1895.] ESSAYS." 59 



place, that I have not got now. And, then, there are lots of kinds 

 that I used to have that I don't possess now. It is an indisputable 

 fact, that the class that is now being grown is a great deal superior 

 to the class grown ten years ago. 



Question. Have we any better than the Eugene Scribe? 



Answer. Engene Scribe is one that I intended to mention ; it is 

 one of the finest ; it is just as good to-day as it ever was. 



We must all remember and not feel disappointed, that when you 

 come to an exhibition of Gladiolus, and see so many fine flowers 

 there, and you say that you can't grow them like that, that the one 

 that grows hundreds and thousands has a large crop to pick them 

 from. Those that grow but one or two dozen have only a few to 

 choose from. 



Question. Will you tell us how to grow Gladiolus? 



Answer. I have already run over my time. 



Question. Well, I think the members will allow you a little more. 

 I think they would like to know about the soil ; as to what soil is best 

 adapted to it ; how deep to plant ; the time of the season for them to 

 blossom; what time to take the bulbs up; and how they are kept 

 through the winter. Now, there are some questions to answer. 



Answer. Now, to start with the cultivation. The best land that 

 we have ever found to grow them on, is partially moist, sandy loam ; 

 it doesn't want to be wet, but it wants to be moist, and it wants to be 

 land that has been worked one or two years. I would use as a ferti- 

 lizer either stable manure, or bone-dust, or one of the fertilizers that 

 is on the market. P^ither is good, of course the bone-dust or fertilizer 

 is better for anyone that is only growing a small quantity. To plant 

 the bulbs we run a horse-hoe through the soil, digging a furrow four 

 to five inches deep. Then, if we use commercial fertilizers, we strew 

 them along into that trench and then scratch a little dirt over it, and 

 then one fellow takes a brush and stirs it up and that mixes the 

 manure through the soil. We don't use any stakes ; the Gladiolus 

 grow up and they have to stand on their own bottoms, and if they 

 don't do that they get pulled up. 



We dig the bulbs in the fall, as soon as the leaves commence to turn 

 yellow, along the last of October to the first of November ; but I think 

 we shall begin to dig about the first of October after this. This year 

 we had a snow-storm come on the last of October and that very much 

 discommoded us, yet it didn't discourage me. I thought that would 

 all go away in a day or two, but we were very sorry to see that it came 

 and stayed ; thus my advice will be to begin to dig the Gladiolus pretty 



