FORCING AND RETARDING BULBOUS PLANTS 



open, and as soon as they are in fit condition they are either cut and 

 stood in water to be " bunched " for market, or taken into the house ; 

 or the entire plant or plants are transferred to cooler quarters 

 in the conservatory or dwelling-room, or to any place they may be 

 required. 



Once plants have been forced in a high temperature they are 

 generally regarded as of no further use, and are thrown away. 

 Certainly they will not be of much value for flowering purposes for 

 at least two or three seasons. If, however, they are planted out in 

 some vacant piece of ground and left undisturbed for two or three 

 seasons, it is astonishing how many bulbs of such plants as Tulips and 

 Daffodils will recuperate, and reach the flowering stage in that time. 

 Commercially it would scarcely pay to wait for these old forced bulbs 

 to flower ; and a new stock is purchased each season. 



Retarding Bulbous Plants. — Many plants are now prevented 

 from flowering at their natural period simply by placing them in a 

 refrigerating chamber, in which the temperature is maintained a 

 degree or two lower than freezing point (32° F.). In this way the 

 protoplasm in the plant cells is kept in a state of suspended anima- 

 tion — or almost like hounds held in leash ; they are anxious to start 

 into growth but cannot, do so until the temperature reaches the 

 normal point. How long it would be possible to keep bulbous or 

 other plants alive or unimpaired in vitality there are no statistics 

 available ; but it may be stated that many Liliums (chiefly L. longi- 

 fiorum) are kept for eighteen months and two years in a cold 

 chamber, and when taken out produce an excellent crop of flowers. 

 Some large growers have their own retarding or refrigerating plant, 

 while others prefer to pay a reasonable rent for the cold storage of 

 their bulbs to some of the refrigerating companies. 



Amongst bulbous and tuberous plants that may be readily 

 " forced " or " retarded " are the following : — 



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