402 THE PRINCIPLES OF FLORICULTURE 



quantities, special houses and beds are constructed for them. 

 In a smaller range an ordinary propagating bed with bottom 

 heat may be used. They take no nourishment from the 

 soil, so sand is the best medium in which to force them. 

 The bundles of pips are thawed slowly, the pips separated, 

 and set as evenly as possible in the beds. The sand in 

 the bench should be about six inches deep, and the pips 

 are placed in rows about two inches apart. The pips are 

 placed about three-quarters of an inch apart in the row. 

 A bottom heat of 85 may be given at once, but it is better 

 to start them at 50 and gradually increase the tem- 

 perature. This gives the flowers better substance than 

 when forced rapidly. A light frame should be built over the 

 sand in which the pips -are placed, and this should be 

 covered with heavy paper or cheesecloth to give sufficient 

 shade to draw up the stems. 



In early forcing, the leaves are seldom satisfactory. 

 Usually, the flowers mature before the leaves, but the pips 

 may remain in the soil after the flowers are pulled, and the 

 leaves used later for bunching. They should be given an 

 abundance of water during the forcing process, and until the 

 individual flowers begin to show. When the flower buds 

 become well developed, most of the covering should be re- 

 moved. The flowers should be picked and put in water 

 in a cool place twenty-four hours before they are to be used. 

 This gives them substance and prevents their wilting. 



If only a few pips are to be forced, they may be planted 

 in boxes eight inches deep, in the same way as in the propa- 

 gating beds. They should be kept in a cold frame and 

 frozen solid, then allowed to thaw gradually. When 

 thawed, they should be placed over the heating pipes in 

 the benches, and brought into bloom in the same way as 

 are those in the propagating bed. 



