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ARRANGEMENT IN BORDERS

It is more difficult to arrange bulbs in borders in pleasing ways, and in such a manner as to harmonise or contrast in colouring with other flowers in bloom at the same time. One desirable way is not to keep all the early flowering bulbs near the front of the border, as one would naturally do, because of their dwarf habit, but to plant them so as to give balance in the border at the different seasons. Bulbous plants, like most others, look better in groups than scattered singly in lines, and it is wiser, as a rule, to plant a clump of one kind than a mixed mass. One exception, at least, is in the Montbretias, which, when mixed, look even prettier than in separate groups of one shade. Colour arrangement is always a troublesome question in planting these flowers, and there is more satisfaction, if harmony instead of sharp contrast is aimed at, by arranging, say, different shades of yellow together, than in working to secure strong contrasting effects. Such a contrast as the white Galtonia candicans and Gladiolus brenchleyensis is striking at the time, but it is not one on which the eye would love to dwell from day to day and from hour to hour.

BULBS FOR CUTTING

These plants afford an almost endless choice for cutting purposes, although some cannot be cut of great length of stem without destroying the strength of the bulb for another year. The flowers are generally best when cut before quite open, and such flowers will usually open perfectly in water, and will last much longer than if pulled when fully expanded. Where many flowers are used, it is better to grow a stock in the reserve garden or in an out-of-the-way border, to avoid destroying the beauty of the more conspicuous parts of the garden.

PROPAGATING BULBS

The greater number of bulbs are propagated by offsets, produced from the old bulbs, and which are best removed when the foliage has died down. Named Hyacinths are increased by cutting across the base of the bulbs, or scooping out the interior, afterwards allowing the wounds to callous partially. Young bulbs are produced at the wounded parts. Raising bulbs from seeds, although slow, is very interesting work, and ought to be more largely followed for the purpose of obtaining new varieties. Seeds are sown in the ordinary way in pans, and the young bulbs grown on until they attain flowering size, generally from two to five years, according to the genus and the treatment they receive. Liliums are also propagated by scales of the bulbs, inserted in pots or pans, with a portion of the base attached. These will eventually form little bulbs, to be grown on as in the case of seedlings. Tuberous-rooted plants, like the Anemone, are propagated by division of the tubers.

DISEASES OF BULBS

These plants are subject to a variety of diseases, such as always appear among plants grown in large numbers together. The leading genera, such as the Lilium, the Iris, the Gladiolus, or the Hyacinth, are all affected, and although many remedies have been tried it is difficult to find a cure. I find Veltha gives good results, but where the disease cannot be exterminated by such means it is better to destroy all affected plants, and to give the others fresh soil. A surface dressing of new soil with a little kainit added is beneficial.

HARDY BULBS

Aconitums--Alliums--Alstroemerias--Anemones

ACONITUMS

Although the effective Aconitums or Monkshoods of our gardens are usually classed with ordinary herbaceous plants, the best of those with tuberous roots can hardly be omitted from this work. They are of much service in the mixed border or the wild garden, and it is only the poisonous properties of these plants which make one view them with suspicion. They should not be planted where any danger can result to children or to animals. Their nomenclature is very confused but the names below are authoritative. The following are some of the best:--Cammarum, four feet, purple; flaccidum, six feet, violet; heterophyllum, two feet, yellow and blue; japonicum, six feet, flesh; Lycoctonum, a pretty yellow species, four to six feet high; Napellus, very poisonous, in several varieties, four to six feet; paniculatum, three feet; and variegatum, three to six feet, blue, white, or blue and white. All of these grow in any soil and can be planted in spring or autumn.

ALLIUMS

A. acuminatum is a pretty dwarf species with deep rose flowers, and other pretty dwarf forms or species of similar or deeper colour are Bidwilliae, Breweri, falcifolium, Fetisowii, macnabianum, narcissiflorum, ostrowskianum, and pedemontanum. A few blue species exist and are generally very pretty, though sometimes tender; of these, caeruleum, cyaneum, kansuense, and violaceum may be mentioned. A great many have white flowers and it is among these that we find the most valued of the species. The greatest favourite is neapolitanum, so much used for forcing, and which is grown in pots under the same treatment as other bulbous plants. Other pretty white species are triquetrum, subvillosum, Erdelii, and falciforme. None of the yellow species are equal to the old A. Moly, a bright June flower, but others of worth in their own way are flavum, and the straw-coloured stramineum. Good tall species, some having ornamental foliage, are karataviense, giganteum, sphaerocephalum, nigrum, Suworowi, and nobile. The great drawback of the Alliums is their odour, which is, however, not always perceptible except when the flowers are cut.

ALSTROEMERIAS

There are few finer or more useful garden flowers than the Alstroemerias, whose brilliant colours and uncommon forms are great attractions. As cut flowers they are highly prized. They like a free root run, and a rather light, rich soil. The tubers should be planted in spring, nearly a foot deep, but they are easily raised from seeds sown in gentle heat in spring. Several of the species are too tender for outdoor cultivation everywhere, the hardiest being A. aurantiaca, which has yellow flowers of varying shades. Chilensis and peruviana, or versicolor, and psittacina of gardens , are all fairly hardy, psittacina possessing a singular combination of crimson and green colouring. A. pelegrina and its variety alba are exceedingly beautiful, but require frame treatment except in the south. Diazii, Ligtu, and haemantha are very beautiful and more or less hardy according to the climate and soil. Some lime rubbish is often useful mixed with the soil, together with a little peat or leaf-mould.

ANEMONES

The tuberous-rooted Anemones, which alone come under the scope of this work, form a section which embraces flowers of surpassing beauty. Generally dwarf in stature, these Windflowers give us much variety of colouring, from the pure white of A. nemorosa to the deep scarlet of A. fulgens, with the blues, purples, and other tints of A. coronaria, and the bright yellow of A. ranunculoides. Usually of easy cultivation, they are among the choicest ornaments of our gardens.

A. apennina, the Apennine Windflower, is a delightful little plant, growing about six inches high and having pretty blue flowers. There are white and rose-coloured varieties. It likes a peaty soil, and prefers shade. It is a charming plant to naturalise in the woods, where it flowers in March and April.

A. baldensis, the Mount Baldo Windflower, is of erect but dwarf habit, and grows about six inches high. It has little white flowers tinged with blue or red, and does well on a rockery in half-shade in sand and peat.

A. blanda, the Fair, or Greek Windflower, is one of the earliest of our flowers in sunny gardens, and frequently opens soon after New Year's Day. It needs a well-drained, warm position, but flowers better on a stiffish soil.

There are several forms of this very beautiful Windflower. That called cypriana has flowers which vary from white to lilac and pale blue, and the variety taurica has blooms which embrace an even deeper blue among its shades. The variety scythinica is one of the choicest. The exterior of the flower is blue, while the inside is pure white. The seeds of A. blanda should be sown as soon as ripe.

A. caroliniana, a North American Anemone, now referred to heterophylla, grows about nine inches high, and has finely cut leaves and white or purplish flowers in May. It likes a shady place and peaty soil.

A. coronaria is the well-known Poppy or Crown Anemone, which is so wonderfully varied in its form and colouring. We have no more effective flower than this in beds or lines in May. For cutting, its blooms are most useful. This Anemone is best propagated from seed annually. It likes a rich, light soil, and cow manure is the best to apply to it. The "St Brigid" strain is a charming one, and the flowers it produces are of great beauty. Tubers of A. coronaria of excellent quality can be purchased at a very low price, and should be planted in a sunny position about three inches deep in October or November. Seeds should be sown in March or April, and should be mixed with dry soil or sand to separate them. The double Crown Anemones are very beautiful, although not so much grown as when they were favourite florists' flowers. They are of almost every colour but yellow. A good white is named "The Bride."

A. fischeriana, a Siberian plant, grows about six inches high, and has white flowers. A. intermedia is a new Anemone with yellowish flowers, and seems allied to nemorosa.

A. nemorosa, our native Windflower, gives us several lovely forms. The double form, A. n. flore-pleno, is very beautiful, and there are a few large-flowered forms, besides the pretty bracteata, which has ruff-like green bracts round the flower. The variety rosea and its double form have rosy flowers, and caerulea has pretty blue blooms, but is surpassed by the charming robinsoniana of a brighter blue. Alleni is even larger and better coloured than the last-named. All these like shade and peaty soil.

A. palmata is a lovely little plant, which grows from six to nine inches high, and has yellow flowers. There is a white variety, and a very rare double one. It likes a moist, peaty soil.

A. ranunculoides is a pretty little native species of the nemorosa type, but with smaller yellow flowers. The variety pallida, with pale yellow blooms, is very pretty.

A. stellata, or hortensis, is a pretty southern Anemone which is not so good in cold districts as A. coronaria, although pretty and varied in its colouring. It likes a warm soil and sunny position. There are pretty "Chrysanthemum-flowered" double varieties, and a double red, different from fulgens fl. pl., which blooms pretty well, even where the other forms do not succeed. All of these may be grown from seed or by division of the tuber before planting.

A. fulgens is a popular Anemone, because of the beauty of its brilliant scarlet flowers. It is, however, difficult to induce to flower after the first year, and it ought to have a warm place, where the tubers will get well ripened after they flower. There is a double form, and a recent re-introduction, bicolor, has its blooms scarlet and white in stripes. Aldboroensis and graeca are good forms.

HARDY BULBS

Amaryllises--Anthericums--Antholyzas--Apios--Arisaemas--Arums-- Asphodelines--Asphodeluses--Belamcanda--Bloomerias--Brodiaeas-- Bulbocodiums

AMARYLLISES

The only really hardy Amaryllis is A. Belladonna, the Belladonna Lily, which is a very effective plant with silvery rose flowers in late summer or early autumn. The leaves appear in spring, and as the flowers come after these have withered, the Belladonna Lily should have some carpeting plant above the bulbs. It is quite hardy if planted in a warm, sunny position, near a wall, and the tops of the bulbs at least six inches below the surface. It is safer to put some dry leaves or other light material over the bulbs in severe winters, removing this when the leaves come through. It also makes a good pot plant. The form major is even finer.

ANTHERICUMS

Some of the hardy plants cultivated in gardens as Anthericums are now included by botanists in other genera, but they will be more conveniently dealt with together under their popular names in gardens. Several of these are very ornamental plants, with handsome spikes of beautiful flowers. They grow well in common soil, not too dry, and are best planted in autumn or spring, at which times they may be divided when desired. Liliago, St Bernard's Lily, grows about one and a half foot high, and has pretty white flowers from May. There is a larger form, called major. A. Liliastrum, St Bruno's Lily, now Paradisea Liliastrum, and also named Czackia Liliastrum, is a still prettier plant, with larger fragrant flowers in the beginning of summer. It is taller than the foregoing. There is a fine variety called major. Ramosum , is pretty also, though the flowers are smaller than those of A. Liliago. It flowers in June, and has white blooms on stems about two feet high, and narrow leaves. Hookeri, whose proper name is Bulbinella Hookeri, is a good plant for a moist border, and has nice yellow flowers in summer.

ANTHOLYZAS

Antholyzas are effective plants allied to the Gladiolus and Crocosma, and look very striking in the border. Several are hardy in the greater portion of the United Kingdom if planted about three inches deep and covered the first winter with about two inches of cocoa-nut fibre. One of the best is Antholyza paniculata, which has scarlet and yellow flowers and blooms in autumn. It has handsome leaves, and grows about three feet high, AEthiopica, Cunonia, and spicata are all effective, but paniculata seems the hardiest of all. There is a variety known as major. They can also be grown in pots for the conservatory.

APIOS

The only plant of the genus in cultivation is A. tuberosa, the Ground Nut, a hardy North American plant of climbing habit, with sweet-scented purple flowers in August. It is hardy in a sunny, sheltered position, and should be planted three inches deep in rich soil in late autumn or spring.

ARISAEMAS

These singular, Arum-like plants grow in rather sandy soil, and prefer partial shade. The hardy species are ringens , which has green, white, and purple flowers in spring; and triphylla, which has green and brown spathes in June and July. They are increased by seeds or division, and are best planted either early in autumn or in spring.

ARUMS

The favourite flower which bears the name of Lily of the Nile, or Arum Lily, is not an Arum, and will be found spoken of as Richardia africana, but there are a few true Arums which may be grown for their singularity, if not for the beauties they reveal to those who examine them carefully. The hardy species like a rich, rather sandy soil, with plenty of moisture in it. They should not be planted out the first season until spring, but may afterwards be left in the open ground. Dracontium, the "Green Dragon"; Dracunculus, the "Common Dragon"; italicum; maculatum, our native "Lords and Ladies"; orientale; palaestinum, or sanctum ; proboscideum, whose true name is Arisarum proboscideum; and tenuifolium are all hardy.

ASPHODELINES

These fine hardy plants are closely allied to the Asphodeluses, and may be grown in deep sandy soil with plenty of water during the growing season. The leading species are:--brevicaulis, yellow and green, about one foot high; damascena, two feet high, yellow; liburnica, wo feet high, yellow; and lutea , about four feet high, yellow; its double form is desirable. Taurica has white flowers on stems about two feet high; and tenuior, now cretica , has yellow blooms on a stem about a foot high. The most imposing of all is imperialis, eight feet, with reddish white flowers.

ASPHODELUSES

Asphodels are useful and ornamental in borders and in wild gardens. When well-grown, plants of A. ramosus, the King's Spear, are truly handsome. They like a rich, sandy loam with some manure added, and should always have plenty of water when growing. The principal species are the following:--acaulis, pink, flowering in May, an Algerian species and a little tender; fistulosus, white, in summer, and one a half foot high; and ramosus, five feet high, in summer, with white blooms striped with brown. Albus is a form of the last.

BELAMCANDA PUNCTATA

This distinct, Iris-like plant is usually known as Pardanthus sinensis, and is too seldom met with in gardens. It is a little tender, but may be cultivated in a sheltered position in light soil. It grows about two feet high, and has orange flowers spotted with brown, and Iris-like leaves. I prefer to plant it in spring.

BLOOMERIAS

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