trouble without any specific remedy. The careful grower, amateur or profes¬ 
sional, can only maintain a rigorous watch and relentlessly rogue out and 
burn every bulb which fails to throw clean foliage. 
Commercial stocks of many well-known varieties, notably Sir Watkin, 
Soleil d’Or, and Paper White, are often so badly broken that all three and 
others as well are no longer permitted in our garden. The fight made shows 
pridefully in the remarkable cleanness of the stock, but no grower can safely 
guarantee that bulbs sent out will never yield to the trouble elsewhere. The 
disease is thought to be carried by some sap-feeding organism such as aphis, 
so a focus of infection may exist just across the neighbor’s fence or almost 
anywhere. 
Irises— 
The culture of irises depends mainly upon the particular group or type to 
which the plants belong. That of the majority of the Pogoniris or bearded 
groups is very simple. Abstention from the use of retentive manure, a fair 
amount of lime in the soil, and good drainage are the principal points to at¬ 
tend to. The rhizome should be set in the earth at time of planting with 
the roots carefully spread and the soil well firmed about them, but the top 
of the rhizome only barely or not quite covered. They should ordinarily be 
watered well when first set, but more moderately thereafter. In southern 
California the most successful iris growers are those who irrigate their plan¬ 
tations occasionally through the summer, perhaps every few weeks like a 
citrus orchard, following each watering with a light cultivation. 
For fertilizer we have found bone-meal, superphosphate of lime, wood 
ashes, and old plaster rubble all excellent. 
Occasionally someone reports inability to make established plants of irises 
flower. It is not always easy to assign a cause for this, but quite often too 
deep planting seems to be responsible, or again it may be too much shade. 
Sometimes just breaking up the clump and moving to a new position is suf¬ 
ficient to start it going in the right way. 
Under our brilliant sun it is often surprising how much shade some of the 
varieties will stand and still yield a certain percentage of bloom, but a rather 
open position is generally best for the Pogonirises, as well as for the ungui- 
cularis, spuria, and ensata types. 
Ridging the beds or planting on a slope is often resorted to with notable 
success. 
Apogon Irises require somewhat more moisture and humus in the soil as a 
rule, and many of them dislike lime. For some groups, notably Oncocyclus 
and Regelia, quite special treatment is demanded—lighter soil, plenty of sun¬ 
shine, extra care in drainage, abundance of lime, and no water in summer 
even if they have to be taken up and stored dry. 
Most of the Evansias prefer considerable shade and are among the few 
irises which do their best under such conditions. 
For the common and disfiguring disease called leaf-spot, spray thoroughly 
with lime-sulphur in winter before growth is too far advanced and keep the 
diseased foliage well picked off and burned thereafter as it appears. 
TIME OF DELIVERY 
Directly the foliage dies down in June is the time for digging daffodils. 
The bulbs are then dried off, separated, and wherever possible replanted 
without further delay. We believe that this early planting gives much the 
best results. Although we can usually supply a considerable number of varie¬ 
ties until well into the fall, it is best to get one’s order in early and avoid 
disappointment. In fact some varieties will not be dug at all unless so or¬ 
dered. Our bulbs are grown in a dry climate in clay loam; they are there- 
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