90 GREENHOUSE MANAGEMENT. 



low boxes (Fig. 20), that are of a convenient size for 

 handling, at a distance apart equal to about twice their 

 diameter, and so that they will just show above the sur- 

 face. If desired for decoration, rather than for cutting, 

 they can be placed in pots or deep pans, of from four to 

 six inches diameter, with smaller intervals between 

 them. As soon as potted, the soil should be moistened, 

 and they should then be placed where they can be kept 

 cool, in order to give the roots an opportunity to 

 develop. If one has a cold pit they can be placed in 

 that, but any well-drained spot out of doors, where they 

 will be somewhat sheltered from the sun, will answer. 

 The boxes and pots should be so placed that they can be 

 readily covered with from three to four inches of coal 

 ashes or sand. This will hold the moisture and keep 

 them from drying out, but an inch or so of hay over the 

 ashes will aid both in holding the moisture and in keep- 

 ing them cool. If one does not have a cold pit, an 

 empty cold frame can be used to store the bulbs in, and 

 if this is not available, the boxes and pots should be so 

 arranged that a frame can be placed about them as win- 

 ter comes on. By covering them with sash, mats and 

 shutters, the frost can be kept cut. Hay or straw could 

 be used for the same purpose, and is desirable for the 

 early sorts, as it hastens their development, but they fre- 

 quently attract mice and the bulbs may, as a conse- 

 quence, be destroyed, so that it is not safe to use them 

 for the late bulbs. As soon as the roots have filled the 

 pots, the plants may be taken out. It is best to start 

 only a part of them at a time, and these should be placed 

 in a cool greenhouse near the glass, at first, and then 

 removed to one where the temperature is at least sixty 

 degrees. 



The Eoman hyacinths should be kept in a frame for 

 fully two months, but as a rule six weeks will suffice for 

 narcissus. If either, however, is placed in the forcing 



