218 
THE LADIES' FLORAL CABINET. 
cess of working it. In soils of this sort, herbage of a 
luxuriant and valuable kind does not exist in nature, 
nor can it reasonably be expected to do so in culti¬ 
vation ; and as we aim at the best results in this as in 
all kinds of work, it is well to bear in mind that they 
are only attainable by the employment of the best judg¬ 
ment and means. It may be stated as generally applica¬ 
ble to the mass of hardy perennials, and especially to 
the more showy and valuable ones, that they grow 
badly and flower both sparingly and briefly in their 
dry soil, and hence the necessity for improvement be¬ 
fore attempting their culture in it, when it is of that 
character. If, on the other hand, the soil is deep and 
moist to wetness, there may be excessive luxuriance 
produced thereby in some species, but very many of the 
more valuable ones will be injured rather than im¬ 
proved. Many of our our best border perennials die in 
such soil during winter; they do not ripen well, and 
their tissues being soft and usually unduly charged 
with moisture, they suffer more severely from ground 
frost, which penetrates to a greater depth in moist than 
in comparatively dry earth. The remedy for such soils, 
is thorough drainage, and the addition of fine gravel or 
coarse sand to as great an extent as practicable. In 
preparing a new border for the cultivation of peren¬ 
nials, it will not be necessary, if the soil is naturally 
rich, to add manure of any kind in the process ; but in 
renewing old borders that have been long occupied by 
such plants, it will always be necessary to improve its 
condition to some extent by adding manure. Any tol¬ 
erably well-decomposed manure is suitable, but a re¬ 
newal of the earth is, if practicable, even more desira" 
ble. In any case, the soil of old borders should be well 
trenched, and thoroughly pulverized and mixed. 
TIME FOR PLANTING. 
The proper time for planting herbaceous perennials 
depends upon a variety of circumstances, but princi¬ 
pally on the condition of the plants themselves, and the 
nature of the soil and climate of the locality. Gener¬ 
ally speaking, the mass of vigorous-growing perennials 
may be planted at any time after growth is nearly ma¬ 
tured and while in a dormant state ; and with skill and 
extra precautions, many that may be lifted with balls 
can be transplanted at any time, short of or soon after 
the period of their greatest activity, if circumstances 
should render such a step necessary. Many bulbs, es¬ 
pecially lilies, if carefully lifted and the balls preserved, 
may be so managed even when in full flower, but such 
a course is not advisable nor often necessary; but the 
knowledge that it is practicable, may ofttimes prove 
valuable. For pur-poses of propagation, our rule is to 
take up, divide and replant as soon as convenient after 
the first frost in autumn. 
THE TIGRIDIA. 
Sometimes things seem to be ordered for us and ar¬ 
ranged most satisfactorily without any of our aid. 
Thus it was very recently in a matter which I will re¬ 
late. A new catalogue had come from a popular florist, 
having for its frontispiece a gorgeous plate of Tigridias. 
There was T. conchiflora, fine yellow, spotted with 
crimson; T, grandiflora, bright crimson, centre yellow, 
spotted with red: T. grandiflora alba, pure white , 
spotted with crimson in centre, gold-banded petals* This 
last was the novel charm of the group. I said to myself, 
When warm weather comes I mean to have that white 
Tigridia, and I will have the yellow one too. Grandi¬ 
flora I already possessed. A week had hardly passed 
when I received a little box by mail, which on opening 
I found contained three .nicely packed and labelled 
bulbs of the three named Tigridias, and a note inform¬ 
ing me that they were sent with the compliments of 
-, not the florist, but the name of a good friend 
to whom I had several times been indebted for choice 
plants. The very next day after their arrival I opened 
the London Garden, a valuable periodical sent me quite 
frequently by a good editor, and I was well nigh utter¬ 
ing an exclamation of joy when I found that it con¬ 
tained an account of the origin of the white Tigridia 
accompanying a large colored plate of thii novelty. 
The article is furnished by Mr. E. A. Wallace, brother 
of the traveler, whose writings some of us have read 
with much interest. So now I am able to give you an 
item or two of interest that I could not otherwise do. 
The white Tigridia, Pavonia Alba, is the result of an 
accidental seedling, originating with M. Hennequin, of 
Angiers, some ten years ago. By him it was carefully 
fostered, and after several narrow escapes of being lost, 
was distributed to the public. It bloomed in England 
for the first time last year, and when its large, creamy- 
white blossoms opened, everybody who saw them were 
•enthusiastic in their admiration. The flowers are 
larger than the other varieties, and continue longer in 
perfection. Those with which we are familiar scarcely 
last a day open, and did they not repeat themselves 
each successive morning, one would care little for such 
evanescent beauty. 
T. pavonia is a native of Mexico, where it is called 
ocolaxochitt. It is considered medicinal, and on this 
account was sent to Europe by Hernandez, physician to 
Philip II. of Spain, when he was employed by the 
Spanish Government to inquire into the virtues of the 
plants of the New World. It was not introduced 
into England till 1796. It has also been found in 
Peru. T. conchiflora was introduced from Mexico in 
1825. 
The culture and care of the Tigridia is the same as 
that of the Gladiolus, which it somewhat resembles in 
foliage and growth. Mrs. M. D. Wellcome. 
I never had any faith in luck at all, except that I be¬ 
lieve good luck will carry a man over a ditch if he 
jumps well, and will put a bit of bacon into his pot if 
looks after his garden and keeps a pig. Luck generally 
comes to those who look after it, and my notion 
is, it taps, once in a lifetime, at everybody’s door, 
but if industry does not open it, away it goes.— 
Spurgeon. 
