900 



Narcissus Cultivation. [march, 



thirty planters at 2s., £3 ; man in charge, 4s. ; total, £3 12s. 

 per acre. 



The above method is suitable where any one variety of 

 bulb is being planted in large quantities. The work pro- 

 ceeds in the ordinary way of ploughing, one furrow covering 

 the already planted bulbs in the furrow previously made. 

 The furrows are about nine or ten inches wide, and every 

 seventh furrow is left unplanted, and this forms a path, 

 which is necessary for getting among the bulbs when bloom- 

 gathering, cleaning, &c. 



Where smaller areas are being planted, a different method 

 must be adopted. First divide the land into suitable divi- 

 sions, say fifty feet wide, with eighteen-inch paths between. 

 Then stretch a line across the end of the first division, and 

 with a spade throw out a shallow opening in which to plant 

 the first row of bulbs. This done, shift the line the width 

 of the rows, say nine inches; then proceed to open the 

 second furrow, covering the first and already planted row 

 with the soil from the second. Proceed thus with succeed- 

 ing rows, again leaving every seventh unplanted to form a 

 path. By this method one man with a spade will keep two 

 planters busy, and the cost will be about £6 per acre. 



Another method for the small grower, after he has marked 

 his land into fifty-foot divisions with eighteen-inch paths, is to 

 mark each division across with beds 3 feet 6 inches wide and 

 with paths 12 inches wide. The soil from the first bed is taken 

 out to a depth of 3 inches and wheeled to the far end of the 

 division ; this first bed is then carefully raked, and marked 

 across in rows 6 inches apart. The bulbs are then planted, 

 and this bed is covered with soil taken from the second bed, 

 and so the work proceeds to the end of the division. This 

 method, although a little more expensive than the preceding, 

 has advantages, especially where handling a considerable 

 number of varieties in small quantities, as the danger of 

 mixing sorts is less likely to arise. 



The quantity of bulbs necessary to plant a given area will 

 vary considerably, according to the size of bulb produced by 

 the particular variety. From five to six tons may be taken as 

 an average weight to plant an acre. 



Cultivation between Planting and Harvesting —The chief 



