BULB PLANTING OUT-OF-DOORS
Tulips and daffodils (narcissus) are the most suitable bulbs for out-of-door planting. The best varieties for outdoor culture are usually designated in catalogues. Bulbs should not be planted in individual plots, but in borders and ornamental beds. The latter should not be placed in the centre of a lawn, as is frequently done. Bulbs should be planted before the last of October.
BEDS FOR GROWING BULBS
To make a bulb bed, throw out the top soil to a depth of eight or nine inches, put about three inches of well-rotted stable manure in the bottom, and cover it with about three inches of the soil which was thrown out. Rake the plot level and then place the bulbs about eight inches apart on the top of the soil, arranging them in any design chosen. Cover them with the rest of the soil and rake it level. There will be about five inches of soil over the bulbs. When a solid crust has formed over the bed, put on a covering of leaves, straw, or branches of evergreens, and some pieces of boards to hold them in place. This covering does not protect the bulbs from freezing, but prevents too rapid thawing out in the spring. This covering should remain until the tips of the bulbs are showing above ground, when it should be removed. Ordinarily the bulbs may be left a second year before digging up. They should then be re-set or replaced with new ones, and the bed made and fertilized as before.
In clay soil the bulbs should not be set quite so deep as in sandy soil, and the bulbs have better drainage about their roots if a handful of sand is placed under each bulb in planting.
Crocus bulbs may be planted in clumps anywhere about the grounds or borders by simply making a small hole about five inches deep, dropping the bulb in, and covering it. Lily of the valley grows best in partial shade in some unfrequented corner.
PLANTING OF BULBS INDOORS
Read again the instructions given under this heading in Form I work, regarding soil, planting, and care. The Chinese sacred lily and trumpet narcissus may be chosen for the pupils of this Form. The narcissus, also called daffodil, may be held back until early spring if kept in a cool, dark cellar, but the Chinese sacred lily, which is also a variety of narcissus, comes into bloom from four to six weeks after planting. It is usually grown in water in a bowl of suitable size. Place a few pieces of charcoal in the bottom of the bowl, set the bulb upon them, and pack coloured stones and shells around it as a support. Keep the bowl about two thirds full of water and set it in a warm, sunny place. It does not need to be set in the dark, as is the case with other bulbs. These may also be grown in soil in the same way as other varieties of narcissus. When blooming is over, the bulbs may be thrown away, as they cannot be used again.