CHAPTER XX THE PLANTING OF FALL BULBS

The time for planting of hardy¹ perennials² and shrubbery is optional with the gardener, many things doing quite as well when planted at one season as at another, but in the planting of spring blooming bulbs less latitude³ exists; these must be gotten into the ground in fall if any measure of success is desired. The handling of this class of plants is one of the luxuries of gardening, as they come all ready to commence root growth, but in a perfect dormant⁴ condition, and may be gotten into the ground very much at one's convenience, and regardless of weather; the earlier they are planted the stronger root growth they will be able to make before the ground freezes, which makes for stronger bloom in the spring.

Crocus, scillas, narcissi, daffodils, tulips, hyacinths and the like may be planted from the time283 they can be procured⁵ from the florist⁶ (which is usually in September) until the ground freezes. They will grow and bloom to perfection in any good, well-drained garden soil, providing it is not infested⁷ by moles⁸ and ground mice but beware of these, as they seem to possess an insatiable appetite for bulbs and once they have entered a bed will seldom leave it until they have exhausted⁹ its resources.

I recall that a few years ago I planted, in an empty canna bed on the front lawn, some five hundred choice, named tulips. The following spring just three tulip plants appeared above ground—the moles having destroyed the other four hundred and ninety-seven. In the flower garden where other hundreds of bulbs had been used to border beds of hardy perennials, they fared somewhat better, the greater part coming up, but many had been destroyed and still others carried far from the place of their planting, coming up as much as three feet away in the middle of paths and in sod.

One of the most satisfactory ways of using284 tulips is to plant them as a border to beds of perennials or shrubs¹⁰, setting them in single, double or triple rows, along the edge and leaving them to ripen¹¹ and increase from year to year; in this way one gets the greatest good at the least expenditure¹² of time and space. When they are planted in beds by themselves it is customary to lift them when through blooming and to heel them in some out-of-the-way spot until the tops have died when they may be lifted and stored in paper bags until time to plant out again in the fall. This leaves the beds free for summer annuals or bedding plants. If it is not desired to lift them, then one may sow seed of some annual of light root growth such as the myostis or forget-me-not, the schizanthus, pansy, verbena, or phlox Drumondii, as these plants will not interfere¹³ with the maturing of the bulbs and the protection afforded them from the heat of summer will be of benefit.

The soil for any variety of bulbs should be rich, mellow¹⁴ and thoroughly¹⁵ well drained and it is285 better in planting any but the smallest bulbs to remove a few inches of the top soil and having leveled off the surface mark it in straight lines from side to side each way so that the lines cross each other and set a bulb at each intersection¹⁶ of the lines. For tulips the lines should be five inches apart each way and for hyacinths seven inches. Where solid beds of hyacinths or tulips are planted small bulbs, such as crocus, scilla or winter aconite, may be used for filling in the spaces between with charming effect. White crocus and blue scillas are especially dainty, or the lovely ixias may be used but in this case the beds must be very carefully protected against the cold and covering removed with discretion¹⁷ in the spring.

Narcissus, daffodils, jonquils and all that family appear to better advantage when planted in long double or triple rows and should be set a foot apart each way and about four inches deep. These bulbs increase by forming new bulbs in a circle around the old bulb and should be allowed286 abundant room to increase and once planted should not be disturbed until they have become too crowded to bloom well.

Crocuses are never so lovely as when studding the green of the lawn in early spring and this is the simplest form of planting, it only being necessary to lift a bit of sod with a trowel, slip a crocus bulb underneath¹⁸ and press the sod back above it. Plant them informally, singly, in groups. Scatter¹⁹ them freely about with the hand and bury them where they fall. There is one precaution, however, to be observed in this system of planting—the lawn-mower must be withheld²⁰ in spring until the crocuses have matured their leaves or there will be no flowers the following spring.

All spring bulbs profit by a liberal application of old, well-rotted manure²¹ but this should be either spaded deep in the beds below where the bulbs will set or used as a top dressing²² after the soil removed before planting has been replaced and not allowed to come in contact with the bulbs. Manure is not only harmful in itself but287 it is also the home of the little white wire worms so injurious to all bulbs and especially to lilies, and almost always when bulbs are found to be not doing well the trouble will prove to be either worms or poor drainage.

A part of the winter covering of all bulb beds should be lifted as soon as growth starts in the spring as a stockier, stronger growth results but the finer portion should be left and in case of such tender bulbs as ixias that removed may be kept handy to replace in case of an unusually cold snap.

Many of the miscellaneous bulbs offered by the florists²³ are desirable when grown in well established groups, but lack effect planted singly or in too small groups. One of the loveliest of summer-blooming bulbs is found in the anthericum or St. Bruno's lily. These should be set in colonies in the hardy border where they may remain undisturbed for years. Plant about three inches deep and four inches apart. Alliums, chinodoxia, and bulbs of this class need grouping to be at their best, otherwise they are288 apt to appear rather straggly. I like to see bulbs colonized²⁴ among the shrubbery and the edge of evergreens²⁵ where they appear at their best in the early days of spring and do not seriously interfere with the use of the lawn-mower later on.
Ramblers
An effective treatment of ramblers

1 hardy   

adj.勇敢的，果断的，吃苦的；耐寒的

参考例句：

• The kind of plant is a hardy annual.这种植物是耐寒的一年生植物。
• He is a hardy person.他是一个能吃苦耐劳的人。

2 perennials   

n.多年生植物( perennial的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Name six perennials and six annuals suitable for indoor flower arrangement. 列出多年生及一年生花朵各六种，它们必须是适合插花的。 来自互联网
• Herbage can be divided into three categories: annuals, biennials, and perennials. 草本植物可分成一年生、二年生和多年生。 来自互联网

3 latitude   

n.纬度，行动或言论的自由(范围)，(pl.)地区

参考例句：

• The latitude of the island is 20 degrees south.该岛的纬度是南纬20度。
• The two cities are at approximately the same latitude.这两个城市差不多位于同一纬度上。

4 dormant   

adj.暂停活动的；休眠的；潜伏的

参考例句：

• Many animals are in a dormant state during winter.在冬天许多动物都处于睡眠状态。
• This dormant volcano suddenly fired up.这座休眠火山突然爆发了。

5 procured   

v.（努力）取得， （设法）获得( procure的过去式和过去分词 )；拉皮条

参考例句：

• These cars are to be procured through open tender. 这些汽车要用公开招标的办法购买。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• A friend procured a position in the bank for my big brother. 一位朋友为我哥哥谋得了一个银行的职位。 来自《用法词典》

6 florist   

n.花商；种花者

参考例句：

• The florist bunched the flowers up.花匠把花捆成花束。
• Could you stop at that florist shop over there?劳驾在那边花店停一下好不好？

7 infested   

adj.为患的，大批滋生的（常与with搭配）v.害虫、野兽大批出没于( infest的过去式和过去分词 )；遍布于

参考例句：

• The kitchen was infested with ants. 厨房里到处是蚂蚁。
• The apartments were infested with rats and roaches. 公寓里面到处都是老鼠和蟑螂。

8 moles   

防波堤( mole的名词复数 )； 鼹鼠； 痣； 间谍

参考例句：

• Unsightly moles can be removed surgically. 不雅观的痣可以手术去除。
• Two moles of epoxy react with one mole of A-1100. 两个克分子环氧与一个克分子A－1100反应。

9 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。

10 shrubs   

灌木( shrub的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gardener spent a complete morning in trimming those two shrubs. 园丁花了整个上午的时间修剪那两处灌木林。
• These shrubs will need more light to produce flowering shoots. 这些灌木需要更多的光照才能抽出开花的新枝。

11 ripen   

vt.使成熟；vi.成熟

参考例句：

• I'm waiting for the apples to ripen.我正在等待苹果成熟。
• You can ripen the tomatoes on a sunny windowsill.把西红柿放在有阳光的窗台上可以让它们成熟。

12 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

13 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

14 mellow   

adj.柔和的；熟透的；v.变柔和；(使)成熟

参考例句：

• These apples are mellow at this time of year.每年这时节，苹果就熟透了。
• The colours become mellow as the sun went down.当太阳落山时，色彩变得柔和了。

15 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

16 intersection   

n.交集，十字路口，交叉点；[计算机] 交集

参考例句：

• There is a stop sign at an intersection.在交叉路口处有停车标志。
• Bridges are used to avoid the intersection of a railway and a highway.桥用来避免铁路和公路直接交叉。

17 discretion   

n.谨慎；随意处理

参考例句：

• You must show discretion in choosing your friend.你择友时必须慎重。
• Please use your best discretion to handle the matter.请慎重处理此事。

18 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

19 scatter   

vt.撒，驱散，散开；散布/播；vi.分散，消散

参考例句：

• You pile everything up and scatter things around.你把东西乱堆乱放。
• Small villages scatter at the foot of the mountain.村庄零零落落地散布在山脚下。

20 withheld   

withhold过去式及过去分词

参考例句：

• I withheld payment until they had fulfilled the contract. 他们履行合同后，我才付款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There was no school play because the principal withheld his consent. 由于校长没同意，学校里没有举行比赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 manure   

n.粪，肥，肥粒；vt.施肥

参考例句：

• The farmers were distributing manure over the field.农民们正在田间施肥。
• The farmers used manure to keep up the fertility of their land.农夫们用粪保持其土质的肥沃。

22 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

23 florists   

n.花商，花农，花卉研究者( florist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The little dressmaker bought an envelope of nasturtium seeds at the florists. 那个个子矮小的女裁缝在花铺里买了一包金莲花种子。 来自辞典例句
• I have more important things to do than petulant florists. 我有比教训坏脾气的花匠更重要的事情要做。 来自互联网

24 colonized   

开拓殖民地，移民于殖民地( colonize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The area was colonized by the Vikings. 这一地区曾沦为维京人的殖民地。
• The British and French colonized the Americas. 英国人和法国人共同在美洲建立殖民地。

25 evergreens   

n.常青树，常绿植物，万年青( evergreen的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The leaves of evergreens are often shaped like needles. 常绿植物的叶常是针形的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The pine, cedar and spruce are evergreens. 松树、雪松、云杉都是常绿的树。 来自辞典例句