The Fascination of Flowers [ 309 



Clayey soil may be lightened with coal ashes or sand, plus 

 vegetable matter and manure. A light sandy loam will produce 

 healthy plants and exquisite blooms; gravelly fields have been 

 known to support fine dahlia beds; and a plant may even be 

 found growing in an ash heap where a tuber (the underground 

 stem) has been discarded. 



How to Protect Dahlia Seeds: You can raise dahlias from stem 

 cuttings as well as from tubers. For a real gardening adventure, 

 your youngster may enjoy trying to develop new dahlias from 

 seeds. The project begins at the height of the blooming season, 

 when he must be on the lookout for any particularly large, rich- 

 colored flower. This should be tagged "For Seed," so that it will 

 not be picked. 



The chosen flower must now remain in the garden until insects 

 have carried pollen to it and it "goes to seed." When the flower 

 shrivels and turns brown, you tie a small paper bag over it so that 

 you can save the seeds if the seed pod bursts. 



How to Plant Dahlia Seeds: Late fall is the time for you to gather 

 the, seeds, drying them and storing them in an airtight bottle. 

 Early in May you plant them in a box with one part soil to two 

 parts sand mixture. When seedlings appear about two weeks 

 later, transplant them to a sunny spot in the garden. 



Until the buds finally open, the young gardener will go through 

 the suspense of wondering whether they will be double or single 

 flowers and what their color will be. It all depends on what pollen 

 was carried to his flowers during the previous season. 



Indoor Gardening 



If you live in an apartment and cannot have a garden 

 outdoors, you and your child can share the rich pleasures of 

 starting a garden indoors. Bulbs are especially suitable. (Bulbs 

 are buds made up of a stem surrounded by leaves.) You can buy 

 them inexpensively at many department stores, hardware stores, 

 or florist shops. 



Narcissus Bulbs Are Easy to Grow: The narcissus, a popular favor- 

 ite with yellow or white varieties, need only, be supported in a 



