ON THE IRIS. 
225 
Of the tall growing kinds—Germanica, Pallida, Florentina, 
Sambucina, Lurida, and Variegata may be mentioned as the most- 
prominent : these are well suited for open shrubberies, &c. Of 
the- dwarf varieties, such as Chinensis, Biflora, Sub-Biflora, cres- 
tata pumila, Flavissima graminea, &c., are very pretty ornaments 
of the flower border, rockwork, &c., and will bear the smoke and 
dust of confined suburban districts. I. Fimbriata, Orientalis, and 
Flavescense, are rather tender, requiring the greenhouse to bring 
them to perfection ; they should be potted in soil similar to that 
recommended for I. Susiana; they require good pot room ; and 
to cause them to flower finer and more freely, remove the suckers 
as soon as they appear. 
We now come to the bulbous rooted species : — they are 
Xiphium, Xiphiodes, Alata, Lusitanica, Tenuifolia, and Persica. 
The first tw'o are more strictly florist’s flowers ; the first, Xiphium, 
is the Spanish Iris of florists, and Xiphiodes is commonly known 
as the English Iris. This is more extensively cultivated than any 
other species, and it well deserves the preference shown it: in 
this we have a greater variety of colours than is to be found in 
one species of any other genus : from the purest white to a bright 
azure, it ranges on to the deepest violet ; and even red is found 
in the tints of th s lovely flower, — a colour very uncommon to a 
flower in which blue is, or ever has been, a predominant colour. 
Yellow is, I believe, absent : this I should think might be easily 
remedied by impregnation, as it is found in some of the varieties 
of Xiphium, and that, too, extremely bright. This, however, is 
merely surmise; and, if not right, I should feel obliged by correc¬ 
tion from any of your readers. 
The culture of this, and indeed all the bulbous species, with the 
exception of I. Persica, is extremely simple. They should be 
planted early in October in a bed of any tolerably rich soil, keep¬ 
ing the roots about six inches apart, and about four inches deep, 
that is, from the point of the bulb to the surface of the soil. They 
may be allowed to remain in the same place two or three years ; 
but when required to be taken up, it should be done about a fort¬ 
night or three weeks after they have done blooming. Keep them 
on the open ground entirely out of the sun ; and the planting must 
not be deferred longer than possible, or the bulb begins to vege¬ 
tate, and consequently becomes weakened. The planting of the 
varieties of Xiphium, or Spanish Iris, may be deferred a month 
VOL. T. NO. X. 
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