PREPARING RULES FOR REPLANTING

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30063, 22 February 1963, Page 6

PREPARING RULES FOR REPLANTING

Bulb planting time is already here for the early flowering kinds, such as snowdrops. In the next few weeks we will be thinking of planting tulips, daffodils and hyacinths to provide us with a display next spring. It may be that we are going to use the same bulbs that we have had in the garden for a number of years.

There are those bulbs that we use each year in our spring bedding displays which are lifted after they have passed out of flower and heeled in, in a corner of the garden. Also there are the bulbs which we have planted permanently in some part of th* garden which remain undisturbed for years. It becomes necessary after some time to lift these bulbs and replant them in new ground to maintain their freedom of flowering and keep them in good health. Whatever method is adopted of growing bulbs it is advisable to carry out a grading programme, and not to just plant the whole lot as they come to hand. Bulbs should be lifted before any new growth begins, either shoot or root, otherwise you are going to give them a check. Tulips

These bulbs are, in the main, lifted each year after flowering; it is not at all common to leave them in the ground for a number of years. A single bulb planted last year will have disintegrated and in its place will be a cluster of new bulbs. There is usually one large bulb and a number of smaller ones. Select the largest bulbs for planting to flower, and the smaller ones can be planted away in a corner of the garden to be grown on to flowering size. Daffodil* and Narcissi These bulbs multiply more slowly than tulips and form their new bulbs in a different manner. The bulb is perennial, grows in size and then splits off a new bulb, at the side. When the bulbs are left undisturbed, the new bulbs continue to split off and these grow in size, splitting off further bulbs.

This eventually forms large clumps all with their roots Crowing in a confined area, ’he bulbs become constricted and they are so tightly packed that they cannot de-

velop properly, the quality and quantity of flowers decrease and vigour declines. It is then necessary to lift and replant. When lifting, detach all side bulbs and then sort through all the bulbs, using the largest ones for planting for flowering, while the smaller ones can be grown on until they reach flowering size.

Hyacinths The bulbs of hyacinths increase very slowly, producing only an occasional offset If left undisturbed these offsets increase in size and eventually a clump of bulbs will be produced. As the size of the clumps increase so the quality of the flowers decrease.

Again, when lifting, detach all the offsets and, while selecting the largest bulbs for flowering, plant out the smaller bulbs for growing on to flowering size. Planting Ground in which bulbs are to be planted should be well prepared, with compost or well rotted manure dug in; a dressing of bone meal or blood and" bone would also prove beneficial. By doing this, you will be providing food material to keep the bulbs growing vigorously and help to build them up. The offset bulbs, or those too small to flower, should also be planted in good ground in order to build up their reserves and produce a bulb that will be big enough to flower in the shortest possible time. To obtain really first-class flowers it may be worth while removing the flowering stem before it fully develops so that the energy that would be used in flowering is diverted to bulb production; this is usually carried out only with daffodils or hyacinths. When planting bulbs it is usual to plant them as deep as the size of the bulb. In light soils deeper planting is advocated, and in heavy soils a little sand under each bulb is beneficial. If bulbs axe noticed to be suffering from virus disease during the growing season, they should be marked and destroyed, they should not be replanted. The disease take* the form of yellow mottling or streaks on the leaves.