Home › Outdoor Bulb Culture › Outdoor Bulb Culture: Narcissus
Outdoor Bulb Culture: Narcissus
Narcissus or Daffodil. The Narcissus is one of the oldest plants in cultivation, and with the exception of the Polyanthus strain, it is perfectly hardy; the oldfashioned kinds will remain in good condition for years provided they are lifted and divided every few years, when the bloom becomes scarce and the growth overcrowded. Divide when the foliage ripens and reset after freshening up the soil with a little bone meal. Some of the new and more highly developed varieties require renewal every few years. Any position suits narcissi, beneath deciduous trees, flowering shrubs, in wooded paths, along the banks of streams or in meadows and orchards where they may be naturalized in large, unconvential colonies transforming uninteresting patches into sheets of white and gold during the month of April. They are also suitable for use in formal gardening [153] and may often be associated to advantage in the flower garden or border.
In A rich garden loam, that has been manured for previous crops, suits them best. No particles of manure must come into contact with their roots or bulbs and for this reason it is better to incorporate into the soil bone meal and wood ashes rather than manure. the autumn a mulch of manure, applied for winter protection is advised, as the elements of fertility contained in it will be washed into the soil by means of rains and melting snow and in that way add the fertility to the soil. Plant the bulbs from 4 to 8 inches deep, and from 3 to 6 inches apart. The size of the bulb varies with the variety, the larger it is the deeper it must be planted. Plant in the late summer or early fall; the Poeticus kinds should be planted as early as possible. Varieties. Giant Trumpet strain. Emperor, pure yellow-Golden Spur, rich yellow. Empress, resembles the Emperor except that the perianth is sulphur white. Madame de Graaf, rich ivory or sulphur white. Double Varieties. Incomparable Double.
Silver Phoenix, von Sion.
Jonquils. Campernele and single sweet-scented.
Odorus Plenus (double campernele Jonquil). Oldfashioned type, the Poet's Narcissus. Poeticus or Pheasant Eye, blooms in May. King Edward VII, very [154] early. Poeticus Ornatus, blooms about 3 weeks earlier than the Pheasant's Eye.
Narcissus Poetaz. Triumph, Poetaz, Admiration, Mignon.
Scillas. Squill, Wood Hyacinth are of the simplest culture and require no special care, thriving in any garden loam and when once established they may remain undisturbed for years and be expected to do well provided they receive an occasional top dressing of manure, applied in the fall. Plant the bulbs in September or October, 2 inches deep and 3 inches apart. Scilla Siberica bears blue flowers which come in early spring, and is especially well adapted for naturalizing purposes, it combines well with snowdrops and crocus.
Scilla Hispanica, better known as Campanulata, is the most effective type of Scilla. Its blooming season is May and the dainty bell-shaped flowers are borne along slender flower stalks 12 to 18 inches high. It is an exceedingly graceful plant and is best introduced into the flower garden where it combines well with early flowering perennials and Darwin tulips of soft hues, as for example, May blooming varieties of Iris and Mrs. Perry's poppy. Use for edging beds or for clump effects in borders. Varieties come in lilac, rose and white. The pale lilac is the best. [155] TULIPS Tulips are unquestionably the finest of all the springflowering bulbous plants. Most of the tulip bulbs come from Holland where many square miles are reserved for their culture. The varieties are innumerable and include several periods of bloom extending from April 15th in an early season, through May. In formal bedding designs it is better to restrict one's choice to two varieties as the different kinds vary in height and color; but in the flower garden a great variety of tulips carefully selected as to harmonious color combinations is very desirable.
Good drainage is especially necessary for tulips and even in light, well-drained soil it is well to plant the bulbs in pockets of sand, as recommended above. On heavier soils, sand or coal ashes incorporated into them will tend to improve their texture. Although tulips will grow almost anywhere provided stagnant water does not surround them, they repay the extra trouble of thoroughly trenching the soil to the depth of the spade working into it a top dressing of rotted cow manure or leaf mold. Bone meal may be substituted for manure in soils already rich in humus.