BOTANY OF THE DAHLIA 



THE Dahlia belongs to the largest of all the orders, 

 namely, Composite, which contains about 10,000 

 species. The order is divided into a certain number 

 of tribes, the Dahlia being classed in the Helian- 

 thoideai, or that to which the Sunflower and our 

 wild Bur-marigolds belong. These tribes are again 

 divided into genera, of which the Dahlia forms one, 

 having received its generic name from the Abbe 

 Cavanilles, who first scientifically described it, and 

 named it the Dahlia in honour of his friend Dahl, 

 the Swedish botanist. 



Many species of the Helianthoidese have their 

 leaves opposite, a characteristic which obtains in the 

 Bur -marigolds, the only representatives of the tribe 

 indigenous to Britain. 



The Dahlia, it is said, grows wild in sandy meadows 

 in Mexico, whence it was brought to Europe about a 

 hundred years ago. It is perennial in its growth, but 

 flowers freely from seed the first year. As it cannot 

 resist frost there is no chance of its ever establishing 

 itself as a garden escape in this country. One night's 

 frost in autumn is sufficient to blacken and destroy 

 the bloom and foliage of every plant exposed to it. 

 It has been known to appear in some places a second 



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