4 BULLETIN 1462, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
The outstanding facts further substantiated are: (1) That bulbs 
from which a flower has been cut can not be depended on for forcing, 
and (2) that bulbs improperly handled in storage may not flower 
at all. 
EFFECT OF CUTTING BLOSSOMS 
It should be borne in mind that a first-class bulb ought to blossom 
the second year even when the flower with one or two leaves has been 
cut, but it will not be standard, and it should not be sold for first- 
class stock or for forcing until grown under good conditions for 
one year and left to mature naturally. The better the growing, how- 
ever, the better the results from such cut plants will be. The fact 
that the bulb will blossom under glass if properly handled does not 
make it a forcing bulb or even one fit for the market. To get good 
results under glass the bulbs must be of prime quality, which is not 
possible unless the stocks are allowed to mature naturally with no 
removal of leafage. 
CARE NECESSARY IN HANDLING 
Growers who handle tulip bulbs carelessly in such a way as to 
allow them to heat in the containers or in piles on the floors of sheds 
under and close to tin roofs, or too deep on poorly aerated trays or 
shelves, can not expect to have their product succeed in competition 
with stocks properly handled. 
Tulip bulbs used for forcing should have their coats preserved 
as well as possible. To this end the grower must perform every op- 
eration in their handling promptly and efficiently, especially with the 
Darwins, for the coats of many of these varieties come off easily. 
The bulbs should be dug as soon as mature and usually before the 
tops are thoroughly dried; they should be dried slowly; and they 
should then be stored in subdued light in a cool but dry situation 
where there are no drafts of air. Either light or drafts will crack 
the coats, after which the bulbs are easily abraded. 
It is a little more difficult to preserve the coats and prevent exces- 
sive desiccation in a hot region like the Atlantic Coastal Plain than 
on Puget Sound, but it can be done if the proper conditions are 
provided. The requirements consist in reducing both light and 
ventilation, but not allowing the bulbs to mold. Storage on stacked 
rrays in which the bulbs are piled 4 inches high with burlap over 
them is very satisfactory under the conditions used for sweet-potato 
storage or in dry half basements. The fact that they need to have 
ventilation reduced at this period, however, does not mean that they 
can be safely stored in large heaps, in sacks, or in other bulky, poorly 
aerated containers. 
Besides preserving the coats, particular attention should be given 
to preventing desiccation, for if once the bulbs are badly wilted they 
do not again take up moisture readily and plump up as do lily bulbs, 
for instance. This fact is well brought out in Figure 1, showing a 
well-preserved bulb (left) and an excessively desiccated one (right) 
at the time that both were ready to be brought into the greenhouse 
from the heeling ground. The outer coat is removed in both cases. 
The dried bulb is decidedly weakened, 
c 
