COMMERCIAL DUTCH-BULB CULTURE. 37 



wealth of decorative material in these groups. In the preparation 

 of any list availability must be one of the first requisites. Here, 

 again, one is very likely to encounter great differences of opinion 

 and conditions while we continue to be dependent, as we are, upon 

 foreign importations. The importing florist and seedsman have to 

 depend upon the foreign grower. The purchaser of bulbs in this 

 country depends upon his florist. The varieties which can be found 

 on the markets are often limited and vary from year to year. 

 There are, however, certain standard varieties in the three groups 

 which are nearly always obtainable, such as the now widely used 

 and easily propagated Marie, Roi des Beiges, Grand Maitre, and 

 L'Innocence in hyacinths; Emperor, Empress, Golden Spur, and 

 Sir Watkin in narcissi; and Chrysolora, Keizerskroon, Couleur 

 Cardinal, Cottage Maid, Clara Butt, Faust, and Pride of Haarlem 

 in tulips. These are all produced by the hundreds of thousands 

 each year and the private individual will always find satisfaction 

 in using them. The conmaercial grower, of course, will give his lists 

 the most careful study and consider the demands of the trade which 

 he intends to supply. It is more than likely that American pro- 

 duction will for a long /time limit itself to varieties for which there 

 is a very great demand and will grow much fewer varieties than are 

 now offered for sale in Dutch and British catalogues. 



Already this specialization is evident. Although the largest pro- 

 ducer of Dutch bulbs at the present time is handling a very long 

 list in each group, this is confessedly experimental, the avowed in- 

 tention being finally to sift out the less desirable and concentrate 

 upon the standard varieties. Another large firm grows 60 to 80 

 varieties of narcissi, but their production in large quantity is con- 

 fiined to not more than a dozen. Another firm grows mainly two 

 forcing varieties of narcissi and a few other forcing bulbous stocks, 

 specializing as it were upon forcing bulbs. 



VARIETIES OF NARCISSI. 



Most' of the lists of narcissus of any pretension are now compiled in 

 accordance with the recommendations of the committee of the Royal 

 Horticultural Society of England,^ which arranged a classification 

 into 11 divisions, the last of which is a catchall, made up mainly of 

 botanical species. The following list, arranged according to this 

 catalogue, is made up of varieties which stand a good chance of doing 

 well under varying conditions. Another useful grouping not recog- 

 nized by the committee of the Royal Horticultural Society but com- 

 monly found in catalogues is the Poetaz section, made up of hybrids 



1 Royal Hoi-ticultm-al Society. Classified List of Daffodil Names, 1914. 73 p. [Lon- 

 don, 1914.] 



