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DAHLIA 



DAHLIA 



genera of plants whose horticultural value has been 

 attested by permanently successful special societies. 

 There are national dahlia societies in England and 

 America. Dahlia shows are usually held the second or 

 third week in September. On December 21, 1906, the 

 New England Dahlia Society was chartered; this 

 Society led to great advancement in the dahlia, hold- 

 ing an annual exhibition in Boston, and issuing monthly 

 a paper known as the "Dahlia News." Great interest 

 was fostered, and in 1913 its membership list included 

 nearly every state in the Union, and six foreign coun- 

 tries. At the present date of writing the New England 

 Dahlia Society is considering the adoption of a new 

 charter, whereby it can become the National Society. 

 Other societies devoted to the welfare of the dahlia 

 have been recently formed; principally "The Dahlia 

 Association of Seattle," "Tacoma Dahlia Society," 

 "Inter-town Dahlia Association" in Connecticut. 



Literature. As in many other cases, the magazine 

 literature of the dahlia is the most bulky, and, in some 

 respects, more important than the books on the subject. 

 C. Harman Payne published a bibliography in G.C. 

 III. 21:329 (1897). There had been about twenty-five 

 books devoted to the dahlia, many of them pamphlets 

 and cheap cultural manuals. These books were mostly 

 "published from 1828 to 1857, with none in North 

 America for nearly forty years after that date until 

 1896, when Lawrence K. Peacock's book, "The Dahlia," 

 appeared. The first American treatise was by E. Sayers, 

 published at Boston, 1839. Many interesting facts 

 came out in 1889, the centennial year of the dahlia. A 

 report of the National Dahlia Conference is reprinted 

 from the Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society 

 for 1890, but Shu-ley Hibberd's statements therein 

 regarding the botany of the dahlia agree very poorly 

 with Hemsley's revision of the genus in G.C. II. 

 12:437, 524, 557 (1879). In 1906 W. W. Wilmore 

 published "The Dahlia," a handsomely illustrated 

 American manual, valuable to both amateur and pro- 

 fessional. The annual catalogues of the leading dahlia 

 specialists furnish much valuable matter, and cultural 

 hints, and are the most up-to-date issues in the dahlia 

 h n e. WILHELM MILLER. 



J. K. ALEXANDER. 



Cultivation of the dahlia. 



The dahlia has no very special or particular require- 

 ments, and yet many growers fail of the best success 

 because the few demands are not well met. 



Propagation. 



There are four methods by which dahlias are propa- 

 gated: by cuttings (the commercial method), by divi- 

 sion of roots (the amateur's method), by grafting to 

 perpetuate rare kinds, and by seeds, to produce new 

 varieties. 



Cuttings. Propagation by cuttings is employed 

 mainly by commercial growers, and though the ama- 

 teur may propagate plants successfully, the attention a 

 few cuttings would probably require is so great that it 

 would be cheaper to buy plants. The roots are planted 

 closely in benches in the greenhouse early in January, 

 and cuttings are made from the young shoots as fast 

 as they form the third or fourth set of leaves. These 

 cuttings are carefully trimmed and placed in pure sand 

 in the propagating-bench, using a dibble and putting 

 the cuttings in rows about 3 inches apart and %-l 

 inch between the cuttings. 



The propagating-bench is made by running a flue, 

 hot-water or steam pipes beneath an ordinary bench, 

 and boarding up the side to confine the heat. Although 

 there may be a difference of opinion among propaga- 

 tors, yet a bottom of sand heat of 65, with the tem- 

 perature of the house from 5 to 10 less, will give the 

 best practical results. With this temperature, the cut- 



tings will root in about two weeks, and will be far 

 stronger than if rooted in less time with greater heat. 

 As soon as cuttings are rooted, they are potted off into 

 small pots and grown in a cool greenhouse until danger 

 of frost is over, when they are planted out in the open 

 ground. Cuttings made too far below a joint, or too 

 late in summer, will produce flowering plants but 

 no tubers. 



Division of roots. This is the easiest and most satis- 

 factory way for amateurs. As the eyes are not on the 

 tubers, but on the crown to which the tubers are 

 attached, care must be taken that each division has at 

 least one eye, otherwise the roots will never grow. It 

 is, therefore, best to start the eyes by placing the roots 

 in a warm, moist place a short time before dividing. 

 The roots are sometimes placed in a hotbed, and shoots 

 grown to considerable size, then set out as plants; but 

 this plan has many drawbacks, and is not advised. 



Grafting. A very interesting, though not profitable 

 mode of propagation is by means of grafting. The top 

 of the tuber is cut slantingly upward, and the cutting 

 slantingly downward, placed together and tied with 

 raffia or any soft, handy material. They are then 

 planted in a pot deep enough to cover the lower part 

 of the graft with earth, and they will soon adhere if 

 placed under a hand-glass or in a frame. Grafting is 

 practised only for the preservation of rare and weak- 

 growing sorts. 



Seeds. The chief use of seeds is the production of 

 new varieties. Seeds are also used by those who 

 chiefly desire a mass of color, and are not particularly 

 desirous of finely formed blooms. If planted early 

 enough indoors and transplanted to the open as soon 

 as safe, fine masses of color can be secured before frost, 

 and the roots of the more desirable kinds can be saved, 

 and will give even better results the next season. 



Field or garden requirements. 



Dahlias are easily destroyed by high winds unless 

 they are given a protected position, and they need 

 plenty of air and sunlight for best results. In shaded, 

 close, airless quarters the growth is sappy, and the 

 flowers are poorly colored. 



The soil is not so important, except in its ability to 

 hold moisture during severe droughts. Any rich soil 

 that will grow corn will also grow dahlias to perfection, 

 if all other conditions are favorable. They will grow 

 equally well in clear sand, clay or gravel, if the proper 

 kinds and quantities of plant-food are added and well 

 and thoroughly worked in. It is, however, unreason- 

 able to expect dahlias or any garden plants to succeed 

 in a hard clay, devoid of humus, easily baked and 

 never tilled. 



Feeding. It is always best to broadcast the manure 

 and plow or spade it into the soil; thorough spading is 

 absolutely necessary if the manure is not well decom- 

 posed. On heavy clay or gravelly soils, loose coarse 

 manure may be used, but on light or sandy soils, 

 manure should always be fine and well rotted. Com- 

 mercial fertilizers are also largely used, and are most 

 valuable when used in connection with manure. Any 

 good fertilizer, rich in ammonia and phosphoric acid, 

 with a liberal amount of potash, will answer at the 

 tune of planting, but as a top-dressing later, nothing 

 equals pure bone-meal and nitrate of soda, four parts 

 bone-meal to one part soda. 



Kinds of stock. Dahlias are offered in five forms: 

 large clumps, ordinary field-roots, pot-roots, green 

 plants and seeds. The clumps give the best satisfac- 

 tion the first year, but are entirely too large and un- 

 wieldy for anything but a local trade and exchange 

 among amateurs. The ordinary field-roots are the most 

 valuable, as they can be handled easily and safely, and 

 always give satisfactory results. Pot-roots are largely 

 used in the mailing trade, and, while they will not give 

 as good results the first year, are valuable for shipping 



