REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PLANTS AND FLOWERS 107 



W. P. Lothrop of East Bridgewater showed a very fine orange- 

 colored Cactus dahlia named Lothrop 's Seedling and was awarded 

 a First Class Certificate. 



September and October Exhibitions. 



September 8. What was once the Autumn Show of stove and 

 greenhouse plants is now the Dahlia Show. The Schedule calls 

 for herbaceous plants and Tea roses. There were no entries for 

 these and very few herbaceous flowers among the general displays. 

 There was a good exhibition of dahlias, but the blooms generally 

 were not up to the average. 



The committee has always had some difficulty in judging the 

 classes of Show, Fancy, and Decorative. All three classes run 

 one into the other and they can be graded all the way. It is 

 possible to have Show and Fancy on the same plant, by " sporting." 

 The typical Decorative flowers open more at the tips of the florets 

 than they should for admission properly into the Fancy class, 

 yet some varieties come so near this class, that it is hard to find 

 a place for them. It was suggested by several of the dahlia fanciers 

 at the exhibition that this variation in the Decorative varieties 

 be made the basis for a class by themselves. 



As stated above, Show and Fancy blooms often grow on the 

 same plant and these two should be merged. 



B. Hammond Tracy of Wenham had an artistic display of gladi- 

 oli, including the very best grown and several seedlings of his 

 own. 



Among Mr. Tracy's best were America; Augusta, white; Blue- 

 jay; Daybreak; Dawn; Fireside; Gil Bias, salmon-rose; Har- 

 vard, red; Independence, rose-pink; Isaac Buchanan, yellow; 

 Kathryn, orchid-flowered, rosy heliotrope with white throat and 

 veinings, a most beautiful variety; Mme. Butterfly, yellow, flecked 

 with rose; Maiden Blush; Mephistopheles; Mrs. Beecher, rosy 

 crimson; Mrs. Lancashire, cream; Mrs. Francis King, flame pink; 

 Niagara, yellow; and Princess Sandersoni, white, pencilled crimson. 



The new and distinct Gladiolus primulinus, said to be a native 

 of South Africa, was on exhibition, and received Honorable Men- 

 tion. 



