CHAPTER IX 

 COLLERETTE DAHLIAS 



THE varieties belonging to this section are distinguished 

 from all others by having a frill of short, erect florets 

 around the central disc, which gives the blooms a distinct 

 and pleasing appearance and the section its distinctive 

 name. These florets are really an amplification of the 

 outer row belonging to the disc, and upon their develop- 

 ment and colour the merits of a variety largely depend. 

 Practically collerette varieties are single Dahlias with the 

 addition of the frill or collar of erect florets, therefore the 

 blossoms should be stout in substance and regular in 

 outline, and the collar full and the colour in harmony or 

 pleasing contrast with the ray florets. 



The history of the section extends over so short a 

 period that it may be briefly stated. In the year 1899, in 

 the municipal gardens of the Pare de la Tete d'Or, Lyons, 

 two Dahlia plants produced sports bearing blossoms with 

 abnormal florets around the disc. These sports in due 

 course became fixed and were propagated, and in 1901 they 

 were distributed as " Collerette " Dahlias by Messrs. Rivoire 

 and Son, Lyons, under the names of President Viger and 

 Joseph Goujon. Since the introduction of these two 

 sports many excellent varieties of the same class have been 

 raised from seed and introduced to cultivation, but it was 



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