. 
WHEN TO FORCE. — The bulbs should stand as covered for 
eight or ten weeks, when it will be found that the pots are full of 
roots, and the bulbs have started into growth ; they should then 
be moved into a cold frame or cold airy greenhouse, and the 
blanched growth gradually exposed to the light. The bulbs 
ought not to be taken direct from outside to the forcing house if 
the best results are aimed at. We should followNature’s teaching, 
as exemplified in an ideal Spring, by gradually increasing the 
light and heat for the forced bulb. When placed in the forcing 
house a moderately moist atmosphere and a regular temperature, 
never exceeding 70 degrees, should be maintained. The pots 
should be placed near the glass, and extremely weak liquid 
manure given until the flowers begin to open, if we require dwarf 
foliage and brightly-coloured blooms. After the flowers show 
colour the liquid manure may be discontinued, and slightly tepid 
water given instead. 
IN GLASSES. 
gradually removed to the light, and, as soon as the crown has 
made a little growth, placed in the sunniest window, and given 
all the light and air possible, avoiding frost and draughts. Turn 
the glasses frequently, till the flower spikes are well developed. 
When the bulbs are in full growth the water in the glasses will be 
absorbed more rapidly, and should be replenished frequently. 
An occasional watering overhead will also be found very beneficial 
when the temperature of the room is rising, but should never be 
attempted when the room is getting colder. Sponge the leaves 
occasionally if the atmosphere of the room be dry and hot. Ex- 
cessive heat and intense cold are very injurious. Supports should 
be used when the flower spikes are tall, or they may be over- 
balanced and get damaged. Hyacinth Supports, also Glasses in 
plain or fancy designs, can be supplied. For prices, &c., see page 42. 
HYACINTHS IN BEDS, BORDERS, &e. 
No other early Spring flower produces such a brilliant display 
in beds, borders, &c., as the Hyacinth, with its rich range of 
colours and delightful perfume. They will succeed in almost 
any ordinary well-worked garden soil, even in the neighbourhood 
of large towns though some enthusiasts go so far as to take soil 
out to a depth of about 12 to 18 inches, and make up with the 
same material as recommended for pot culture. A sunny position 
is best. Plant in October, in dry weather. The bulbs should be 
placed six to nine inches apart, and from four to six inches deep. 
If planted deep the time of blooming will be a little later, but the 
bulbs that are planted five or six inches deep are not so liable 
to be damaged by frost in the Spring as those planted nearer the 
surface. Good drainage is necessary, especially when the ground 
is heavy and wet. To such soil it is advantageous to add some 
coarse sand, and to place some rough material at a depth of 
about 1 J to 2 ft. below the surface. Place a layer of coarse sand 
underneath and around the bulbs, but do not press the soil hard. 
After planting cover the beds with a thin coating of cocoa fibre, 
dead leaves, or other light material to protect from severe frost ; 
when the growth has pushed through the soil remove the covering 
by degrees. Beds of one colour produce a more brilliant and 
telling effect than mixed colours, or designs worked in several 
colours ; but the planter will follow the dictates of his own 
fancy. It is not imperatively necessary to place supports to the 
spikes of Hyacinths in beds, but if a short stick is affixed to each 
one it keeps it in position, and adds to the neatness and evenness 
of the bed. Should the weather be dry when the bulbs are in flower 
the flowering period may be lengthened by applying water liberally. 
Fop BEDDING HYACINTHS, see page 
6 
