lene remaining may be removed. If the flakes 
have not entirely evaporated by the time little 
root knobs and eye sprouts emerge, showing 
bulb is no longer dormant, shake out any 
remaining. Do not use any napthalene in 
the trench at planting time since it is safe only 
to the dormant bulb. 
Ethylene Dichloride 75% — Carbon 
Tetrachloride 25% mixture. We do not 
recommend this treatment to amateur grow¬ 
ers because it is not easily obtainable or to be 
had from the producers in quantities under 
1 gal. (11 lbs.) at $1.44; also'5 gal. (55 lbs. 
at $5.15, both f. o. b. plant, and because 
there are certain hazards to the bulbs from 
overdosage. Perhaps this is the most prac¬ 
tical method of gassing large quantities of 
bulbs, where bulb cellars can be made rea¬ 
sonably tight on five sides. Top is not quite 
so important, as the gas settles, like a liquid. 
You would need 1 teaspoonful (no more) to a 
5 gal. container or 1 oz. to 5 cu. ft. or 14 lbs. to 
to 1000 cu. ft. This liquid mixture is non¬ 
explosive, non-inflammable, non-injurious to 
human beings. But kills both the insect and 
the eggs in 24 hrs. at 65 to 70 degrees. Com¬ 
mercial growers write to me for detailed in¬ 
structions (have a few hundred printed). Send 
orders to The Carbide & Carbon Chemicals 
Corp., 30 East 42nd St., New York City. 
Lye treatment. Tests by the U. S. Dept. 
Ent. have proven the lye solution, commonly 
advocated in the northwest and elsewhere, 
to be little more effective than plain, cold 
water, not even making a complete kill of 
the insects, let alone the eggs. And you 
understand these thrips just make guinea 
pigs look like 4th rate novices when it comes 
to raising a family. 
Extensive tests by U. S. Dept. Pathology, 
in every instance indicated that untreated 
bulbs were harvested with less scab than those 
treated with lye. If you want scabby bulbs 
use lye. 
Hot Water treatment. Personally, we 
have some of the same doubts about this as 
respects lye. Maybe the water is more effec¬ 
tive than the heat, as we have seen thrips 
under experiment survive much higher tem¬ 
perature, but dry heat. Anyway, U. S. Dept. 
Ent. advises you can get a 100% kill of insects 
and eggs by merely covering the small lots of 
bulbs with hot water at 112 degrees for 20 
minutes (not 2 minutes as advised in some 
catalogs with national circulation) or bushel 
ots for 30 minutes. Keep water stirred. 
Might injure the bulbs above 125 degrees and 
ineffective if allowed to go below 112. Have 
an accurate thermometer and keep at 112 by 
adding hot water as needed. 
Semesan. Is effective if used 20 times as 
strong as corrosive sublimate, i. e., 134 
pounds (not ounces) to 10 gal. water, 7 hrs. 
Too expensive. 
Corrosive Sublimate (mercuric chloride) 
treatment. This produces such won¬ 
derful results, with so little effort, with 
so little cost, that no one, whether he 
grows a bed of glads four foot square or 
four acres, should fail to so treat his 
bulbs. Regardless of where or how the bulbs 
grew the preceding year. This gives the bulb 
a coating that wards off various bulb diseases 
and fungus attacks. We used to keep our 
bulbs healthy by this process long before we 
ever heard of thrips. Now, it has been con¬ 
clusively proved, this treatment also kills any 
thrips and their eggs, and, if used, you only 
need keep a watchful eye for thrips infestation 
from outside sources. Remember soaking pro¬ 
cesses are only advisable just before planting. 
This is not a fall treatment. If your bulbs are 
husked, they need only be soaked half as long, 
but we do not advise husking unless you 
know your bulbs are infested badly and you 
wish to take no chances on penetration to the 
bulb. Many have inquired if the treatment is 
safe to use on badly sprouted or rooted bulbs. 
This will not harm them. 
We read an article in a Canadian “quarter¬ 
ly” by someone who called himself “I Dip- 
pem,” who said he had a lot of little batches. 
To keep them separate he obtained some of 
the women folks’ old stockings, slipped a 
batch into a toe with wooden label, tied the 
stocking above the batch and so proceeded 
until all the batches were conveniently ready 
to soak, remove and drain. 
Note Important Revision of formula by 
U. S. Dept. Ent. to allow additional time for 
penetration of stubbornly tight husks. 
Dissolve 1 oz. of the powder first in a bit of 
hot water, then pour into 7 gal. of water, pre¬ 
ferably above 60 degrees. Remember, cold 
water may render the treatment ineffective. 
This must be poured into a non-metal con¬ 
tainer, such as a crock, wooden pail, glass or 
unchipped granite ware. Varieties kept sep¬ 
arate in cloth bags. No difference if bulbs are 
then planted wet or dry, but the sooner the 
better as much of the coating may be lost if 
bulbs become dry. Solution weakens with 
use, so replenish 100% if used again. Soak 12 
to 17 hours, preferably night before planting. 
Be sure bags are fully immersed. Do not use 
this substance in tablet form unless you learn 
exactly how much of the tablet, in weight, is 
actually corrosive sublimate. You want a 
final solution of about 1-1000. This solution 
is safe to the hands but is a deadly poison and 
must be used and disposed of with extreme 
care. 
Our bulbs get the napthalene treat¬ 
ment a week or two after digging, the 
Ethylene gassing late January and the 
corrosive sublimate before planting. Ad¬ 
vertising “treated” bulbs means little 
unless you know the method used and 
when last used. 
INSECTICIDES 
If thrips appear on your plants they must 
be controlled before the bud spikes emerge 
from the foliage. Watch for any silvery gray 
streaks on the foliage. If permitted to in¬ 
crease unmolested they will extract juices 
from the buds resulting in a burned appear¬ 
ance, they will eat streaks of color off the 
petals even before they unfold and if they 
unfold at all, the petals may crimp up their 
edges and dry to a dull brown. Even the 
