Amateur Gardencraft, page 99 by Eben E. Rexford
<< Return to Title Details & Download100
ut each bulb at planting-time.
If barnyard manure is used,--and there is nothing better in the way of fertilizer for any bulb,--be sure that it is old and well rotted. On no account should fresh manure be allowed to come in contact with a Lily. If barnyard manure is not to be had, use bonemeal. Mix it well with the soil before putting the bulbs into it.
Bulbs of ordinary size should be planted about eight inches below the surface. If in groups, about a foot apart.
The best place for Lilies, so far as show goes, is among shrubbery, or in the border.
Below I give a list of the best varieties for general cultivation, with a brief description of each:
Auratum (the Gold-Banded Lily).--Probably the most popular member of the family, though by no means the most beautiful. Flowers white, dotted with crimson, with a gold band running through each petal.
Speciosum album.--A beautiful pure-white variety. Deliciously fragrant.
Speciosum rubrum (the Crimson-Banded Lily).--Flowers white with a red band down each petal.
Brownsii.--A splendid variety. Flowers very large, and trumpet-shaped. Chocolate-purple outside, pure white within, with dark brown stamens that contrast finely with the whiteness of the inner part of the petals.
Tigrinum (Tiger Lily).--One of the hardiest of all Lilies. Flowers orange-red, spotted with brownish-black. This will succeed where none of the others will. Should be given a place in all gardens.
Superbum.--The finest of all our native Lilies. Orange flowers, spotted with purple. Often grows to a height of eight feet, therefore is well adapted to prominent positions in the border.
[Illustration: AURATUM LILY]
While the Lily of the Valley is, strictly speaking, not a Lily, it deserves mention here. It is one of the most beautiful flowers we grow, of the purest white, and with the most delightful fragrance, and foliage that admirably sets off the exquisite lov