T U L 
Thefe flowers fnould always be expofed to the wea- j 
ther, for if they are (haded with mats, or any other 
covering, it will prevent their perfecting the feed. 
About the middle of July, (a little fooner or later, as 
the fummer is hotter or colder) the feeds will be lit 
to gather, which may be known by the drynefs of their 
(talks, and the opening of the ieed-veffels, at which 
time it may be cut off, and preferved in the pods till 
the feafon tor fowing it, being careful to put it up in 
a dry place, otherwife it will be fubject to mould, 
which will render it good for little. 
Having faved a parcel of good feed, about the begin- 
ning of September is the belt feafon for fowing it, 
when there fhould be provided a parcel of (hallow 
feed-pans, or boxes, which fhould have holes in their 
bottoms to let the moifture pafs off* thefe mull be 
filled with frefh fandy earth, laying the furface very 
even, upon which the feeds fhould be fown as regu- 
larly as poffible, that they may not lie upon each other •, 
then there fhould be fome of the fame light fandy 
earth fifted over them, about half an inch thick. 
Thefe boxes or pans fhould be placed where they may 
have the morning fun till eleven of the clock, in 
which fituation they may remain until OClober, at 
which time they fhould be removed into a more open 
fituation, where they may enjoy the benefit of the fun 
all the day, and be fheltered from the north winds, 
where 'they fhould remain during the winter feafon ; 
but in the fpring, when the plants are up, they fhould 
be again removed to their firft fituation ; and if the 
feafon fhould be dry, they muft be refrefhed with 
water while the plants remain green ; but as foon as 
their tops begin to decay, there muff be no more 
given them, left it rot their tender bulbs ; therefore 
the boxes fhould be placed in a fhady fituation during 
the fummer feafon, but not under the drip of trees. 
Thefe plants, at their firft appearance, have very nar- 
row graffy leaves like thofe of Onions, and come 
up with bending heads, in the fame manner as they 
do ; fo that perfons who are unacquainted with them, 
may pull them up inftead of Grafs whilft they are 
very young, before their leaves are a little more ex- 
panded, which is rarely performed the firft year ; 
for they feldom appear before the middle of March, 
and they commonly decay about the latter end of May, 
or the beginning of June, according as the feafon is 
hotter or colder. 
The weeds and Mofs fnould alfo be cleared off from 
the furface of the earth in the boxes, and a little frefh 
earth fifted over them foon after their leaves decay, 
which will be of great fervice to their roots. Thefe 
boxes fhould be conftantly kept clear from weeds, 
which, if permitted to grow therein, when they are 
pulled up, the roots v/ill be apt to draw the bulbs out 
of the ground. At Michaelmas they fhould be frefh 
earthed again, and as the winter comes on, they muft 
be again removed into the fun as before, and treated 
in the fame manner, until the leaves decay in the fpring, 
when the bulbs fhould be carefully taken up, and 
planted in beds of frefh fandy earth, which fhould have 
tiles laid under them, to prevent their roots from 
(hooting downward, which they often do when there 
is nothing to flop them, and thereby are deftroyed. 
The earth of thefe beds fhould be about five inches 
thick imon the tiles, which will be fufficient for nou- 
riihing thefe roots while they are young. 
The diftance which thefe young bulbs fhould be al- 
lowed, need not be more than two inches, nor fhould 
they be planted above two inches deep ; but toward 
the end of October, it will be proper to cover the 
beds over with a little frefh earth about an inch 
deep, which will preferve the roots from the froft, 
and prevent Mofs or weeds from growing over them ; 
but, if the winter fhould be very fevere, it will be 
proper to cover the bed either with mats or Peas- 
haulm, to prevent the froft from entering the ground, 
becaufe thefe roots are much tenderer while young, 
than they are after they have acquired ftrength. 
In the fpring the furface of the ground fhould be 
gently ftirred to make it clean, before the plants come 
2 
T U L 
up ; and if the fpring fhould prove dry, they muft be 
frequently refrefhed with water during the time of 
their growth •, but this muft not be given to them in 
great quantities, left it rot their tender bulbs ; and 
when the leaves are decayed, the weeds fhould be ta- 
ken off, and the beds covered with frefh earth, which 
ftiould alfo be repeated again in autumn. 
In thefe beds the bulbs may remain two years, dur- 
ing which time they muft be conftantly kept dear 
from weeds, and in fpring and autumn frefh earthed, 
in the manner already directed ; after which the bulbs 
muft be taken up, and planted into frefh beds, at four 
inches afunder, and as many deep, where they may 
remain two years more, during which time they 
fhould have the fame culture as before ; and after 
that, the bulbs being large enough to blow, they 
fhould be taken up, and planted in frefh beds at the 
ufual diftance, and in the fame manner as old roots j 
where, when they flower, fuch of them as are worthy 
to be preferved, fhould be marked with flicks ; and 
at the feafon for taking up the bulbs, th ey ’muft 
be leparated from the others, in order to be planted 
as breeders in different beds ; but you ftiould by no 
means throw out the reft until they have flowered two 
or three years, becaufe it is impoffible to judo-e ex- 
actly of their value in lefs time ; for many, which at 
firft flowering appear beautiful, will afterwards dege- 
nerate fo as to be of little value; and others, which 
did not pleafe at firft, will many times improve, fo 
that they fhould be preferved until their worth can be 
well judged of. 
In this method many forts of new breeders will be an- 
nually raifed, from which there will always be fine 
flowers broken, which, being the produce of a perfon’s 
own fowing, will be greatly valued, becaufe they are 
not in other hands, which is what enhances the price 
of all flowers : and it has been entirely owing to this 
method of raifing new flowers, that the Dutch have 
been fo famous, amongft whom the paflion for fine 
Tulips did fome time reign fo violently, that many of 
the florifts near Haerlem have often given a hundred 
ducats for one Angle root ; which extravagance was the 
occafion of an order being made by the States, to li- 
mit the utmoft price that fhould be afterward given 
for any Tulip root, were it ever fo fine. 
Having thus given an account of the method of raif- 
ing thefe flowers from feeds, I fhall now proceed to 
the management of thofe roots which are termed 
breeders, 1b as to have fome of them every year break 
out into fine ftripes. 
There are fome who pretend to have a fecret how to 
make any fort of breeders break into ftripes whenever 
they pleafe, but this, I dare fay, is without foundation ; 
for from many experiments which I and others have 
made of this kind, I never could find any certainty of 
this matter. All that can be done by art, is to fhift 
the roots every year into frefh earth of different mix- 
tures and a different fituation, by which method I have 
had very good luccefs. 
The earth of thefe beds fhould be every year different, 
for although it is generally agreed that lean, hungry, 
frefh earth doth haften their breaking, and caufe their 
ftripes to be the finer and more beautiful, yet, if 
they are every year planted in the fame' fort of foil, it 
will not have fo mucheffed on them, as if they were one 
year planted in one fort of earth, and the next year in a 
very indifferent one, as I have feveral times experi- 
enced •, and if fome fine ftriped Tulips are planted in the 
fame beds with the breeders, intermixingthem together, 
it will alfo caufe the breeders to break the fooner. 
The beft compoft for thefe roots is a third part of 
frefh earth from a good pafture, which fnould have 
the fward rotted with it, a third part of fea fand, and 
the other part fifted lime rubbifh ; thefe fhould be all 
mixed together fix or eight months at leaft before it is 
pfed, and fhould be frequently turned, in order to mix 
the parts well together. With this mixture the beds 
fhould be made about two feet deep, after the follow- 
ing manner : after the old earth is taken from out of 
the bed to the depth intended, then fome of the frefh 
earth 
