DAHLIA. 355 



Rose Ccntifolia ; whilst their colours have even 

 been more increased than their petals, and display 

 a richness which rivals that of the gaudy Tulip, or 

 the finest tints which the silk-dyer is able to give 

 to the glossy velvet. 



The most beautiful varieties of this flower have 

 been raised from the seeds of the single purple 

 Dahlia ; and so numerous are the kinds already 

 become, that some of our nurserymen offer more 

 than two hundred varieties for sale. 



The more curious kinds are increased by two 

 different modes; first, by cuttings, which should be 

 taken from the root shoots in the spring, or from 

 young shoots in the early part of the summer : these 

 -when cut smoothly off in the middle of a joint are 

 to be planted in hght sandy earth on a moderately 

 hot bed, and covered with glasses. The top leaves 

 of the cuttings should not be removed when planted. 

 These cuttings form tubers and produce flowers 

 during the autumn. 



The second mode of increasing choice Dahlias is, 

 by grafting the shoots of valuable plants on the 

 tubers of the roots of more common kinds. Florists 

 are indebted to Mr. Thomas Blake, gardener to 

 James Vere, Esq. of Kensington-Gore, for this 

 ingenious discovery, which he made known to the 

 public through the Transactions of the Horticul- 

 tural Society of London, in August, 1821. Mr, 



