ON DAHLIAS 157 



tubers, in which case the roots should be washed and 

 then turned upside down in the sun and left till dry. 

 This is more important than might be supposed. Dahlia 

 stools often go off wholesale in winter when it is quite 

 certain that frost cannot have affected them, and the 

 explanation is that they have rotted through damp. The 

 winter store should be dry. If a grower finds that he 

 persistently loses stools in winter, he may strike a few 

 cuttings in August, made from young growing tips cut 

 off just below a joint. These will root if inserted in 

 small pots of sandy soil and kept close for a few days, 

 and form small tubers before winter. They should be 

 kept dry in winter ; drip would be likely to injure them 

 as badly as frost. The young plants will form a reserve 

 that may come in very useful if anything happens to the 

 stools. 



Propagation by Cuttings. Sound tubers would begin 

 to grow naturally in spring, but florists do not wait for 

 the weather to grow warm enough to start the tubers if 

 a great many cuttings are wanted. They pack the roots 

 in soil in February and put them in a warm house or 

 frame, so stimulating early growth. The shoots that 

 push are taken off when about three inches long. If they 

 are numerous, they may be broken off quite close, 

 but if scarce they should be cut off so as to leave two 

 buds. They will strike just the same, and the buds left 

 will push fresh growth. Several cuttings may be put 

 round the edge of a six-inch pot, or one cutting in a 

 three-inch. They strike root best when plunged in a mild 

 hot bed, giving only just sufficient water to prevent the 

 soil getting quite dry, and shaded from sunlight. They 

 will be growing in twelve to eighteen days, and those 

 in large pots should then be put singly into three-inch or 

 four-inch pots and kept close till they start growing again. 



