142 THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 



once for exhibition, and T had to get a table and a man six feet high 

 to pnt a shade over it; and whenever the wind blew hard I would 

 go and hold it, to prevent it knocking against the shade and getting 

 injured. Now they are grown two or three feet high, so that a per- 

 son can stand at any point of his garden and view his whole collec- 

 tion comfortably. My opinion is that any tall-growing plant may be 

 grown dwarf, and flowered with good effect. The first I ever saw 

 was by Mr. Eussell, who grew for Mr. Proctor. He used to grow 

 from four arms ; he gave them a large quantity of dung, and the 

 plants grew strong, and produced fine blooms. To grow dwarf, put 

 your young plants into the ground, and let them grow till you can 

 bend them over to the ground again, w^hen peg them down, which 

 will allow the bottom shoots to grow up. 



Watering. — At one time the watering of the dahlia was con- 

 sidered of very great importance, and a few years ago I used to 

 devote four hours every other day to watering my plants. But I 

 find now that they will do just as well without, and so of course 

 never give them any ; and I will tell you how I found it out. The 

 man who used to assist me in the operation left me suddenly, when 

 the plants never got any water, and they did just as well as in pre- 

 vious years. Now I certainly think that they should be made to 

 fetch their own water. Of course when we have them under cover 

 we must attend to them and water them, and they often grow so 

 vigorously that I have known them to lift the glass. But out of 

 doors all you have got to do is to plant them deep enough and they 

 will get their own. At one time it was the practice to w^ater them 

 by pouring the water all down at the stem ; but this is where they 

 want it least of all. AYatering at the stem makes them weak, and 

 makes them grow tall when they are much better dwarf. All you have 

 to do is, when planting, if the ground is dry, give them a thorough 

 good soaking, and then leave them to take care of themselves. 



Geowikg Haed Eyes. — Here is a plan for growing hard-eyed 

 flowers. Take good strong plants, and let them be got in early. 

 Then let them grow wild so as to weaken the plant a bit, and then 

 cut away ; but if you cut very much you will only get a very few 

 blooms. In the beginning of October the plants will have made so 

 many flowers that the hard eyes will then come. With some persons, 

 however, it makes no diff'erence whether the flowers are hard-eyed 

 or soft-eyed. Whenever I go to a show I like to get there early, so 

 as to have plenty of time to make all arrangements that are necessary, 

 and not go just as it is time for the censors to commence work, and 

 then to be hurried away before I have had time to place my flowers 

 properly. And by going early I have often seen other things as well 

 which are well worth finding out. One day at the Crystal Palace I 

 saw a great gun among the growers up in a corner surrounded by 

 his blooms. He had a stick in his hand, and with it he was busily 

 picking out something from the centre of a flower, and putting it 

 into his mouth. AVell, he continued picking away till he had picked 

 out all the centre of the flower, and then with another instrument 

 he very carefully turned the other florets over towards the centre, so 

 as to hide the place ; and this is the way the public are deceived. 



