Exchanges. We will buy or exchange for your surplus bulbs that we can 
use. Inquire or make offer before sending bulbs. 
General Culture Directions 
The best all around soil for bulbs is a rich sandy loam. Only a few, in- 
cluding Bearded Iris, prefer heavier soil. But bulbs will do well in heavy soil 
that has been made friable by the addition of much humus. Iris do well in 
sandy soils that have been improved by accumulations of humus. 
Thus the most important factor of soils is the humus content. On our 
“Rancho de Las Flores’’ we compost all weeds, leaves and small branches. 
Spade in deeply much compost and include if convenient, well-rotted 
manure. Do not use fresh manure except six months before planting bulbs. 
Soil and humus should be well-mixed and preparation of beds well in advance 
of planting is an advantage. This very thorough preparation of soil is advis- 
able for garden soils of poor quality and an advantage on the best soils, but 
even without the additions suggested bulbs do well in most soils. 
Fertilizers. Adding strong fertilizers just before planting bulbs or seeds 
is popular but dangerous. In the average case more harm than good results. 
One would not give a day-old infant a working man’s meal of ham and eggs or 
a boiled dinner, a slice of pie and two cups of strong coffee. The strong fer- 
tilizer, either manure or chemical, burns off the new roots of sprouting seeds 
and bulbs and they die. Manure in small quantity can be applied as a mulch 
to growing plants. 
Commercial Fertilizers must be used with care and only in the proper 
manner. Risk attends their use by the inexperienced. We do not attempt to 
tell you how except that we use a small handful of Superphosphate to about 10 
ft. of row of Gladiolus. It is the proper fertilizer to use for acid loving plants. 
It is better to try out fertilizers on one or a few plants before apply them to 
all. Superphosphate is a very strong fertilizer and should be applied only in 
very small quantities until you learn how much to use. 
We are frequently asked this question: Our Daffodils, Gladiolus, Ranun- 
culus (ete.) are thru blooming. May we cut off the tops (or dig the bulbs), as 
we want to plant something else there? The answer is ‘‘No.’’ Consider the 
annual life cycle of a bulb. After a dormant period it makes roots first when 
planted. Then a top growth of foliage and flowers. The growth is much more 
rapid than a plant grown from seed can make, because there is much stored up 
food in the bulb. 
When thru blooming, this stored up food is completely used up. If dug at 
this time or tops are cut off the bulbs are almost worthless. A few may sur- 
vive but two or more years are required to bring them back. The correct cul- 
ture is to induce vigorous growth in order to store up a large amount of food 
for next season’s growth. If given time, the bulb will become large and plump. 
At this time most bulbs also develop a bud for the next season. This bud may 
be found by cutting the bulb thru the middle. 
During this period of growth, there are also enzymes or digestives manu- 
factured and stored away in the bulbs. Glads should grow several weeks, at 
least, after flowering. Daffodils will grow at least three months. Keep bulbs 
growing with good cultivation and liberal irrigation until leaves begin to yellow 
then dry off. 
During the succeeding dormant period, the enzymes reorganize or digest 
the stored up food. The insoluble starch is changed to soluble sugar. That is 
why potatoes become sweetish in taste in late season when they begin to sprout. 
Thus the ‘‘dormant” bulb is very busy with this process which requires 
from a few weeks to 3 or 4 months. This dormant period in plants may be 
compared to the sleep required by man and other animals. Our bodies require 
sleep for the accomplishment of vital processes. 
Amateur growers often expect a bulb to grow at once when planted. One 
should not attempt to start bulbs until all the processes of the ‘‘dormant’’ 
period are accomplished. 
When you purchase Gladiolus bulbs for fall planting be sure they were 
dug early, about July or August. Ranunculus and Anemones dug in July will 
