September 4, 1897. 
THE GARDENING WORLD 
7 
Sutton's Inimitable Bedding Hyacintms, 
HYACINTHS AND EVERGREEN 
CONIFERS. 
In spring gardening, as in bedding out at any other 
season, the successful gardener studies how he may 
produce the most effective picture. His work, how¬ 
ever, is limited to filling in the details, and giving 
colour and brightness to the surroundings which the 
landscape gardener and the planter have already 
mapped out for him. This does not imply that his 
is the simplest or least important art in the making 
of a striking or attractive picture. On a large scale 
a landscape gardener is generally employed to 
arrange or create the more important features of a 
place; but not infrequently the gardener does this 
himself and the planting as well. 
A flower garden that is well furnished with ever¬ 
green Conifers as a background to any particular view 
may be made to suggest a summer scene rather than 
that of spring. Conifers, indeed, are most appre¬ 
ciated in winter and spring by reason of their beitlg 
clothed, by their contrast with deciduous subjects, 
and the shelter they suggest. The accompanying 
illustration placed at our disposal by Messrs. Sutton 
& Sons, Reading, serves well to elucidate our 
remarks on this aspect of spring gardening, so that 
details are unnecetsary. Araucarias, Cedars, 
Douglas Firs, Thuyas, Cupressus, Pines, and orna¬ 
mental Spruces in their various shades of green form 
the background of this picture, against which the 
Hyacinths are seen to best advantage. 
What we wish to say here is that the simpler the 
design the better. The large bed in front may con¬ 
sist of one or not more than three colours that will 
blend aod harmonise with one another. For bedding 
purposes a great number of named kinds would not 
only be superfluous but incapable of producing any 
pleasing or desirable effect, because the mixture of 
many colours would neutralise and nullity the whole. 
Sutton’s Inimitable Scarlet, Inimitable Pink, and 
Inimitable Light Rose, indicate that the best bedding 
varieties of those colours have been selected for the 
purpose of producing effective pictures in the spring 
garden. Blue, artd white Hyacinths have been 
selected in the same way. A line of Crocuses may 
be used as an edging to give an indication of reviving 
nature, as they flower early, and their foliage would 
form a fringe to the Hyacinths when they come into 
bloom later on, Large beds of simple design arrest 
the eye at once by reason of their effect. 
-- 5 -- 
THE ROMAN HYACINTH. 
Most of us admire the larger-flowered Hyacinths 
V/ith their large bells, huge imposing spikes, and rich 
and varied hues ; but the early Roman, although of 
less stately presence, is, if anything, more in request 
from its great usefulness. This is more particularly 
true of the common white form, which is grown year 
by year in its hundreds of thousands in pots, boxes, 
and other receptacles, and under all sorts of condi¬ 
tions. 
The popular Roman Hyacinth is a variety of 
Hyacinthus orientalis named albulus. Southern 
France is its native place, and it is cultivated there 
very extensively at the present time for export to 
this country, especially in the district around 
Ollioules, Toulon. The true Roman Hyacinth, on 
the other hand, is the offspring of H. romanus, which 
was figured at an early date in the Botanical 
Magazine under the name of Scilla romana. This 
plant has pale blue flowers fading to blue white or 
white at the margins of the segments. This is a 
native of Greece and is not to be confounded with 
the so-called Roman Hyacinths under notice. 
The number of plants ihat take kindly to early 
forcing is unfortunately all too few, but the white 
Roman Hyacinth occupies a very high position 
among them. The flower spikes and the individual 
bells are smaller as compared with those of the 
other forms, but this instead of being a disadvantage 
is in its favour, as it enables the “ Roman " to fill the 
need for white cut flowers that is never more urgent 
than during the months of November, December, 
and January. Moreover, the larger-flowered Hya¬ 
cinths do not take kindly to too early forcing, and 
here the Roman undoubtedly scores. 
The bulbs are cheap to buy and easy to grow, 
hence there is no difficulty in the way of growing 
large quantities. They should be obtained as early 
in August as possible, for the consignments which 
arrive during that month are invariably composed of 
finer bulbs than are those which reach our shores 
later. The soil employed should be light but rich, 
and may be composed of half good mellow loam, and 
the remaining half of leaf soil, and dried cow manure 
or horse droppings in equal quantities, with a good 
addition of coarse river sand. 
Five-inch pots constitute a handy size for use, and 
as the plants are comparatively dwarf and do not 
make a great deal of foliage, five medium-sized bulbs 
will go to a pot of this size. Pot with fair firmness, 
and bury the bases of the bulbs, leaving the necks 
exposed. After potting, the bulbs will need to be 
covered with ashes or cocoanut fibre refuse in order 
to induce root action Water will not be required 
during the period of plunging. After roots have been 
freely made and the young leaves are just making 
their appearance from the crown of the bulb, which 
