MODERN RANUNCULI

Evening Star, Issue 22032, 18 May 1935, Page 3

MODERN RANUNCULI

BRIGHTLY-COLOURED TYPES The many present-day, varieties of tuberous ranunculi have been evolved from the various wild forms,of R. asiaticuaC Many years of hybridisation and painstaking selection have resulted, however, in the elimination of all but the merest traces of resemblance to the natural- forms. Good examples of the best modern strains are as fully double and regular in outline as pompom dahlias. The colour range has also been greatly improved. Clear, glowing seifs and variegated blooms of almost every imaginable shade, with the exception of blue, are the rule with most varieties (says the Auckland ‘ Herald ’). The improved Palestine strain from Italy is one of the latest developments, and has originated from a large-dowered single scarlet type collected in Palestine. Some fifteen years of intensive selection has served to develop a strain of huge double blooms of a wider and brighter range of colours. The reds and yellows are especially vivid, and in addition the yellow and pale green markings in the centres of the flowers are unique. In every way this strain represents a great advance on existing varieties, including even the Florentine hybrids, which created such a sensation a few years ago. Ranunculi have a decided preference for a fairly rich soil and an open, sunny position; but they must be assured of a sharp, free drainage. A good plan, which is followed by many growers, is to scatter a handful of clean, sharp sand under and around the conns when planting. By this means local drainage is assured, and, at the same time, the conns are protected to a certain extent from soil pests. The peculiar claw-shaped roots must be planted claws downward; a covering of two inches of soil will be ample. In Very severe weather a little protection in the way of bracken arranged over the beds will be appreciated in districts likely to experience hard winters, but in normal times it is not essential. After the leaves appear the surface soil must be kept regularly hoed, to prevent it from caking.” Should the spring prove to be dry, do not overlook giving the beds a good soaking of clear water. Well-decayed cow manure that has been stacked up during the winter until it is crumbly is an excellent material for mulching the bejls in spring. The plants will appreciate the moist, cool root run thus provided, and will respond with a greater display of flowers.