It is important to start clean! A thorough cleaning of bulb handling, planting and cooling facilities will help to avoid problems in forcing, especially with diseases such as Trichoderma (Figs. 1 and 2). We have a fact sheet on Trichoderma on the website, which can be found at http://www.flowerbulbs.cornell.edu/newsletter/Trichoderma%20May%202004.pdf (or, more easily, go to the website at flowerbulbs.cornell.edu and type in “trichoderma” in the search box, and you’ll go right to it). This disease is promoted by very heavily rooted plants Fig 3). When tulips are massively rooted in pots, the lack of soil among the roots makes the roots more susceptible to drying out, salt accumulation or any number of other stresses, and weakened roots are thought to be more susceptible to the pathogen.