The Practical Garden-Book. L. H. Bailey

planted. To make a bulb bed, choose, if possible, a sandy soil and throw out the top soil to the depth of 6 in. Put into the bottom of the bed about 2 in. of well rotted manure and spade it into the soil. Throw back half of the top soil, level it off nicely, set the bulbs firmly on this bed and then cover them with the balance of the soil; in this way one will have the bulbs from 3 to 4 in. below the surface. In the fall months the top of the ground is cooler than at the depth of 5 or 6 in. and the top of the bulb will not want to grow, while the bottom, which is always in a hurry, will send out roots, to push out the leaves and flowers the next spring. When the weather is cold enough to freeze a hard crust on the soil, the bed should have its winter overcoat. This may be straw, hay, cornstalks or leaves spread over the bed to the depth of 6 in. if the material is coarse; but if leaves are used, 3 in. will be enough, because the leaves lay close together and may smother out the frost that is in the ground and let the bulbs start. What we want is to keep them asleep until spring, because if they start too early the hard freezes of March and early April will spoil their beauty if the leaves or flowers are near or above the surface. Early in April, in New York, the covering may be removed gradually, and should all be off the beds before the leaves show above the ground.

      If there is no sandy place for the beds, make them as directed, leaving the stones in the bottom of the bed for drainage. Then, when ready to set the bulb, place a large handful of sand where the bulb is to go and set the bulb on it. This will keep the water from standing around the bulb. Very fine results may be had on heavy soil by this method.

      As to kinds of bulbs, select hyacinths, tulips or narcissus or daffodils, with snowdrops or crocuses of various colors around the edge. For the culture of these and other bulbs, see the various articles throughout the book.

      The growing of flowering bulbs through the winter adds to the list of house plants a charming variety. The labor, time and skill required is much less than that of growing many of the larger plants more commonly used for winter decorations. The larger number of winter bulbs may be left out of doors until within four to six weeks of the time when they are wanted in flower. Hyacinths, narcissus, tulips, and crocus can be made to flower in the winter without difficulty. Secure the bulbs so as to be able to pot them by the middle or last of October, or if earlier all the better. The soil should be rich, sandy loam, if possible; if not, the best one can get, to which add about one-fourth the bulk of sand and mix thoroughly. If ordinary flower pots are to be used, put in the bottom a few pieces of broken pots, charcoal or small stones for drainage, then fill the pot with dirt so that when the bulbs are set on the dirt the top of the bulb is even with the rim of the pot. Fill around it with soil, leaving just the tip of the bulb showing above the dirt. If the soil is heavy, a good plan is to sprinkle a small handful of sand under the bulb to carry off the water, the same as is done in the beds outdoors. If one does not have pots he may use boxes. Starch boxes are a good size to use, as they are not heavy to handle; and excellent flowers are sometimes obtained from bulbs planted in old tomato cans. If boxes or cans are used, care must be taken to have holes in the bottoms to let the water run out. A large size hyacinth bulb will do well in a 5-inch pot. The same size pot will do for three or four narcissuses or eight to twelve crocuses.

      After the bulbs are planted in the pots or other receptacles, they should be placed in a cool place, either in a cold pit or cellar, or on the shady side of a building, or, better yet, plunged or buried up to the rim of the pot in a shady border. This is done to force the roots to grow while the top stands still; as only the bulbs with good roots will give good flowers. When the weather gets so cold that a crust is frozen on the soil, the pots should be covered with a little straw, and as the weather gets colder more straw must be used. In from six to eight weeks after planting the bulbs, they should have made roots enough to grow the plant, and they may be taken up and placed in a cool room for a week or so, after which, if they have started into growth, they may be taken into a warmer room where they can have plenty of light. They will grow very rapidly now and will want lots of water, and after the flowers begin to show, the pots may stand in a saucer of water all the time. When just coming into bloom the plants may have full sunlight part of the time to help bring out the color of the flowers.

      Bushes. See Shrubs.

      Cabbage. For an early crop, the plants must be started either in February or early March, or the previous September and wintered over in coldframes. This latter method was once a common practice by gardeners near large cities, but the building of greenhouses to replace the many hotbeds of the market-gardener has changed the practice in many localities, and now most of the early Cabbages in the north are grown from seed sown in January, February or March. The plants are hardened off in March and early April and planted out as early as possible. The private grower, or one with a small garden, may often procure his early plants from the market-gardener much cheaper than he can grow them, as usually only a limited number of early Cabbage plants are wanted; but for the midseason and main crop, the seed may be sown in May or June, setting the plants in July.