GARDEN FLOATERS. 113 



Amaryllis lutea, a small yellow lilj' which blooms abundantl}' in 

 Palestine. What would have been said if the lilies in question 

 had been auratum! 



The Gladiolus, not manj* ^^ears ago, was confined to a very small 

 number of varieties, but now their name is legion. Not only is 

 there increase in quantity but also improvement in quality. The 

 flower must not only be distinct but superior, or the growers dis- 

 card it. 



Careful hybridization has brought and is bringing about a great 

 many changes. In no flower is there greater change than in the 

 Dahlia, the seed of which was introduced into Spain from Mexico 

 in the latter part of the seventeenth centur}-. The seed produced 

 three distinct varieties, one semi-double and the other two single. 

 These seedlings were called Dahlias, after a Swedish botanist 

 named Dahl. They were distributed throughout Europe, and were 

 the only varieties grown for some years. After a time some one 

 experimented with seed, and finally succeeded in producing double 

 flowers, when the single were discarded as worthless. Later it 

 was introduced into this country', and was considered the flower. 

 Then it went out of fashion, for there is fashion in flowers as well as 

 in everything else. "Within a few years the Dahlia has again come 

 into notice. We have it in a great variety of colors, double and 

 single, large and small. I like the single sorts best for cut flow- 

 ers. Either single or double flower abundantly the first 3'ear from 

 seed, provided the seed is sown early in the spring, and the plants 

 are put out as soon as possible — that is, as soon as there is no 

 danger of frosts. After the first year there is no dlflScultj- in propa- 

 gating by tubers. 



Helianthus multijlorus jlore plena ^ the Perennial Sunflower, is not 

 as extensively cultivated as it should be. I find quite old people 

 know it better than younger ones, for it had been lost to cultivation 

 until some one found it, probabh' in some old garden. I cannot 

 see how any one could let it go who once had it in his garden. It 

 is herbaceous and perfectly hardy, commencing to bloom in mid- 

 summer and blooming until severe frosts. It is a beautiful plant, 

 growing from four to six feet in height, and producing abundantly 

 perfectly double pure yellow flowers, about three and a half inches 

 in diameter. Altogether it is the most showy flower for cutting 

 and for garden decoration that I know of. 



There are many hard}' plants and shrubs worthy of cultivation 

 which require no special care, and there is a growing tendency 



