September 26, 1908 



HORTICULTURE 



411 



The dahlia is now in the zenith of its 

 Dahlias blooming period and in all lloral exhibi- 



on all sides tions occurring alioul this time the gor- 

 geous many-hued flowers occupy the 

 greater part of the space and, we might add, do it cred- 

 itably. Of new varieties there is no end and, although 

 some advancement is being made on all the various types 

 mi which breeders are working, vel il would seem that 

 in the case of the old show and pompon sections the 

 limit of progress in size, form and color had been about 

 leached. The New England Slates especially abound 

 in dahlia specialists and it is in this section that the 

 greatest popular enthusiasm exists. The growers are 

 in evidence at all the lairs, the number of named varie- 

 ties shown by each running far into the hundreds and 

 the boast that at a recent exhibition no less than fifteen 

 hundred varieties were staged is not likely to be gain- 

 said. That three-quarters of this unwieldy accumula- 

 tion of varieties might well be dispensed with is un- 

 doubtedly true and the sooner the dahlia worshippers 

 commence the weeding-out process the better it will be 

 for their idol. 



As a decorative feature of the garden 



The dahlia's the dahlia has some serious limitations. 



limitations ]t must have more attention than the 



ordinary garden owner is disposed to 

 bestow on his plants, otherwise' it is not a particularly 

 attractive object. lis coarse habit of growth, late time 

 of flowering and lialnlit\ to destruction by early frosts 

 stand against it. As a flower for table decoration, how- 

 ever, for mantels and vases and many other uses in the 

 hands of the florist ii possesses qualities which no other 

 flower can rival. Yet, here again, it is at a ureal disad- 

 vantage through blooming at a season when the florist 

 lias very little of this sort of work to do and, being de 

 pendent entirely upon fickle weather conditions for a 

 supply of dahlia flowers he is prevented from planning 

 ahead for their conspicuous use in any large' decorative 

 work. Today, dahlia flowers may be had by the ton 

 weight: tomorrow, blackened and limp, they are down 

 and out and this is one reason, insurmountable thus far, 

 why the dahlia makes so little proui-ess as a commercial 

 florists' staple. 



"My Maryland " and Its Home 



When speaking about the several roses to be tried 

 out this year the one which, above all others, is spoken 

 of with unlimited praise is My Maryland. While it is 

 yet too early to say anything definite about the new 

 sorts for this season we can find many promising indi- 

 cations of the popularity oi this rose. 



A visit to the greenhouses of Mr. John Cook, the 

 originator of My Maryland, is time well spent for all 



lovers of roses. Mr. Cook has a neat range of glass sit- 

 uated in a pretty locality in the suburbs of Baltimore. 

 The grounds around his home arc very well laid out and 

 lie has an ideal home where be can lake comfort in his 

 life and his work among his pets. 



While walking through the houses with Mr. Cook as 

 a guide one is sure to be interested every step of the 

 way. There are a number of new roses in all stages 

 from first-year trials to those which have been watched 

 for a longer time, and while there are several which 

 show good points, if. is not possible at this time to say 

 much definitely concerning the final results. One of his 

 new ones, however, gives a very good impression and it 

 is possible that we may hear from it later on. It is a 

 red one, not too deep, but having plenty of life and the 

 hud is of good size and substance. As seen several weeks 

 ago the habit of the plant was very good and we believe 

 that there are indications now which may lead us to 

 expect to hear from this variety favorably. 



My Maryland stands at the head of all varieties 

 which are found growing here. The plants were all in 

 excellent shape, having clean foliage and a very healthy 

 and vigorous growth. There were but a very few being 

 allowed to bloom, but those which we saw were indeed 

 handsome specimens, having good stem, size and color- 

 ing, considering the time of the year. One point which 

 stands out very prominently with this rose is its excel- 

 lent color during all seasons of the year. The exces- 

 sive summer heat seems to have little effect upon it. 



This variety seems to. be a very easy grower as it is 

 not subject to any extent to mildew or black-spot, nor 

 does it throw many deformed buds. It is a liberal feed- 

 er and wants plenty of water. As ^vn growing in both 

 light and heavy soils it would seem that it is not at all 

 fussy in either of these, but seems to be ready to grow 

 under all reasonable conditions. On all places where 

 we have seen My Maryland growing, we have found it 

 thus far giving encouraging indications for this winter's 

 work, and it is to he hoped that it is with us to stay. 



£^/x53~^v 



Scale of Points for Floral 

 Arrangements 



Secretary Dysinger of the Minnesota State Florists' 



Association transmits to us the following querj : 



"When floral arrangements such as designs, bouquets, 

 table decorations, etc . are exhibited in competition and 

 judged by points, what is tho proper scale of points to use?" 



We shall he glad to have the views of our readers on 

 this. Very little of a practical nature on this line has 

 been published hitherto. We should like to hear from 



any having knowledge of the use of a scale of points 



on any occasion in judging floral arrangements or any- 

 one having suggestions to make as to the qualities that 

 should he given a place in such a scale. 



