Annuals from |s>eeti 105 



first tender spring green. They had been moved the 

 fall before from a bed where they attracted no par- 

 ticular attention, but in their new quarters they awoke 

 to find themselves famous. 



Dahlias are so easily raised from seed that it hardly 

 seems worth while to bother with the tubers, unless 

 one has exceptionally favourable conditions for stor- 

 ing them. Plants grown from seed, started early in 

 the house or hotbed, will come into bloom quite as 

 soon as those grown from tubers. Plant the seed 

 in drills two inches apart, dropping an inch or more 

 apart in the drills, and cover with one-eighth to one- 

 fourth inch of earth. The seed germinates in from 

 five to seven days, and the little plants are quite robust 

 from the start, though sensitive to cold and drought. 

 When all danger of frost is past and the nights are 

 warm transplant the Dahlias into beds of mellow soil 

 heavily enriched with manure. Set three feet apart 

 each way and cultivate thoroughly as long as there is 

 room to work between the rows. Then mulch heavily 

 with rough manure covered with lawn clippings. 

 Water copiously during dry weather, showering the 

 tops at night to counteract the effect of the dry air on 

 the buds. Save waste water from kitchen and bath, 

 and apply to their roots. This affords nourishment 

 as well as moisture. When two feet high tie carefully 

 to tall, stout stakes, which, to avoid injury to the tu- 

 bers, would better be placed when the plants are set. 

 Sprinkle soot and ashes between the plants and culti- 



