The directions for the planting and management of breeders are applicable to striped tulips in general. A practice not uncommon with gardeners must here be con demned ; it is the planting of tulip bulbs with a dibble. This ought never to be done. The pressure of the dibble renders the earth compact where it ought to be loose, and in many cases a partial hollow must remain below the bulb, which is particularly injurious when wet weather follows, and moisture lodges about the root. It is better when drills are formed six or seven inches deep, and the bulbs cover ed in with the loose earth. A still more proper way is, to prepare the bed some inches lower than it is intended ulti mately to be ; to put the bulbs in their places on the sur face ; and then to add the necessary quantity of soil. The bed is improved by being made to slope a little from the centre to each side ; the stronger bulbs should be situated in the middle, as they thus receive the thickest covering of soil which they ought to have. In all the modes of plant ing, it is a good rule to put a little dry and fine sand around each bulb.
495. The bed of choice tulips is, by the true florist, at first protected by hoops and mats, from hail showers and storms, and afterwards, when the season of flowering ar rives, covered by an awning of thin canvass. In this way only can the delicate colours be fairly brought out ; even half an hour's full exposure to the sun's rays has been known to alter them ; besides, the enjoyment of the fine sight is, prolonged for near a month. Though the scent of the tulip is so slight as scarcely to be perceptible in single specimens, the united odour of so many, confined in some measure by the cover, becomes quite evident. Watering is scarcely ever necessary for tulips. The seed-pods of all fine tulips are cut off as soon as they appear ; for these, as already said, are by no means the best from which to pro cure seed, and the bulbs exhaust themselves in forming them. The bulbs are lifted in the course of the month of June, the proper time being ascertained by observing when the foliage has decayed, and two or three inches at the top of the stem begin to acquire a purple tinge. If they be left longer in the earth, the flowers are apt to become foul the next season. The bulbs arc cleaned, and laid in a dry place till October. The offsets, chives, or babies, are ta ken off and marked, in September; these are planted in a separate bed, not so deep as the parent bulbs, and about a month earlier. It may be remarked, that all young bulbs or offsets that are of a round shape, though small, may be considered as likely to produce flowers. The general time of planting old bulbs is the end of October or beginning of November. At this time the outer brown skin is care fully stripped from the bulb, which is committed to the ground in a bare and clean state. By the end of February
most of the tulips appear above ground : the surface is at this season gently stirred with the fingers, aided perhaps by a little bit of stick; this stirring tending greatly to pro mote their health and growth.
The finest and most extensive collections of tulips in this country, at present, are probably those of Davy, nursery man, King's Road, and of Milliken, florist at Walworth, both near London. Some private collectors, however, principally near the metropolis, have small beds of very fine and select kinds.
Ranunculus.
496. This well known flower (Ranunculus Asiaticus) is a native of the Levant and of the Greek Islands. It was cultivated by Gcrarde in the end of the 16th century. Very many new varieties of singular beauty have been raised from semi-double flowers, both in this country and in Hol land : some of these possess also a considerable fragrance. A judicious and industrious cultivator of this plant near Edinburgh (Mr John Fletcher, superintendant of experi ments to the Caledonian Horticultural Society) has ex celled many of his cotemporarics in the number of his dis tinct and well marked varieties, and the beauty of his flow ers, many of which have been raised from seed by himself during the last thirty years. He plants each variety in a row, or sometimes in two rows, by itself, in narrow beds, di vided by small paths; each distinct variety has a numbered tally, and the number of choice sorts exceeds 180 ; the pro per contrast of colours is studied, and the whole, when in fall flower, produces a very brilliant effect. By some flor ists the varieties arc split down till they extend to many hundreds, so that it has been found difficult to invent names for them. Mr Maddock divides the colours into twelve families : Dark and dark purple ; light purple and grey ; crimson ; reds; rosy ; orange ; yellow and yellow spotted ; white and white spotted ; olive ; purple and cof fee-coloured striped ; red and yellow striped ; and red arid white striped. The Turquoy, or turban-shaped ranunculus, is a very distinct sub-variety.
497. The qualities of a fine double ranunculus, as de scribed by him, consist in the flower being of a hemisphe rical form, at least two inches in diameter, the numerous petals gradually diminishing in size to the centre ; the pe tals broad, with entire, well rounded edges ; their -colours dark, clear, rich, or brilliant, either of one colour, or va riously diversified on an ash, white, sulphur, or fire-colour ed ground, or else regularly striped, spotted, or mottled. The stem should be strong and straight, and from eight inches to a foot in height.