February  5,  1903. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
117 
the  candelabra  and  other  receptacles  for  supplying  the  artificial 
light.  Small  drooping  pieces  of  the  Begonia  are  looped  on  to 
tliis,  and  the  effect  of  the  whole  arrangement,  if  carried  out  as 
described,  though  somewhat  simple,  never  fails  to  elicit  favour¬ 
able  comment  from  the  host  or  hostess  and  their  guests.  This 
arrangement  is  supposed  to  be  for  a  table  to  seat  eighteen 
persons.  Three  plants  of  the  Begonia,  if  well  grown,  will  pro¬ 
vide  ample  material. — Frank  Bible,  Draycot  Gardens,  Chippen¬ 
ham,  Wilts. 
- - »  ■ 
The  Culture  of  Liliums. 
A  good,  medium  soil,  free  from  ground  insects,  is,  as  a 
rule,  the  most  congenial  soil  for  all  Lilies.  There  are  some 
species  of  Lilies  which  like  more  moisture  than  others,  and 
where  i\lr.  Arderne  grows  his  Rhododendrons  the  conditions 
are  perfect  for  the  moisture-loving  species.  The  soil  is  free, 
well-drained,  and  the  constant  w’atering  the  Rhododendrons 
get  makes  the  place  an  ideal  one,  and  what  can  be  more 
charming  than  to  see  rising  from  the  midst  of  Rhododendrons 
such  Lilies  as  the  varieties  of  L.  pardalinum,  L.  auratum, 
L.  excelsum,  and  many  others  ?  The  ground  is  shaded,  the 
bulbs  are  kept  cool,  while  the  absolute  freedom  for  the  tops 
and  foliage  is  secured.  Lilies  should  not  be  coddled,  but 
planted  where  they  are  to  flower.  vShould  success  attend 
the  selection  of  the  spot,  a  new  pleasure  is  introduced  into 
the  garden  ;  should  there  be  a  failure,  this  is  no  more  than 
happens  in  one’s  daily  routine — try  again.  A  real  gardener 
never  gives  up,  but  goes  on  till  he  succeeds. 
On  receiving  Lily  bulbs,  examine  the  base,  and  if  sound  all 
is  Avell,  but  if  the  scales  fall  away  from  the  base,  you  can  have 
no  success.  There  may,  however,  be  some  healthy  parts 
on  the  scales ;  from  these  you  have  a  chance  of  getting 
bulblets  by  laying  them  on  a  compost  of  soil  mostly  clean 
sand,  and  cover  over  with  the  same  material,  placing  the  pot, 
box,  or  kerosene  tin  in  a  shady  place,  and  keep  the  soil 
moist,  but  not  wet.  If  you  buy  your  bulbs  in  Cape  Town, 
see  that  the  outside  scales  are  healthy  and  firm.  If  you 
import  bulbs,  caution  the  sender  as  to  the  degree  of  moisture 
in  the  moss  surrounding  the  bulbs,  as  it  often  happens  the 
sphagnum  moss  used  is  too  wet,  and  in  consequence  the  bulbs 
are  apt  to  rot.  I  have  seen  good  consignments  of  Lily  bulbs 
packed  in  common  sawdust  of  such  wood  as  white  deal. 
Avoid  charcoal  and  cork  sawdust ;  these  absorb  the  good¬ 
ness  out  of  Lily  bulbs.  A  heavy  soil  may  suit  some  of  the 
moisture-loving  Lilies,  but  a  sour  soil  or  a  water-logged  soil 
is  bad.  Drainage  is  indispensable  for  the  successful  culture 
of  all  Lilies.  If  a  collection  of  Lilies  be  grown  in  the  same 
bed,  put  the  bed,  if  possible,  on  a  sloping  bank,  those  which 
love  the  dry  soil  highest  up,  and  graduate  down  to  the 
moisture-loving  ones  at  the  lower  part  of  the  bed.  Lilies 
such  as  the  varieties  of  elegans  and  some  others  like  a 
rather  dry  ridge,  and  with  deep  planting  will  stand  a  good 
deal  of  draught. 
Give  Lilies  more  or  less  shade  from  the  midday  sun,  and 
shelter  them  as  much  as  possible  from  severe  Avinds.  The 
great  aim  should  be  to  keep  the  soil  cool,  and  this  may  be 
best  attained  by  a  mulch  of  the  preceding  year’s  leaves  of 
trees,  rotted,  or  laying  stones  on  the  surface  ;  no  objection 
to  plenty  of  sandstones  heaped  on  the  beds.  Under  such 
conditions  moisture-loving  Lilies  may  be  grown  to  perfection, 
bearing  in  mind  shade  and  watering.  The  Lilies  Avhich  do 
Avell  in  a  partially  dry  soil  will  do  better  with  than  without 
stones  on  the  surface.  The  stones  ensure  coolness  and  con¬ 
serve  moisture.  I  am  strongly  in  favour  of  blocks,  large 
and  small,  of  sandstone,  amongst  which  Lilies  should  be 
grown,  and  I  am  almost  sure  this  mode  of  growing  them 
Avould  be  attended  with  as  much  success  as  if  planted  amongst 
Rhododendrons  ;  and  as  feAV  people  can  grow  Rhododendrons 
successfully  in  the  Cape  Peninsula,  while  everyone  can  get 
blocks  of  sandstone  for  the  carting.  It  must  not,  however,  be 
forgotten  that  shade  from  the  midday  sun — indeed,  the  fierce 
rays  at  any  hour  of  the  day — should  be  avoided,  and  shade 
in  Cape  ToAvn  is  as  good  as  full  exposure  in  Europe. 
Lily  bulbs,  when  out  of  the  ground,  should  never  be 
exposed  to  the  atmosphere,  or  the  scales  Avill  become  flabby, 
and  this  means  a  loss  of  vitality,  and  often  the  cause  of 
failure,  while  some  Lily  bulbs  Avhen  much  exposed  to  the 
atmosphere  Avill  make  no  top  growth  the  first  year.  They 
are  not,  hoAvever,  resting.  If  they  are  not  dead,  they  Avill 
♦  A  paper  read  by  Peter  Barr,  V.M.II.,  at  Cape  Town. 
be  found  Avorking  underground,  and  Avill  make  a  leaf  groAvth 
the  folloAving  year.  I  satv  some  L.  auratums  in  kerosene 
tins  the  other  day  in  a  very  crippled  condition.  On  exami¬ 
nation  I  found  this  arose  from  the  bulbs  being  partially  un¬ 
covered  ;  the  result  could  not  have  been  otheiwise.  Had 
the  bulbs  been  a  feAv  inches  beloAv  the  surface  a  very  dift'erent 
state  of  things  Avould  have  happened  ;  no  chance  for  the  stalk 
roots,  and  the  stem  Avas  draAving  on  the  bulb  roots,  a  very 
unfair  thing  for  the  bulb.  It  was  doing  double  duty,  and 
this  Avas  not  its  nature. 
If  a  bulb,  after  a  reasonable  time,  does  not  throAv  a  shoot, 
scrape  clown  carefully,  and  find  Avhether  dead  or  alive.  i\lr. 
Chahvin,  in  my  presence,  dug  up  some  L.  longiflorums  AA'hich 
had  made  no  top  groAvth,  notwithstanding  AA’hich  they  had 
actually  increased  in  number,  both  in  large  and  small  bulbs. 
There  did  not  appear  any  reason  for  this  freak  of  Nature, 
but  here  Avas  a  lesson  not  to  judge  hastily,  and  the  same 
happens  AA’ith  many  other  bulbs.  I  remember  a  Avhole  bed 
of  L.  testaceum  serving  me  so,  and  I  recollect  also  a  bed 
of  Angels’-tears  Dafl'odils  Avhich  I  had  collected  on  an  island 
in  the  Bay  of  Vigo,  in  Spain,  serc’ing  me  in  like  manner.  In 
both  cases  the  bulbs  AA’hen  dug  up  Avere  in  splendid  condition. 
There  must  have  been  a  reason  in  both  cases,  as  also  in  that 
of  Mr.  Chahvin’s  L.  longiflorums  ;  but  Avhy  they  should  take 
a  year  in  Mother  Earth  Avithout  calling  in  the  aid  of  the 
atmosphere,  is  one  of  those  questions  we  may  speculate  upon, 
and  not  be  much  the  Aviser  in  the  end.  All  exporters  of  Lily 
bulbs  are  fully  aAA'are  of  the  necessity  of  keeping  the  scales 
plump,  hence  their  mode  of  packing. 
There  has  been  a  good  deal  said  and  written  on  the  suVjject 
of  disease  in  Lilies.  It  comes  on  the  foliage  like  Potato  rust, 
and  in  all  such  cases  these  leaves  should  be  removed.  The^ 
Bordeaux  mixture  Avill  stop  it.  This  disease,  I  am  informed, 
is  not  unknoAvn  amongst  Avild  Lilies.  It  does  not,  however, 
appear  to  affect  the  bulb.  Disease  produced  from  manuring 
is  quite  another  thing.  I  am  told  there  is  an  insect  Avhich 
eats  out  the  centre  of  a  Lily  stem,  but  in  the  cases  submitted 
for  examination  shoAved  that  the  Lilies  had  not  been  properly 
treated. 
Nearly  all  Lilies  like  a  good,  rich  soil  to  groAv  in.  but 
not  a  freshly-manured  soil.  It  is  a  custom  Avith  some,  Avhen 
the  Lily  has  no  top  groAidh  (this  Ave  call  being  at  rest,  but  I 
am  doubtful  if  a  Lily  or  any  bulb  is  ever  actually  at  rest)  to 
mulch  with  cow  manure,  dried  and  rubbed  through  a  sieve, 
and  leave  the  rain  to  Avash  the  fertiliser  doAvn  to  the  roots. 
The  Japs  at  this  time  give  a  little  liquid  manure,  made  from 
night  soil,  once  a  month,  and  stop  as  soon  as  the  Lily  top 
appears  above  ground.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  the 
Japs  are  all  but  vegetarians.  The  nearest,  therefore,  to  theii'^ 
liquid  manure  AV’ill  be  that  made  from  the  droppings  from  the 
cowshed,  and  the  liquor  should  never  be  darker  than  stout. 
The  Lily  bulb,  as  I  have  already  said,  is  really  never  at  rest, 
hence  the  Japs  feed  the  young  roots  that  they  may  the  better 
carry  the  floAA’er  stem  and  reproduce  themselves.  The  Japs 
care  nothing  for  Lilies  beyond  the  money  they  can  make  from 
the  sale  of  the  bulbs,  or  as  an  article  of  diet. 
In  planting  Lilies  always  aim  at  having  the  Lily  bulb  at  a 
depth  where  coolness  is  secured.  Lilies  can  be  planted 
either  in  autumn  or  spring. 
Dahlia  Classification. 
Dahlias  have  been  classified  into  .'^o  many  different  sections 
that  the  divisions  are  really  too  confusing  to  be  appreciated  by 
the  amateurs.  The  folloAving  ones  (from  “  American  Garden¬ 
ing”)  will  be  mo.st  generally  found  mentioned  in  catalogues. 
[Editor’s  Note. — In  the  following  classification  of  the  Dahlia  the 
statements  of  the  author  are  modified  in  order  to  better  define 
the  various  groups.  The  inserted  Avords  and  alterations  are 
noted  by  parentheses.]  ShoAvs. — All  varieties  producing  large, 
compact,  Avell-formed  floAvers,  u.sually  of  a  solid  colour,  but  some¬ 
times  shaded  (i.e.,  all  floAvers  of  a  pale  ground  colour  edged  Avith 
pink,  rose,  purple,  crimson,  maroon,  Ac.).  Ikincies. — All 
variegated  ones  (and  .shaded  floAvers  Avhich  are  shaded  lighter  at 
the  edges  or  tips).  Cactus. — Of  recent  introduction,  and  one 
most  thought  of  to-day.  The  floAvers  are  double  (or  single),  Avith 
long,  narroAv  petals,  and  are  very  profuse  bloomers.  The  A’ariety 
Juarezi,  an  intense  scarlet,  the  first  one  of  this  type,  Avas  intro¬ 
duced  in  1872,  and  consequently  is  the  parent  of  this  exteu'-ive 
class.  Decoratives. — An  intermediate  form  of  the  above,  and 
sometimes  (but  erroneou.sly)  classed  Avith  them.  They  are  of 
strong  growth  and  have  largo  floAver  Avith  flat  and  broader  jietals. 
Pompons. — DAvarf  and  of  compact  growth.  One  of  the  most 
useful  for  bedding,  also  for  floAvering  in  pots.  Singles. — Very 
useful  for  bouquets,  and  easy  to  groAV. 
