PEODUCTioisr or tulip bulbs. 15 



in leaving the flowers as long as they are in good condition. There 

 is the further advantage to the grower that he is able to true up his 

 sf or* K 



WHEN TULIPS ARE RIPE. 



Generally speaking, tulips are ready to dig as soon as the tops 

 have dried down in June. The precise time when they should be 

 lifted, however, will depend somewhat uppn the variety and varies 

 slightly with the season. In the single early varieties it is not 

 necessary to wait until the tops are dry. When they have yellowed 

 well and the upper leaf has dried, most of the varieties may be lifted. 

 The color of the outer coats is a good criterion. The bulbs should 

 be dug as soon as the outer coats have turned to the rich brown so 

 characteristic of the tulip. The sooner they are dug after maturity 

 the better the coats are preserved. As a rule, tulips should be lifted 

 just as soon as possible after the proper time comes, and this is 

 especially true of the single earlies and Darwins. The experience 

 of the Bureau of Plant Industry with single late forms, such as the 

 Gesnerianas and Picotees, is that they are sometimes not ready to 

 dig for a week or more after the tops die down. Often the bulb 

 coats are perfectly white at the time the tops dry. This is especially 

 noticeable if the soil is poorly aerated. The one important considera- 

 tion as regards the time of digging is to do the work at the time 

 when the coats will be best preserved. This means digging early. 

 It means digging as soon as the plants, are far enough advanced for 

 the coats to be perfectly formed and to assume their normal color 

 upon drying. If digging is long delayed, the coats deteriorate and 

 the bulbs lose this natural protective covering. Often bulbs go 

 into the bulb house with half of the coats white. If the soils were 

 sandy loam, the coats would form earlier and be stronger. 



The moisture, heat, depth of planting, and nature of the soil all 

 affect the maturity and coloration of the coats. With lack of mois- 

 ture they dry off quickly and mature. Heat has about the same 

 effect. In sandy soil the coats form and brown up better than in 

 leavier loams. If the bulbs are planted shallow on heavier soils, 

 he coats will brown up quicker and the plants be ready to dig earlier 

 han when planted deeper. 



DIGGING TULIPS. 



Plate IX, Figure 1, gives a better idea of the operation of digging 

 ihan a long description. The men work on their knees and take 

 )ut the bulbs with a small short-handled spade. (PI. X, Fig. 4.) 



The operation of digging tulips and other bulbous stocks, while 

 ery simple, is one which is capable of being highly developed, 

 ^he good digger is active, quick, and alert in his movements. He 

 perates his digging tool with a positive movement. He fixes in 



