REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON PLANTS AND FLOWERS. 167 



cultivation of the dahlia has made it very desirable that a special 

 show be held in the interests of this flower, and a change in the 

 designation of the fall show seemed no more than was due to so 

 important a flower as the dahlia and one to which such wide- 

 spread interest is directed. 



The exhibition was, without doubt, the largest and best showing 

 of dahlias that has ever been made here and much credit is due the 

 New England Dahlia Society for its efforts in making it a success, 

 it being the first annual meeting of that organization. 



Besides the dahlias and hardy herbaceous flowers, for which 

 prizes were offered, there were many miscellaneous displays of 

 much value, all combining to make a fall show of great interest 

 and of an entirely different character from the stereotyped exhibi- 

 tion of former years. There were entries in nearly all the dahlia 

 classes and in most of them the competition was very keen, the 

 number of entries in all amounting to sixty-four. 



Special awards were given as follows: to Frederic J. Rea, a 

 First Class Certificate for Helenium autumnale swperhum rubrum, 

 a handsome variety of this useful plant, with brown-red flowers; 

 to A. H. Wingett a First Class Certificate for seedling dahlia 

 Charles Lanier, a fine large show bloom with perfect form and 

 deep yellow color; and to B. Hammond Tracy First Class Certifi- 

 cates for Gladioli Kathryn, Princess Sandersoni, and Jean Dieu la 

 Foy, and Honorable Mention for Harvard. 



The variety Kathryn has a large open flower, good spike and 

 deep rosy-carmine in color, with white throat blotched with crimson. 

 Princess Sandersoni is pure white with the lip slightly blotched 

 yellow, shaded and marked maroon. It is a fine variety and is 

 a selection from White Sandersoni. Jean Dieu la Foy has a fine 

 open flower and long spike of cream white flowers blotched with 

 crimson. Harvard has a large open flower in good spikes. The 

 color is a deep shade of brownish crimson. 



The varieties Kathryn and Harvard were exhibited as original 

 seedlings but since the above awards were made information has 

 come to us that this is incorrect and that prominent gladiolus 

 growers pronounce the former to be the variety Rosella and the 

 latter the variety George Paul. It is desirable that these varieties 

 may be shown side by side the coming season so the matter may be 

 cleared up. 



