Dahlias. 125 



people are surprised that these new and graceful forms are those 

 of dahlias. We cannot have too many flowers. It is pleasant to 

 have lots to cut and lots to give away. The cactus dahlias are evi- 

 dently to be the next great commercial success in the floral world. 

 Popular enthusiasm may come and go, but their freedom and 

 grace of form, and brilliant colors entitle them to permanent 

 prosperity . 



Origm of the cactus dahlia. — The following is the first descrip- 

 tion of the cactus dahlia, published in England. It is from the 

 Gardeners' Chronicle iox Oox. 4, 1879. 



' ' At one of the recent meetings of the Royal Horticultural So- 

 ciety considerable attention was attracted to a remarkable Dahlia, 

 exhibited by Mr. Cannkll under the name of the Cactus Dahlia. 

 In the Dahlia as ordinarily seen the florets are rolled up so as to 

 resemble so many short quills open at the ends, but in the present 

 case the florets were all flat or nearly so, strap-shaped like the 

 outer florets of the original species (ray-florets), and of a rich 

 crimson colour. The appearance was, therefore, very striking, 

 and suggestive of a new race in Dahlias analagous in some respects 

 to the Japanese Chrysanthemums." 



The following is from the Gardeners' Chronicle for Nov. 8, 1879: 



*' Dahlia Juarezii. — When a short time since we figured this 

 remarkable Dahlia from specimens sent us by Mr. Cannell, we 

 took some pains to ascertain its history, but with little result. 

 Thanks to Mr. Krelage, of Haarlam, and Mr. Jongkindt Coninck, 

 of the Tottenham Nurseries, Dedemsvaart, near Zwolle, we are 

 now enabled to give the history of this Dahlia, as narrated by the 

 introducer, in the Dutch journal Sempervirens. 



** ' When reading the Gardeners' Chro7iicle of October 4, 1879, 

 I was agreeably surprised to see a well-made figure of natural size 

 of an old acquaintance of mine, Dahlia Juarezii. I was still 

 more surprised to see by the few additional lines that very little 

 is known about the origin of this beautiful Dahlia, be it a species 

 or variety. I am, therefore, pleased to avail myself of the oppor- 

 tunity of giving a few details about its origin and history, and to 

 say that I imported it directly from Mexico, and was the first 

 who introduced it to the trade in the Netherlands as well as in 

 other countries. In the autumn of 1872 a friend of mine in 



