SPRING FLOWERING BULBS

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 880, 25 January 1930, Page 30

SPRING FLOWERING BULBS

How quickly the seasons come around! W r hy, it seems only the other day we were planting last season's bulbs, and here we are again about to make another planting. Of course mauy gardeners have already a good collection of bulbs in their garden and may only wish to add a few additional choice items, but it is surprising how many gardens have but few bulbs in them, and bulbs are so useful, too, particularly those flowering in the late winter and early spring when cut flowers are so scarce. If you already haven’t a good selection, "make up your mind right away not to let the season pass without planting. Bulbs are very easy to manage, their principal requirements being not too stiff a soil and perfect drainage. Sandy soil grows them very well, but has little body, and this has to be added as siftings from the rubbish heap. Generally we are so restricted for room that we have to plant the bulbs in the border, where they will grow intermixed with the other flowers. One of the principal drawbacks to planting them thus is the untidy appearance after flowering of such sorts as daffodils, hyacinths, etc., and as these are generally grown for picking they should be accommodated in a bed at the back of the house, -where their unsightly appearance in the off season will not spoil the garden appearance. Freesias, spraxias, ixias and other similar bulbs with short, upright growth are excellent in the mixed border and can be allowed to remain when once planted for years. Anemones. —These truly magnificent flowering tubers are deserving of a place in every garden, their variety of colour, from deep crimson to -white and striped, rendering them very attractive. Plant the bulbs from 6 to 9in apart, and cover with 1 to 2in of soil. They do best in good, rich ground, in a well-drained position. They can also be grown in pots, a little fibre being indispensable for successful cultivation in this way. Gladioli. —No garden is complete without this magnificent, section of the bulb family. They are admirably adapted for growing in masses, and produce a gorgeous effect when in bloom. By judiciously planting bulbs at intervals from August to February, flowers can be obtained for six months of the year. Plant in wellworked, rich soil, and during the summer months mulch with wellrotted manure. Plant 6 to 9in apart, and cover bulbs to a depth of 2 to 3in. Ranunculus Asiaticus. —These produce very beautiful fiow-ers varying from bright canary yellow to deep crimson. The flowers are single, semi-double and double, and produce a very pretty effect. Daffodils. —The giant variety, King

Alfred, is the best of all, but, of course, there are many other good varieties. They will thrive in any ordinary garden soil, but prefer a good, deep, rather moist loam, and well-decayed cow manure or bone meal, well incorporated with the soil well below the bulbs will be beneficial. Plant about 2 to 3in deep, ac-

cording to the size of the bulbs, and about 6 in. apart. The bulbs should be lifted every two or three years when the foliage dies down. Other good bulbous plants that cannot be overlooked are as foilow: Sparaxis, tritonia, tuberose, watsonia, scilla, tulips, muscaria, jonquils and freesia.