602 
rHE GARDENING WORLD. M “y 22 > 122 ’ 
mechanic. At all events there was not that dispro¬ 
portion which at present exists, and which presses 
most heavily upon suburban gardeners, the majority 
of whom have to hire houses for themselves at rents 
which a mechanic can well afford to pay if he is of 
steady habits, but the poor gardener, unless he is 
blessed with a better half capable of doing some¬ 
thing to bring grist to the mill, is often in a dilemma. 
The difference in the rate of remuneration accorded 
to the two classes arises mainly, I contend, from the 
fact that garden labour is paid for in accordance 
with the laws of supply and demand, and that of 
workmen in building and other trades is largely aug¬ 
mented by the action of their trade unions.— W.B.G. 
— «♦»- 
THE TULIP CONFERENCE. 
As is stated on p. 604, the conference was held 
in the Museum and .Lecture Room of the Royal 
Botanic Society. The chair was taken at two 
o'clock by Mr. John Wright. Three papers were 
announced, and as these were short and pithy, the 
conference was not a lengthy one. A fair audience 
was present, 
In rising to open the proceedings, the chairman 
said that there was very little doubt that this had 
once been a Tulip country, and he had hopes that it 
would be a Tulip country again. He was glad to 
see, therefore, that the Tulip had got into the 
morning papers, as this was a sure sign of its 
growing popularity. Speaking of the value of the 
Tulip for decorative purposes, he mentioned Tulip 
dinners, where the tables had been solely decorated 
with Tulips; also a Tulip ball, where the noble 
flower held a similar position, 2,000 blooms having 
been furnished for the purpose from the Long 
Ditton nurseries of Messrs. Barr & Sons. Any 
knowledge he possessed of the flower he owed to a 
very large extent to his deceased friend Dr. Hogg, 
who was the only man he had ever met that had 
given /90 for a single bulb. He himself had grown 
Tulips when a boy, and had learned to love them 
then. In conclusion he remarked that although 
naturally the Tulip was a flower of the east the 
most beautiful forms of it in the wide world had been 
evolved by the loving care and skill of the western 
florists. 
The History of the Tulip. 
Upon this phase of the subject a capital paper 
was contributed by Mr. J. W. Bentley, Stakehill 
House, Castleton, near Manchester, who briefly 
sketched the history of the Tulip from the middle of 
the 16th century. The flower was held in great 
esteem, said the essayist, by the Turks, and was 
cultivated by them as far back as the year 1554. 
Gesner, after whom T. gesneriana was named, 
planted Tulips at Augsburg from 1577—1579. 
Parkinson in 1629 enumerates 40 varieties cultivated 
in this country, and speaks highly of their grace and 
beauty. In a publication made by John Ray in 
1665 no fewer than 184 varieties were enumerated, 
this number being subsequently raised in the next 
edition to 300. 
With regard to the Tulipomania, he would not go 
into details, since it was but a curious form of 
gambling. In this country large prices were also 
given for bulbs, instances of this being given in the 
" Tattler," in the year 1710. In that publication it 
was also stated that a bed of Tulips 20 yards long 
was worth more than a hundred acres of the best 
land in England. 
The so-called Dutch Tulips which found such 
great favour in England subsequent to that date, 
however, were probably French seedlings, which, 
owing to disturbances in France, had passed into the 
hands of the Dutch growers. 
Up to the beginning of the present century 
varieties of continental origin were held in the 
greatest favour, but after that time our own florists 
began to raise seedlings. South countrymen were 
the fathers of the English Tulip, for, until the year 
1840, the men cf the south had it nearly all their 
own way. Men like Hedley, Willison, Storer, 
Parker, Jackson, and Dymock raised many seedlings i 
and laid the foundation of the present collection of 
florists' Tulips that were available. Then northern 
growers stepped in, and although since 1840, and 
until recent years, Tulips had to a great extent gone 
out of fashion, the northern growers had stuck to 
the flower, and men like the Rev. F D. Horner and 
Mr. Thurstan had done and were doing much to im¬ 
prove the flower. 
The florists’ Tulip, continued Mr. Bentley, is con¬ 
siderably taller than the Dutch, the flowers are larger 
and of better shape, and fully three weeks later. A 
good flower should have a strong stem, capable of 
holding it erect. It should have six segments of 
equal size, and when expanded should be in shape 
like the half of a cricket ball. The groundcolour 
should be clear yellow or pure white, and the base 
should be a stainless circular area next to the ovary 
of pure white or clear yellow. 
Passing then into the classification of florists' 
Tulips, Mr Bentley divided them as usual into the 
three classes, viz., Roses, By bloemens, and Bizarres. 
The Roses should have a ground colour and base of 
pure white, the other colour being rose, scarlet, or 
red. The Bybloemens also must have the white base 
and ground colour, some shade of purple or black 
being the overlyiDg colour. Bizarres have a yellow- 
ground colour and base, with scarlet, black, or brown 
markings 
These three classes are again subdivided into 
" breeders,” “ feathered,” and “ flamed ” varieties. 
A “ breeder ” is a seedling of uniform colour which 
has not rectified or broken. No one knows exactly 
why a “ breeder” breaks or rectifies, and although 
some theories had been advanced none are satis 
factory. Some forms that are very handsome as 
•' breeders,” moreover, are of no use after they have 
broken. 
In the feathered varieties the colouring is confined 
to the edge, whilst the flamed forms have a broad 
beam running down the centre of each segment. 
Tulips may be increased by offsets, and in such 
a case it is necessary when purchasing to see that 
they come from a good strain. The same varieties 
exist in all three states, but are not all alike good in 
the three. Thus Glory of Stakehill is only good as a 
"breeder.” Dr. Hardy, on the other hand, is good 
in two states, and Sir Joseph Paxton in all three. 
In conclusion, Mr. Bentley assured his audience 
that although there were risks to be encountered in 
the cultivation of Tulips, the procuring of offsets 
from a good strain, and careful cultivation would 
reduce the risks to a minimum ; and the bewitching 
mixture of anticipation and delight, although it 
might be tinged with disappointment, that resulted 
from Tulip growing was sufficient reward for labour 
expended. 
The Cultivation of the Tulip. 
As a cultivator of Tulips Mr. C. W. Needham has 
made a great name, and hence anything said by him 
on this subject is well worth listening to. He gave 
a most practical exposition of the culture that brings 
success, untarnished by any theorising or flights into 
the realms of fancy. 
The Tulip, said he, is easy to grow both in town 
and country. The position should be sheltered from 
the cold north and east winds. The beds must be 
well drained, for the bulbs are very impatient of a 
waterlogged soil, and should be raised above the 
level of the surrounding ground to a height of 6 in. 
If the bed is not well drained naturally the soil 
should be taken out to a depth of 2 ft., and a layer of 
rubble or brick rubbish placed in the bottom, con¬ 
necting this with a drain. The soil ought to be 
rather porous than stiff, and he advised the use of 
good garden soil that has been well manured, and 
has borne crops Green manure is very harmful. 
Loam that has been stacked for twelve months is 
also good. 
The bulbs may be planted in rows 6 in. apart, one 
or two bulbs being placed in each hole. Four and a 
half inches of space each way, continued Mr. Need¬ 
ham, is not too much if the bulbs are planted singly, 
whilst, on the other hand, they may be grown in 
clumps, and may then be planted quite close to each 
other. The covering soil should be changed each 
year, and mulchings of short well decayed stable 
manure would also suit them well. It is a mistake, 
continued the essayist, to grow the bulbs in rich soil 
year after year, for they become unduly large, and 
the blooms are correspondingly coarse. A sprink¬ 
ling of salt or quicklime acts as a corrective for un¬ 
duly fat land. For manures kainit, nitrate of soda, 
and superphosphates may be given, but only in 
homoeopathic doses. The old growers were well 
aware of the effectiveness of growing the plants now 
and again in poor but sweet soil, and spoke of starv¬ 
ing them into purity. 
With regard to the time of lifting the Tulips , — 
this might be done when the middle of the stem can 
be bent by the fingers without snapping. In lifting 
it is very necessary to avoid exposing the bulbs to 
the action of the sun, for even a minute’s exposure 
means the scorching of the outer tunic, and decay is 
then sure to follow. The bulbs must be stored in a 
cool dry place, with sufficient ventilation, until 
needed. 
The chief enemy of the Tulip, said Mr Needham, 
is the hailstorm. The hailstones bruise the tender 
tissues, and decay invariably sets in in the injured 
areas The rays of the sun striking upon the frozen 
foliage are also highly injurious, and protection of 
some sort is therefore urgently needed. An awning 
of thin calico or tiffany stretched over the plants 
forms an effective shelter. The most critical time is 
when the leaves are showing above the ground with 
the young flower bud enfolded in their axils- 
The latter form a sort of cup which catches the 
water. If this freezes the delicate leaves are injured 
by the pressure between the expanding water from 
within, and the expanding earth from without, and 
the result is very often death. 
Mr. Needham, in his finishing remarks, expressed 
the opinion that by the exercise of care and per¬ 
severance even the veriest tyro might be successful 
in the “ cultivation of the Tulip.” 
A lively discussion followed the reading of this 
paper. The chairman spoke of the Tulip diseasei 
which at one time had cost Dr. Hogg nearly the 
whole of his collection. 
In reply to a question put to the essayist by the 
chairman on this point, the former said that he had 
seen some of Dr. Hogg’s Tulips that had been 
affected by the fungus, and found that they presented 
the same appearance as his that had been injured by 
hailstones. This he believed to be the true cause, 
the fungus which afterwards stepped in and took 
possession being an effect rather than a cause. In 
his experience he had found that slugs, dogs, cats, 
pigeons, etc., were some of the worst enemies the 
plants had. Mr. Bentley corroborated this view, 
and in reply to another question as to whether there 
was any theory as to the cause of " breaking,” said 
that all the theories that had been brought forward 
were nonsense. 
Mr J. W. Barr spoke to the truth of the descrip¬ 
tion of the injury done by frost and hail upon the 
plants given by Mr. Needham. He thought, how¬ 
ever, that six ins. apart was much too wide to plant 
the bulbs. He preferred a distance of three or four 
ins , for he had found that thickly planted bulbs were 
less liable to injury from hailstones, the leaves 
mutually helping to protect each other. He also 
advised lifting when the stem was limp enough to 
be bent without breaking. 
Mr. Chater also expressed an opinion that the 
disease was the result of injury done to the leaves by 
frost and hail. He had found that Bybloemens and 
Roses took the disease quicker than the Bizarres. 
Mr. R. Dean attributed the disease to something 
in the soil. In certain localities certain diseases, 
fungoid or otherwise, attack plants, and render it 
exceedingly difficult to grow them. Thus upon some 
land at Bedfont he found it impossible to keep Sweet 
Williams. Mr. Dean also asked if any one knew of a 
rectified Tulip returning to the breeder stage. In 
reply Mr. Needham said such a thing had never 
come under the notice of himself or Mr. Bentley, 
although the markings would sometimes become so 
bad, owing to the spreading of the colour, that the 
bulbs were useless. 
In summing up, Mr. Wright stated that the whole 
matter simply resolved into a question of cultivation. 
We should endeavour to keep our plants so healthy 
that they would not form a suitable reception ground 
for the fungus. 
The Hybridisation of Tulips and the Raising 
of Seedlings. 
An excellent treatise upon this interesting part of 
Tulip culture was submitted by the Rev. F. D. 
Horner, whose name will for ever be connected very 
closely with the improvement of the noble flower. 
Certainly no one within the confines of “ Tulipdom " 
is better qualified to speak upon the crossing of 
Tulips than he. The reverend gentleman was un¬ 
able to attend in person, and his paper was read by 
Mr. J. W. Bentley. 
In selecting the parents for the desired cross, said 
the essayist, the best rectified or breeder forms 
should be chosen The exact stage in which the 
blooms are,whether breeder, flamed,or feathered does 
not matter, as the change is innate, and certain to 
occur sooner or later. The parent flowers must be 
