Soil and Culture 33 
from four to six years in Holland — 
where soil and general conditions are 
ideal, hence the great Dutch industry of 
bulb culture — before they reach the full 
size necessary to produce the finest flowers 
here in our gardens, consequently before 
they are large enough to bring the highest 
market price. Such bulbs are from 8 to 
10 inches in circumference. After once 
flowering here, however, they are bound 
to take a season or two off, because, being 
fully mature themselves, they must go on 
to the next step in the life round and 
begin to reproduce their kind. This re- 
production is by means of offsets — and 
not until some of the offsets have reached 
early maturity, can they in their turn 
blossom. 
In commercial growing, such bulbs are 
induced to throw off a great number of 
offsets by being scored with a sharp knife 
across the bottom deeply, in August or 
as soon as ripened; then set into loose 
soil, bottom up, for a fortnight. This 
“heals” the cuts, which also spread apart. 
