FE 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDEVER. 
August 1, 1904, 
not too deeply. If the top of the bulb be 
covered two inches it will be found sufficient 
for the smaller kinds, and three or four 
inches is ample for the larger varieties. 
The bed having been all planted, it may 
then be covered by digging out the ground 
trom the next bed and throwing carefully 
over the bulbs. When this is done the 
second bed is ready for planting, and so on 
through the whole piece. 
Having planted the bulbs, which should 
be done at the latest by the end of March, 
there is nothing to do but to keep the 
ground clean till they bloom in September 
or October. This is best done by passing 
over them with a Dutch hoe several times, 
before the green points come too near the 
surface. A good plan especially wet ground 
is during June to cut out the paths, to the 
depth of five or six inches, and throw the 
ground over the beds, in this way killing 
any small weeds there may be. At the 
same time the sunken paths will act as so 
many drains to take off the surplus water. 
Another way to keep the ground clean is to 
give it a good covering of seaweed; this 
also serves a8 & manure. 
The bulbs begin to bloom very early in 
the spring; in fact, before spring begins, 
some few varieties blooming throughout the 
winter. 
commence blooming in March, and continue 
in bloom throughout the winter. ‘It is quite 
usual for such varieties as Soleil d’Or and 
Double Romans to commence at the end of 
June. 
During the flowering season the bulbs 
should be gone over at least once a fort- 
night, to dig out any stray bulbs of other 
kinds that may be among them. If this is 
not done carefully the stocks will soon get 
mixed, and, therefore, practically unsale- 
able. Care must be taken during the 
flowering season that the bulbs do not get 
overgrown with weeds, as these will dry the 
ground and stifle the foliage. Any injury 
done to the bulb during its growing season, 
after the flowers are off, will spoil the 
flower crop for the following year, as it is 
during the summer that the bloom for the 
following year is formed. 
As soon as the leaves have died down the 
bulbs are ready for lifting. It is not neces- 
sary to dig most bulbs every year; they 
will do very well left for two or even three 
years in the ground, providing the soil is 
good, and not allowed to get foul with 
weeds. But for some of the more delicate 
varieties, and if the bulbs are required for 
sale, in which case a fine, plump, round 
bulb commands the readiest market, lifting 
_every year is advisable. 
In lifting, care should be taken not to 
prick the bulbs with the fork, as the least 
injury will cause some varieties to rot. If 
the bulbs are to be left out on the ground, 
they should have a slight covering to pre- 
vent them scorching. When storing the 
bulbs, take care not to mix the various 
kinds; let each lot be labelled, and put 
them in a dry shed, if possible. When well 
dried they may be separated, sorting them 
in two or three sizes, and having all ready 
to plant again as early as possible. 
In the case of delicate varieties, such as 
Obvallaris, Sulphur Crown, ete., plant, if 
possible, in ground quite near to narcissus. 
I have known the Paper White to _ 
As regards manuring, I find it answers 
best to use little manure directly to the 
bulbs. Grass ground, grass fed off and 
manured regularly every year, is the most 
suitable, but’ when this is not available, use 
land that has been well manured for the 
previous crop; or, if manure is really 
needed, well decayed farmyard manure may 
be used, care heing taken to bury it well 
away from the base of the bulbs; they, 
being deep rooters. will find it when they 
need it. Bone meal is also very good. 
Narcissi suffer from several diseases ; 
some go bad with rust at the base, and 
others will rot off completely at times with- 
out any appaient cause. I can suggest no 
remedy, but if the directions as to their 
culture which I have given are followed 1 
think it will go a long way towards pre- 
venting the troubles. 
Now as to which are the best sorts to 
grow, I will suggest a few names, but can- 
not give a list of all the best varieties. 
If flowers are needed as early as possible 
grow the well-known varieties I have men- 
tioned before—Paper White, Double Ro- 
man, and Soleil d’Or. 
Then in August you can have Double 
Daffodils, Princeps, and Obvallaris or 
Tenby, and among any dearer aorts, Henry 
Irving, Golden Spur, and Countess of An- 
nesley. 
September and October are the principal 
months for narcissi. Then you have nearly 
all the different kinds in bloom, some of the 
best market varieties being Bicolor, Hors- 
fieldi, Incomparabilis, Sir Watkin, Princess 
Mary of Cambridge, Barri, Conspicuous, 
Cynosure, etc. Then the Pooticus section, 
' represented by Ornatus and Poetarum; 
these are among the best for market pur- 
poses. Ornatus especially is one of the 
finest hlooming varieties grown ; its pure 
white flowers, coming so early, are always - 
in great demand. ; 
Among the later sorts are Emperor, Em- 
press, and Grandee. I should have also 
mentioned the Orange Phosnix and Sulph .r 
Crown, and also Polyanthus Grand 
Monarque, and the latest of all, blooming 
in November, the Double White Narcissus. 
Of course there are many more kinds, some 
catalogues naming 200 or 800 varieties, but 
the really valuable and distinct kinds are 
not nearly so numerous. 
Great care should be taken in gathering 
and packing the flowers, as it is no use 
growing them well if they are to be neg- 
lected in the end. When gathered, stand 
the flowers in water, taking care that the 
blooms themselves are kept dry, and leaving 
them in water till packing them in boxes 
the morning of sending. Bunch carefully 
twelve in a bunch, leaving the stems as 
long as possible. It is bad policy to 
shorten them, as buyers are always 
anxious to get long stems. Pack in the 
boxes supplied by the salesman, in a single 
layer, not in two or three, as is sometimes 
done. This is the cause of many of the 
complaints of flowers arriving in a damaged 
and heated condition. 
To keep the flowers from shaking and 
getting bruised in transit fix a piece of 
wood across the box, pressing firmly on the 
stems where they cross in the middle of the 
box. If these precautions are taken and 
the boxes firmly bundled together there wilE 
be fewer complaints of the flowers arriving 
damaged. 
A- word or two as to forcing before ¥ 
close. Plant the bulbs in boxes or pans im 
February, stand them outside, covering 
with ashes to keep them cool. Assoon as 
the points show through the ashes may be 
removed. . fhe ena 
Double Daffodils, Princeps, Tenby, 
Golden Spur, Sir Watkin, and Ornatus are 
amongst the best varieties for forcing. 
Double Daffodils, Princeps, and Tenby 
may be taken into the forcing house in 
June, care being taken not to get the tem- 
perature above 50° till the buds are welt 
advanced. The other sorts may be putin 
early in August, giving a supply of good 
flowers during the coldest months of the 
year.—H. T. WHEADON, 
A ‘‘ Fern Bari.”’—Would you please telE 
me the proper treatment for a Japanese 
Fern Ball? I bought it three months ago, 
and started it by soaking in water for three 
hours. I kept it in a shady position in- 
doors, but the fronds all died off after 
reaching a length of one and a-half inches 
orso. I now have it outdoors in a shady 
spot, but the dying-off process still con- 
tinues. I water the “‘ Ball” twice a week. 
The ‘* Ball” is a large one, but the buds are 
very few and far between.—E. D. May. 
The fault probably rested more with the 
“ Fern Ball’ itself than with the treatment. 
These, charming thongh they are when 
well-grown, require to be procured and 
started early in the season—when newly 
imported—then they usually do well. But 
when they have been lying about for several - 
weeks or months in a dry warehouse or 
shop they naturally lose much of their 
vitality, and then either refuse to start at 
all, or do so only very weakly and reluc- 
tantly. We have bought them early in the 
season and had excellent results, while a 
few weeks later, with the same treatment, 
they have failed, more or less, to start. 
— 
PROTECTING ROSES. 
~ The recent spell of wintry weather must 
have made many rose-growers feel anxious 
as to its probable effect: upon their plants, 
especially Tea Roses. Many are the de- 
vices of the cultivator for keeping the frost 
at bay and providing protection during the 
winter months. Plenty of dry leaves or 
bracken is the remedy advised, but where 
the latter article is not readily obtainable, 
there is a very good substitute. It is the 
long rough cocoanut fibre refuse from 4 ir. 
to 6 in. in length, which, if carefully spread 
between the rows of our Tea Roses, affords 
them a splendid protection, as the fibre im 
this condition throws off the heavy rains 
and does not, like the ordinary fibre, con- 
solidate, which is a most important facter. 
This long rough fibre is sold by weight, and 
as it is very light a considerable quantity 
can be obtained for a few shillings. EE 
should much like to know whether any of 
your readers have tried this stuff as a pro- 
tective, and if so, with what resulf?— 
FisRe. ~ 
£ 
