Always choose bulbs which are fresh and plump. Bulbs which have been kept one or two years out of the ground very rarely blossom or, indeed, come up at all. Such bulbs may be recognised by the outside scales being dry and withered. Always choose bulbs which are entire, if you can. But it is not very important that the bulbs should be perfect. We have done very well with bulbs which have lost the majority of their outer scales. Beware of purchasing bulbs which have begun to grow. Bulbs must be planted in the dormant condition. If you plant a bulb which has already thrown up an inch or two of flower-spike, the chances are that it will form no root, and that the stem will wither ere the flowering period arrives. Unfortunately we have no way of telling whether bulbs are thoroughly ripened. Many bulbs, especially those of _Lilium Auratum_, come over from Japan, which, though they look perfectly sound and healthy, never live to flower. This is due in part to the bulbs having been sent from abroad in an immature state. Foreign bulbs purchased in July, August or September, must either be immature, or else rubbish left over from last year. Examine the outer scales of the bulbs for little worms or mildew spots, and do not purchase any which show either of these parasites. We are always told that lilies give greater satisfaction if grown from bulbs which have been established in England for some years. You should, therefore, choose these in place of those imported from Japan or Holland. English bulbs are, however, a little dearer than imported bulbs. There is a popular delusion that you can grow lilies in sand. You cannot do so. All lilies require a rich soil; many require peat, and some excel only when grown in earth strongly enriched with manure. The question of soil for lilies is an important one, and, as it is in general overlooked, we will carefully describe in tabular form the soils suitable for various lilies. For this purpose we will divide lilies into various classes dependent upon what soil they require. Class 1.--Lilies which will grow in any good soil: _Tigrinum_, _Bulbiferum_, _Croceum_, _Davuricum_, _Elegans_, _Hansoni_, _Henryi_, etc. Class 2.--Lilies which require a moderately light soil with a slight admixture of peat and leaf mould: _Auratum_, _Speciosum_, _Longiflorum_, _Krameri_, _Brownii_, _Japonicum odorum_, etc. Class 3.--Lilies which want a heavy loam, well enriched and of good depth: _Cordifolium_, _Wallichianum_, _Candidum_, _Washingtonianum_, _Humboldti_, _Martagon_, _Testaceum_, _Calcedonicum_, etc. Class 4.--Lilies which require a large admixture of peat and leaf mould with plenty of sharp sand: _Canadense_, _Superbum_, _Pardalinum_, _Roezlii_, _Leichtlini_, _Philadelphicum_, etc. Class 5.--Lilies that want a very rich soil with large quantities of well rotted manure and leaf mould of great depth: _Giganteum_, _Monodephum_.