CHAPTER VII 

 BULBS 



IN the minds of the vast majority of English people 

 bulbs are associated exclusively with Holland, for 

 when the word ' bulbs ' is heard or read one almost 

 naturally expects that it should be preceded by 

 ' Dutch.' 



True it is that bulb-culture has attained in Holland 

 to very substantial proportions indeed ; and it may be 

 of interest to my readers if I quote the following details 

 respecting the Dutch industry from a statement drawn 

 up by Dr. J. J. L. van Rijn (Agricultural Commis- 

 sioner in this country for the Province of Friesland) 

 on the occasion of a visit to Holland, in 1905, of repre- 

 sentatives of the English agricultural press, organized 

 by him. These details are the more noteworthy from 

 the point of view of what I shall have to say later on 

 concerning agricultural organization because of the 

 evidence they afford of how well the Dutch growers 

 work together for the promotion of their common 

 interests. 



At the end of the sixteenth century the culture of hyacinths and 

 tulips was transferred from the Orient to West Europe, and soon 

 afterwards these bulbous plants were cultivated in Holland on a 

 large scale. . . . The number of cultivators gradually increased, 

 and the cultivation regularly extended itself in the whole district 

 between Haarlem and Leyden. 



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