be
explained hereafter.

When large bulbs are dug, the old ones that were planted adhere so
firmly that a good deal of force is required to separate them. For this
reason it is not economy to clean them at once, so we store them in
shallow crates, to the depth of two or three inches, and let them dry.
They can then be filled in to the tops of the crates, which are four
inches deep, and left until a convenient time for cleaning.

In two weeks after they are taken up, the older bulbs can be removed
with a slight effort, but we reserve this work for stormy days. This is
the way it is done: A number two sieve is placed upon a tight bushel
basket, and filled with the bulbs to be cleaned. The old bulbs are taken
off by hand and cast aside, carrying the roots with them, and the
bulblets that still remain fall through the sieve into the basket below.
The cleaned bulbs are dropped into another basket and then stored in
crates to await the time for grading. The bulblets are put away in a
cool, damp place. Bulbs three-fourths of an inch or more in diameter are
cleaned one at a time, as described, but smaller ones are treated
differently. There is much waste matter connected with them, roots, bits
of tops, and soil, and the work of cleaning them is done out of doors on
windy days in order that the trash and dust may be blown away. This
explains why small stock should be thoroughly dried before it is
cleaned. The bulbs are placed on a table or platform where the wind can
have free play, and pulled and twisted by handfuls, until the most of
them are separated from the rubbish. Those that still remain are picked
out, and the trash is pushed off from the table. The bulbs are then put
into a fine sieve and the remaining dust is sifted out. This process
usually brings to light the last remnants of dry roots, leaves, and
husks, and these are disposed of by pouring the bulbs from one bushel
basket to another in the wind. At one time I had this finishing work
done on more than half a million small bulbs with an old-fashioned
fanning mill, and it was done to perfection.

Grading.

After the bulbs are cured and cleaned, the next step is grading, or
separating them into classes according to size. This is absolutely
necessary if the bulbs are to be sold, and almost as much so if they
are to be planted. As to the sizes of the different grades, every grower
seems to be a law unto himself. An effort has been made by the Society
of American