356 



THE GARDENERS MONTHLY 



[December, 



about four feet apart, and carefully pegged 

 down while young. They are invaluable for 

 cutting in December and January, grown in pots 

 all the summer, and removed inside as soon as 

 frost appears. Last season I saw a house in full 

 bloom in February. White Queen is invaluable 

 for this purpose. 



Having briefly given a few ideas of the merits 

 of Single Dahlias, I will proceed to give a list oi 

 a few of the most distinct varieties personally 

 selected from the largest collection in England, 

 where the cultivation of this plant has been 

 taken up with much spirit, and where they are 

 grown by thousands. 



White.— 3/er&je— A very elegant and useful species, foli- 

 age and flowers small, but very abundant ; of the purest 

 white, quite distinct in foliage and flower from all the 

 dahlias. Snowflight-Greyiah. white, shading to flesh, fine 

 formed flower. Festo— White, pale primrose centre, very 

 effective. WTiite Pe<*— SniaU neat flower, great substance, 

 pure white, fine for cutting. White (SYar*-Ciuite distinct 

 from above, medium sized flower, pure white. White 

 Queen*— The finest of all the whites, blossoms of great size, 

 perfectly symmetrical, exceedingly free flowering. 



Rose AJfD Pink. -C7im«ne— Bright pink, fine well-formed 

 flower. This is one of the most telling I have seen ; it has 

 received several "First-class certificates" this season. 

 Fanny Tracer.— Bright rose tinged with pink, fine flower. 

 Francis Fell*— Bright fiery purple, with rosy tinge, good 

 form, exceedingly free flowering, and a great favorite. 

 iVOT-o-Delicate pale pink, very dwarf habit, exceedingly 

 free flowering. Pe^ronei. - Delicate pale pink, fine well- 

 formed flower. William Gordon— yid,u.\e. and pink blended, 

 beautiful soft rich shade, extra fine shaped flower. 



PUKPLE AND Mauve.— ^scaio/i*— Bright rosy purple, and 

 exceedingly large well-formed flower, fine for cutting. 

 Duck of Teck.— Rich mauve, florets perfectly flat, an ex- 

 ceedingly well-formed flower. Kisber—mch mulberry, very 

 effective, and telling shade. Mauve Queen~Fa.c simile of 

 White Queen in form, but a rich silky mauve color, the best 

 of this shade. Purple A^ing-Rlch violet purple, small 

 well-formed flower, fine for cutting. Fwple Paragon- 

 Deep rich purple, beautifully shaded, same size flower as 

 Paragon. 



Yellow.— Canarj/— Rich canary yellow, medium sized 

 flower, very good. Lutea grandiflora— Rich yellow, an 

 immense flower, and perfect in shape, a grand decorative 

 variety. 5^o?/a<erre— Pale primrose, large well-formed flower, 

 exceedingly free flowering. Wdliam Culling/ord— Rich 

 pale yellow, fine, well-formed flower. Yellow Queen*— Fine 

 bold well-formed flower, of great substance, flowers erect, 

 rich sulphur yellow, fine companion to White and Maiive 

 Queen. 



Red and Scarlet.— Cri<e7-io«— Light red, shaded with 

 orange, good shape. Gracilis Elegans*—aie3ir bright scht- 

 let, fine shaped flower, neat erect habit, very free bloomer. 

 Muby— Rich ruby red, flushed with crimson, very novel. 

 Hob Boy— Intense scarlet, extra large flower. Scarlet Gem 

 •—Scarlet shading to orange, medium sized flowers, fine for 

 bouquets. Tfwrnas UTieeier*— Pretty bright brick red, fine 

 formed flowers and very free. 



Crimson and Maroon.— Z)a>-Ame«s — Intense rich mul- 

 berry, shaded black, medium size, and of good substance, 

 the darkest yet raised. Le Baron*— Rich mulberry, shaded 



with crimson, with a dark ring round the disc. Jhalia*— 

 Rich amaranth, medium sized flowers of great substance, 

 and exceedingly free flowering, one of the most effective. 

 Beauty of Cambridge*— Bright fiery crimson, large flat solid 

 flower, universaUy acknowledged as one of the fine.st of the 

 Single Dahlias. Ceres— Large deep crimson. Gracilis per- 

 /ec<a*— Rich velvety crimson, fine formed fiower, very free 

 bloomer. 



Orange.— ^ibion— Orange-shaded rose, large bold flower. 

 Aurantiaca superba— Flowers of medium size, bright 

 orange. Citprea— Orange shaded with copper, very free 

 l)looniing. Orangeman*— Rich orange, tinged with red, very 

 effective. 



F'ANcy.—3/arj7!ion*— Large rich velvety flowers, striped 

 with chestnut red. BatUaloon— Small flower, but very ef- 

 fective and abundant, rich mulberry edged with white, very 

 pleasing. Pamf/on*- Rich velvety maroon, each petal edged 

 with a distinct rosy purple band, medium sized flower, per- 

 fection in shape, a first-class variety for cutting. Stais and 

 Stripes— La,Tge well-formed flower, of bright rose color, 

 heavily striped and spotted with purplLsh crimson, a very 

 conspicuous and showy variety. Union Jack— Fine bright 

 scarlet edged with white, small flower, but very free bloom- 

 ing, extra fine for cutting. Utility*— 'Sledium Flowers, 

 white striped with lilac, quite a novelty in this class. 



As decorative plants Single Dahlias will be- 

 come very popular; they are easily grown, pro- 

 duce an abundance of bloom, and are not at all 

 fastidious as to soil and position. They can be 

 treated as annuals, and. provided a good strain 

 of seed is obtained, the amateur may depend 

 upon getting a great variety of color. The seed 

 should be sown Piarly in January, and grown on 

 until May. By that time they will be strong 

 plants; a few might be grown in pots for winter 

 decoration, while those intended for summer 

 display should be planted out. Where po.ssible 

 to obtain good named sorts, I would recommend 

 every one to obtain them in preference to seed. 



I have made a selection (marked*) of eighteen 

 of the most distinct, embracing every shade of 

 color, which I am sure will please the most fas- 

 tidious. 



[Usually we should hardly feel warranted in 

 taking up so much space with descriptions of 

 florists' flowers, readily obtainable from ordinary 

 catalogues, but in this instance we are anxious 

 to show the reader how very great is the variety 

 which is being added to our gardens by the im- 

 provement of the Single Dahlia.— Ed. G. M.] 



THE DOUBLE CAROLINA JASMINE. 



BY D. W. LANGDON, MOBILE, ALA. 



I wish to call attention to the free blooming 

 qualities of the Double Carolina Jasmine (Gel- 

 semium nitidum flora pleno) which was par- 

 tially described in the Gardener's Monthly of 

 June, 1881. My old plant— which is now some 

 ten or twelve years old and completely covers 



