DAE 



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DAH 



immediately dug in one spit deep. Lay 

 the soil so mixed up in slight ridges, to 

 be levelled down just before planting. 



Summer Culture. Prepare the plants 

 for planting out by constant and full ex- 

 posure when the weather is mild. The 

 season for planting is as soon as there is 

 no fear of any more frost. To grow them 

 fine, and to obtain high colours, they 

 should have plenty of room between each 

 plant five feet apart every way for the 

 dwarf-growing kinds, and six feet for the 

 tall ones, will not be too much. It is a 

 good method to have the places for each 

 marked out, by driving in the stakes in 

 the exact places first, arid then there is 

 no danger of the stakes injuring the roots. 

 As late frosts might possibly occur, it is 

 safer to cover the plants at night with 

 clean empty garden-pots of a sufficient 

 size to cover them without touching the 

 leaves, until all fear of frost has subsided. 

 When the plants have obtained a con- 

 siderable growth, cover the surface round 

 each plant with some half-rotted, littery 

 stable-dung ; this will preserve them from 

 drought, and afford nutriment when the 

 plants are watered. 



Tying is a very important operation. 

 As soon as the plants are high enough, 

 they should be tied to the stakes with 

 some rather broad shreds of soft bass 

 matting; and the side-shoots must also 

 be secured by longer pieces of matting, 

 to prevent the winds and heavy rains 

 from breaking them off. It may some- 

 times be necessary to place three or four 

 additional stakes at a certain distance 

 from the central one, to tie the side- 

 branches to. The best kind of stakes 

 are the thinnings of larch plantations. 

 They should be stout, and six or seven 

 feet long, at least. As the plants grow, 

 if the weather is hot and dry, abundance 

 of water should be supplied. 



Protecting the Flowers. This will be 

 necessary if intended for exhibition. 

 Caps of oiled canvass stretched upon a 

 wire frame are very good for the purpose ; 

 even a common garden-pot turned up- 

 side down is no bad shelter. They may 

 easily be suspended over each flower by 

 being fastened to a stake, and the flower 

 gently brought down and tied to the 

 stake under them. The best shade, how- 

 ever, is a square box with a glass front, 

 and a slit at the bottom to allow the stem 

 of the flower to slide into it, and thus 

 bring the flower within the box. The 



flower then has the advantage of light 

 and air, and is still protected from the 

 sun, wind, and rain. 



Winter Culture. As soon as 'the au- 

 tumn frosts have destroyed the tops of 

 the plants, cut down the stems, and take 

 up the roots immediately. If the roote 

 come up clean out of the ground, they 

 will only require gently drying, and may 

 be stored at once in some place where 

 they will be safe from frost. If the soil 

 clings much to the tubers, these should 

 be washed and dried, and then stowed 

 away. The place should not only be free 

 from frost, but from damp also, yet not 

 so dry as to cause them to shrivel up too 

 much. It is a good plan to have two or 

 three of each kind struck late and kept 

 in pots through the winter ; but the soil 

 must be perfectly dry before they are 

 put to rest, and no wet or frost allowed 

 to reach them. A good place for them 

 is to lay the pots on one side under the- 

 stage of a greenhouse. In these winter 

 quarters they must be frequently exa- 

 mined, and all decaying roots or stems- 

 removed. 



Insects. In the early stages of growth, 

 the great pest to the dahlia is the slug. 

 Watering with clear lime-water is the 

 best article to destroy them, or a dusting 

 of quick-lime in dewy mornings will be 

 useful ; a circle of lime round each plant 

 will be a good preventive, and also a care- 

 fully gathering up, very early in the 

 morning, of these vermin will greatly re- 

 duce their numbers. When the plants are 

 in flower, the earwig is almost sure to at- 

 tack them, and frequently in one night 

 will disfigure the finest and. most perfect 

 bloom, and render it unfit for exhibition. 

 Traps must be set to catch them. Small 

 garden-pots with a little hay or moss put 

 in them, and then turned upside down 

 upon the stakes, are a. good trap for them. 

 They should be examined every morning, 

 and the insects in them destroyed. Dried 

 bean stalks are also a good trap : place 

 them among the branches, and the in- 

 sects will creep into them as a hiding 

 place. Also, as they feed chiefly in the 

 night, take a lantern at that time, and 

 examine every flower. 



Preparing for Exhibition. Cut the 

 flowers the night before, and if they are 

 to be conveyed a considerable distance, 

 have a box or boxes made with water- 

 tight tin tubes securely fixed in the bot- 

 tom, to hold water ; pass the stem of each. 



