History of the Dahlia 



at this time Ambassador from England to the Court 

 of Spain, and the Marchioness, who cherished a true 

 sympathy with floriculture, obtained some of these 

 seeds, which she cultivated in pots in a greenhouse, but 

 failed to keep them beyond two or three years." " In 

 1802 an English nurseryman, John Eraser, of Sloane 

 Square, a collector of American plants, obtained from 

 Paris some seeds of Dahlia coccinea, which flowered in 

 a greenhouse in 1803 at his nursery, and supplied 

 a subject for a plate in the Botanical Magazine, 

 which secured to the plant a proper place in the 

 English Garden" (Shirley Hibberd). In 1804 Lady 

 Holland, who was then at Madrid, sent home seeds, 

 it is believed, to Holland House, Kensington, where 

 plants were raised and bloomed. When they were 

 in flower, her husband, Lord Holland, wrote to his 

 wife as follows : 



k< The Dahlia you brought to our isle 

 Your praises for ever shall speak, 

 'Mid gardens as sweet as your smile, 

 And in colour as bright as your cheek." 



Mr. Geo. Nicholson, in his Dictionary of Gardening, 

 informs us that the plants raised in Holland House in 

 1 804 were lost, and that a third stock was brought 

 from Erance in 1815, probably flowers showing signs 

 of doubling, as at this time double Dahlias began to 

 appear. From this time the history of the flower rises 

 to a kind of stately march. It acquired extensive 

 popularity, and Dahlia exhibitions were held in many 

 parts of the country. 



