The Easy Road to Success with Bulbs — By c. J. Hunt, 



A MANUAL OF PRACTICAL CULTURAL DIRECTIONS FOR FALL PLANTED 

 DUTCH BULBS-SIMPLE PRECAUTIONS TO BE OBSERVED BY THE GARDENER 



New 

 Jersey 



IF IT is always borne in mind that 

 bulbous plants possess at once features 

 of advantage and of disadvantage to 

 the gardener, contributing at the same 

 time an ease of culture and a positive need 

 of simple precautions, then the production 

 of perfect flowers becomes a question of 

 knowing just what to do and just what not 

 to do. Fortunately, the "don'ts" are 

 fewer, so far as bulbs are concerned, than 

 is the case with most other kinds of plants. 

 The formation of a fleshy bulb under- 

 ground is Nature's sign of a store of food 

 for the plant in such time of stress as may 

 be occasioned by the bulb being too long 

 out of the soil. While the new ' bulb is 

 being formed each season, a new flower bud 

 is also developed, and to this circumstance 

 the simplicity of bulb-growing is due, for 

 if the bulb has been properly grown to begin 

 with, all that remains for the gardener is 

 to choose the particular place in the garden 

 where that flower is wanted. An unkindly 

 soil or too vicious weather may prevent 

 the bulb from doing its duty, and the 

 "don'ts" of bulb culture apply chiefly to 

 giving the bulb a fair chance against un- 

 favorable situations or conditions. 



THE RIGHT SOIL 



The best soil we can give bulbs is, in most 

 gardens, the soil that has never yet grown 

 bulbs; but even this can be brought into 

 better shape by adding sand, if it is a very 

 heavy soil, or by enriching it, if it is too 

 impoverished. A light loam is the ideal, 

 and if rotted sod can be a large ingredient 

 in the bulb beds, so much the better. 



Spade the earth over deeply, at least 

 fifteen inches, and at the time digging is 

 done fork in a fertilizer composed of three 

 parts of bone-meal, one part of Scotch soot, 

 and one part of wood ashes. Stable 

 manure must be avoided unless it 

 is very old, well-rotted stuff and is 

 placed deep enough so that it 

 cannot come in contact with the 

 bulbs. The soil should be dug 

 some time in advance of planting, 

 in order that it may be allowed 

 to settle for two or three weeks if 

 possible. 



PLANTING THE BULBS 



Where it is feasible, the earth 

 should be removed at planting to 

 the depth at which the bulbs are 

 to be set, as thus all the bulbs lie 

 at a uniform depth and will all 

 flower at the same time. Spread 

 a half-inch layer of builder's sand 

 over the surface, place the bulbs 

 upon this and then carefully re- 

 place the soil so that the bulbs 

 are not knocked about as it is 

 thrown on them. If this method 

 of planting entails too much labor, 

 the bulbs may be set in with a 

 trowel or dibble, always taking 

 pains that the bottom of the bulb 



rests evenly upon the soil. It is well to 

 provide good drainage by dropping a little 

 sand in the hole as it is made. 



After planting, many kinds of bulbs are 

 benefited by a light cover of leaves, salt 

 hay, or other litter, which should not be 

 put on the beds until the ground is frozen 

 two or three inches below the surface. If 

 done earlier, the protection may become 

 the delight of field mice which find 

 in the bulbs a palatable food during the 

 winter. 



Where mice or moles abound, it is well 

 to plant moth-balls with the bulbs, for I 

 know of no better deterrent to the ravages 

 of these pests than roughly broken moth- 

 balls scattered in the soil where they bur- 

 row. The litter should be removed early 

 in the spring before growth penetrates the 

 cover, as it is then more easily taken off 

 and there is no chance of the growth be- 

 coming affected by fungus troubles, a risk 

 that is quite possible where tulips remain 

 too long covered. The surface of the soil 

 should then be broken up lightly, taking 

 care to avoid damage to the brittle young 

 growth. 



The culture outlined thus far applies 

 generally to all classes of bulbs. Details 

 of culture differ somewhat for the various 

 kinds, however, and if the few rules noted 

 below are observed, success is more likely 

 to be attained. 



HYACINTHS 



Hyacinths are grown in Holland in soil 

 that is almost a pure sand and in heavier 

 loam they soon become diseased and dis- 

 appear. New bulbs will bloom in any soil, 

 but to build up a strong bulb for the en- 

 suing year, sandy soil free from any manure 

 is necessary. Annual lifting when the 

 foliage has quite ripened must be practised, 



Be sure that the bulb rests on the ground and is not "hung". 

 in the bottom of the hole helps drainage too 



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and the bulbs should be stored over summer 

 in a cool, dry place. 



Planting should be done before frost 

 begins to bring down the foliage of such 

 deciduous trees as the maples. The bulbs 

 should be set not less than six inches apart 

 and six inches deep measuring to the bottom 

 of the bulb, where the largest sized bulbs 

 are used; for second size bulbs an inch less 

 depth will do. For bedding it is well to 

 choose kinds that have a stem stiff enough 

 to hold up the trusses without staking. 

 The winter cover for hyacinths should be 

 slightly heavier than for other bulbs. 



TULIPS 



Tulips may be grown in any soil provided 

 perfect drainage is afforded. In a heavy 

 soil the outer skin does not mature as well 

 as in a sandier one, and when the bulbs are 

 stored during the summer the protection 

 of a firm skin is an aid in keeping the bulbs 

 in the best condition until they are re- 

 planted. Plant so far as possible in virgin 

 soil. Tulips become subject to disease if 

 planted too often in the same soil; this is 

 particularly true of the early kinds and 

 the majority of failures is due to this cause. 

 Planting should begin and be finished 

 within two and three weeks after the maple 

 leaves begin to drop from the first hard 

 frost, and should always be done in soil 

 that is not sticky from recent rains. The 

 early kinds need not less than five inches 

 each way between the bulbs, and should 

 be set five inches deep; late tulips require 

 more room and should be set not less than 

 six inches apart and as many inches deep. 

 A sand base is always advisable, and 

 no water should stand on the beds during 

 winter. Keep any animal manures six 

 inches below the base of the bulb. 



The covering should be very fight and 

 must be removed as soon as an 

 inch or two of growth has appeared. 

 In case of severe frost, following 

 light snow or rain, some protection 

 must be at hand after uncover- 

 ing, as water often collects in the 

 folds of the opening leaves, and 

 freezing may destroy the flower 

 bud just as it comes through the 

 surface of the soil. 



" Fire," as it is called in Holland, 

 is a disastrous fungus disease which 

 attacks the foliage as the bud is 

 about to unfold. At the first sign 

 of any brown spots upon the 

 leaves, cut away and destroy the 

 affected parts. As preventives for 

 an attack of "fire," planting in 

 new soil and being careful not to 

 let the flower petals lie on the 

 foliage or on the soil, to decay 

 there after the blossoms fall, will 

 J generally hold the disease in check. 

 Early tulips succeed best if lifted 

 each season after flowering. The 

 late tulips may remain where 

 planted with greater chances of 



A little sand 



