XXVIII,] THE DRESSING OP CARNATIONS. 455 



or two hundred years. It was the practice of the 

 early gardeners to split the calyx with a pen -knife or 

 scissors in three or four places, and this appears to 

 have been always necessary in 1752, judging from 

 Phillip Miller's account in the sixth edition of his 

 Gardener's Dictionary. I have not had access to 

 Miller's earlier editions. We find this advice to slit 

 the calyces of carnations in some of the books at the 

 opening of this century. The calyx was sometimes 

 bound with cord. At the present time we expect 

 that a good carnation flower will be a "whole flower" 

 without artificial aid. 



The improvement of the form of the carnation 

 flower shows a curious history. A century ago it 

 was the practice to "card" all flowers for exhibi- 

 tion. This operation consisted in securing a circular 

 piece of cardboard to the under side of the flower to 

 act as a support to the lower or guard petals. In 

 the center of this cardboard a hole was cut just the 

 size of the calyx, and a slit was made from this hole 

 to the circumference to allow the cardboard to be 

 adjusted to the flower. The lower petals were flat- 

 tened out upon this cardboard and the central petals 

 were placed by means of tweezers, as fast as they 

 appeared. All crumpled or imperfect petals were re- 

 moved. In this manner were the show carnations of 

 a century ago "dressed" for the occasion, the card- 

 board being allowed to remain permanently upon the 

 flower. The ideal form of a carnation flower one 

 hundred and fifty years ago was essentially the same 

 as that demanded at present. It was "very thick 

 and high in the middle," with flat and spreading 

 borders. 



