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Apkil 13, 1905. 



The Weekly Florists' Review* 



I22J 



clear sand, some on loam and some on 

 the heaviest of clay; yet all give flat- 

 tering reports of success, ;put for con- 

 venience in cultivation and digging, a 

 light soil is preferable. I might also 

 say that the daMia is a favorite among 

 all people of all countries, and I know 

 of no reason why it should not be. Its 

 easy culture, varied forms, aJmost 

 boundless range of color and the wealth 

 of bloom at a season when most needed, 

 should appeal strongly to both amateur 

 and professional. 



The dahlia, if properly treated, will 

 begin to bloom in this latitude in about 

 seventy-five days from date of planting 

 dormant tubers. They may be had much 

 earlier, of course, if started under glass, 

 but if this method is employed, great 

 care should be 'exercised to keep the 

 plants free from red spider, as it is 

 almost impossible to rid the plants of 

 them when once infested. I have always 

 preferred planting direct to the open 

 ground, and usually count on two and 

 one-half to three months of bloom, which 

 is ample to repay all labor and space 

 given. 



As this audience is not one of ama- 

 teurs it will not be necessary for me to 

 go into details of cultivation, manure, 

 water, etc., further than to say that 

 dahlias may be grown much closer than 

 generally practiced; that they require 

 less manure than generally supposed; 

 that they will stand a great deal more 

 cultivation than generally given, and 

 should be watered as often as they need 

 it, and not otherwise. 



Florists' Varieties. 



As to varieties for florists ' use, , I 

 would say that a few varieties are pref- 

 erable to many, and these should be 

 clear, bright, self-colored flowers, though 

 not necessarily deep colors; but should 

 be selected to conform to the popular 

 color tastes of the day. I would say 

 that six to eight good varieties would 

 meet the requirements of the cut flower 

 trade, say red, scarlet, yellow, two shades 

 of pink, and two white, one large and 

 one small for design work. The latter 

 aeed not have a long stem, but the 

 jthers should have stems from twelve to 

 jighteen inches in length, and as much 

 longer as they may be had. 



But it should not be forgotten that 

 the dahlia has other uses beside the 

 funeral wreath and the house decoration. 

 The park, cemetery and private grounds 

 consume an immense number, far greater 

 than does the cut flower trade. Here 

 the lines as to color and stem are not 

 so critically drawn. Many of the short- 

 er-stemmed varieties, variegated colors 

 and neutral shades may be profitably 

 used here. 



The Cactus Daiilia. 



The show and fancy types, so popular 

 a generation ago, seem to have reached 

 the limit of their possibilities. It is 

 the cactus and decorative varieties, but 

 more especiallv the cactus, which has 

 caused the present popular favor, and 

 yet it is plainly evident that the show 

 and fancy types will still hold their 

 places for many years to come. There 

 is a real worth back of them not yet 

 found in some of the new varieties even 

 though popular. 



The first cactus dahlia originated in 

 1872, but was not placed upon the mar- 

 ket until 1880. It seems to have been 

 a chance seedling, but may be a sep- 



Azalea Mollis with Pot C)vering of Figured G-epe Paper. 



arate species. The original specimen 

 was a bright scarlet of fine form but 

 very short stem, but was nevertheless a 

 very welcome addition, and I adopted 

 it as the central figure of my trade mark. 

 It was introduced under the name of 

 Juarezi, after Pres. Juarez, of Mexico, 

 and is still listed in some of the cata- 

 logues. From this chance plant there 

 has descended a mighty troop that has 

 held the center of the dahlia stage for 

 the past twenty years, and the type is 

 still showing marked improvement each 

 year. Where it will end no one can 

 say. The type embraces all the colors of 

 the other types, in size from a small 

 pompon to a diameter of seven inches, 

 some with petals as narrow as a blade 

 of grass, giving the flower more the 

 appearance of a chrysanthemum than a 

 dahlia. At first the type was deficient 

 in stems, they being either short and 

 •tiff or thin and weakly, but in recent 

 years much improvement has been made, 

 and there are a goodly number now 

 with fine stems, twelve to eighteen 

 inches long, which hold the flower quite 

 erect. And while the stem is under 

 discussion, let me say that some ot 

 the weak-stemmed varieties, while use- 

 less as a cut flower, are yet very valua- 



ble for garden plants. The drooping 

 stem permits the flower to swing free 

 of the plant, and when combined with 

 the dark green foliage presents a pic- 

 ture of wonderful grace not seen in the 

 more erect-growing plants. 



For cutting purposes I cannot say that 

 the cactus dahlias are at present a suc- 

 cess, taking them as a whole, although 

 there are some varieties that are simply 

 grand, but speaking of them as a class 

 they have a tendency to wilt too quickly, 

 excepting in the late fall, when the flow- 

 ers develop slowly; then nearly all the 

 varieties are good. Neither are the 

 single varieties in favor as cut flowers. 

 They stand up well, but drop their petals 

 too soon. I make an exception, how- 

 ever, of Twentieth Century, which is 

 as remarkable for keeping as it is in 

 other respects. This one is decidedly 

 the best of the singles in general use. 



Too Many Varieties. 



A question of much importance to 

 both amateur and professional is the 

 selection of varieties. Were there but 

 a few dozen to select from it would not 

 be difficult, but such is not the case, and 

 a serious fault lies at the door of the 

 commercial grower who holds with one 



