DAHLIA 



449 



all the florets were sterile. D. arborea has never been 

 sufficiently described, but plants hare been cultivated 

 for many years under this name. The tree forms of 

 Dahlias are not sufficiently known. 

 AA. Height medium, averaging S ft., commonly from 

 2-5 ft., rarely exceeding these extremes. 

 B. Lvs. once pinnate: stem not branching from the base: 

 habit erect 

 c. Stems not glaucous rays fertile 

 D. Bays of the siiioJ fi t , „,, 1 ,t the margins 

 of the donhl 

 r6sea,Cav. {/).!., 

 nal of practically al 1 I ii is 



larly the Single, I'o i i "-' ' I ' J 



types. It is therefori thi i unit t thi \ ist 

 majority of the horticultural virieties Lvs 

 typically once pinnate sometmies bipmnate 

 leaflets ovate, toothed broader and coarser 

 than in the other species B R 1 55 B M 

 1885. -This is a wondertullv variable speties 

 Some plants are densely hairy others scarceh 

 at all. The lvs. are sometiiiKs liipmmti. m 

 parts of plants or throughout m ntir jlint 

 In double forms the rays u i IK 1 \ 1 i 

 tive pistUs. Many gardin t nii \\ \ In 

 cous stems. Some auth i h \ ! ul t I 

 whether this species is di tiULt ti m /' 

 cinea, but the two types are very distmtt 

 particularly in the garden although there are 

 intermediate forms m nature 

 DD. Bays of the single fls with recurved mar 

 (jins: of the double fls not cupped, but 

 Inttij, flat and pointed, and some at 

 leant irith recurved margins 

 Juarfizii, Hort. ( /> Tuarfsii Hort ) Figs 

 665, 666. The parent of the pure Cactus D ih 

 lias. These all originated from one plant 

 which was flowered m Europe for the fii t 

 time in 1864, and first pictured m G C II 

 12:433 (1879). F.M. 1879 383 Gn 18, p 589 

 19:283; 50, p. 236. 



cc. stems glaucous rays not fertile 

 coccinea, Cav. Fig 667 see B M 7G2 

 (1804). Always more slender than Z) roiea, 

 with narrower leaflets, and m the wild at 

 least, dwarf er than the D tosea The 

 color range is much smaller, and does not in- 

 clude white or any shade of purple or crim- 

 son. The colors vary from scarlet, through 

 orange to yellow. There are no double forms, 

 and it has been frequently said that this spe- 

 cies will not hybridize with D. rosea. The 

 named varieties pictured in I.H. 31:515 and 

 533 (1881), which are emphatically declared to 

 be varieties of D. coccinea, are probably gar- 

 den forms of D. rosea. The only characters that cer- 

 tainly distinguish D. coccinea from V. rosea are the 

 glaucous stems and infertile rays of the former, but 

 these characters break down in garden forms. B. M. 

 762. Gn. 19: 270. G.C. 11. 12: 525. 

 BB. Jjvs. twice pinnate : stems branched from the base: 



habit spreading, 

 ■ MSrckii, Lehm. (Z>. glabrita, Lindl.). Fig. 668; 

 confer B.M. 3878 (1841). Height 2-3 ft.: roots much 

 more slender than those of D. rosea : stem and lvs. 

 wholly devoid of hairs : lvs. bipinnate: floral bracts 

 lineal-: fls. typically lUac; rays pistillate : outer Involu- 

 cral bracts linear. B.E. 26: 29 (1840). Gn. 19: 270 (1881). 

 — This is a very distinct garden plant, and is worth 

 growing merely as a foliage plant. Seeds of species 

 gathered from wild plants in Mexico by Pringle have 

 been grown at the Cornell Experiment Station lately. 

 The fine-cut character of the foliage makes it vastly 

 more attractive than the coarse foliage of most of the 

 varieties of V. rosea. Several of these seedlings had 

 beautiful dark red or purple foliage. The plants are 

 much dwarfer and wider spreading than most florists' 

 Dahlias, and show no stem while growing. The branched 

 flowering stems are remarkably long, slender and wiry, 



often rising 2-3 ft. above the foliage. The rays are very 

 short and often roundish, with a short sharp point in- 

 stead of 3 minute teeth. There are no red, yellow or 

 white forms in nature. The roots of this and J), coccinea, 

 being slenderer than those of D. rosea, must be pre- 

 served with greater care during winter. 



D. Zimapani. See Cosmos diversifoUus. W.M. 



Propagation.— There are four methods by which 

 Dahlias are propagated by cuttings (an important 

 commercial method ) , by division of roots ( the amateur's 



665. The orierinal Cactus Dahlia CX>^). 



Photographed anil reduced from the Gardeners' Chronicle, 



where it was first pictured. 



method) ; by grafting to perpetuate rare kinds ; and by 



seeds, to produce new varieties. 



Division of Boots. — This is the easiest and most sat- 



iiateurs. As the eyes ay R not pn the 



I wbicli tne tubers are at- 



t hat each d ivision has at. 



least^onejejeT^therwise the roots will never gfow~It 

 Is, tlTerefore, best to start the eyes by placing the roots 

 in a warm, moist place a short time before dividing. 

 The roots are sometimes placed In a hotbed, and shoots 

 grown to considerable size, then set out as plants ; but 

 this plan has many drawbacks, and is not advised. 



Cuttings. — This method is used mainly by commercial 

 growers, and though the amateur may propagate plants 

 successfully, the attention a few cuttings would require 

 would be so great that it would be cheaper to buy plants. 

 The roots are planted closely in benches in the green- 

 house early in January, and cuttings are made from the 



