PRODUCTION OF TULIP BULBS. 7 



plied by the figure at the head of the column. The total number of 

 bulbs of any one variety planted is the sum of the product of the 

 number of rows of each size multiplied by the number of bulbs 

 planted to the row in each size. 



SIZES AND QUALITY OF BULBS USED FOR PLANTING. 



The quality of one's planting stock can not be designated in centi- 

 meters any more than by any other known standard of measure. 

 There are so many factors entering into consideration as to make 

 the grower's planting stock the most variable element in the pro- 

 duction of tulip bulbs. There is one idea which the producer should 

 always have in mind, i. e., he should strive to set for the next season's 

 turn-off as large a percentage of sizes which will mature in one 

 year as is compatible with the production of sufficient planting stock 

 of the same character for the succeeding year. In other words, 

 it is the smallest planting bulbs which will grow to maturity in 

 one year, which are set and dug but once, that will yield the 

 greatest net cash returns, and it should be the grower's aim to use 

 in his planting as large a percentage of such bulbs as possible. 



When any stock is scarce or hard to get and it is desirable to increase 

 the planting, the grower may find it to his advantage to plant every 

 bulblet he has, in which case his planting bulbs may vary from 3 to 

 14 centimeters or more in size. In the general run of the business, 

 however, bulbs below 5 centimeters in size should be discarded, 

 because the length of time it takes to bring them to maturity cuts 

 down the profits too much. Practically all bulbs of 5 to 7 centimeters, 

 under good cultm-al conditions, should reach merchantable size 

 the second year, and those 8 centimeters and over should reach 

 maturity in one year. 



Often the commercial grower reserves his toppers ^ and plants 

 them. It is from these that he gets his greatest proportion of increase. 

 But there is as much psychology in this practice as there is in selection. 

 The grower can not afford to turn off the small percentage of over- 

 sized bulbs to the consumer, who may be ignorant as to what the 

 size of the bulbs should really be and is likely to gauge the quality 

 of his receipts by the quality of the small percentage of top-sized 

 bulbs. These toppers, on the other hand, while giving a merchant- 

 able bulb the next season, together with a numerous progeny, are 

 expensive to grow, for the reason that they are large and require a 

 greater space than the smaller bulbs which are just large enough 

 to come to maturity in one year and be turned off. 



The proper size to plant in order to obtain a mature bulb at the 

 ~|next digging is dependent directly on the fertility of the soil and 

 [inversely on the thickness of the planting. 



* The largest bulbs of a variety. 



