296 



THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



[Mat 4, 1912. 



FLORISTS' FLOWERS, 



COLLARETTE DAHLIAS. 



In view of the development of this clacs of 

 Dahlia, the note on the subject by the late Mr. 

 W. E. Gumbleton in the Gardeners* Chronicle, 

 May 6, 1911, p. 283, may be recalled. Mr. 

 Gumbleton drew attention to the beauty and 

 utility of these flowers. The Collarette Dahlias 

 aeem to have had their origin on the Con- 

 tinent, and many of the beet of the sorts 

 now in commerce have been raised and dis- 

 tributed by French and German growers. 

 British specialists in the cultivation of the 

 Dahlia have, however, taken up^ their cul- 

 ture, and one firm is introducing this season no 

 fewer than six varieties, all of which have 



with red, with a collar of a soft primrose shade 

 the plants growing 3£ feet high. These varieties 

 are amongst the best of the Continental introduc- 

 tiAB^iW and, in addition, tions known to me, but the following sorts did 



the First-class Diploma of the North of England well last season and were much appreciated :- 



yields its flowers in great profusion. It well de- 

 serves the First-class Certificates it has received 

 from the National Dahlia Society and the Scot- 



Horticultural Society. It is a robust grower, the 

 plants attaining a height of 4£ feet. Leitstern is 

 another attractive, star-shaped flower, the deep 

 velvety-maroon background making a strong 

 contrast with the pure white collar. It is a 

 favourite for cutting, and a vase of its flowers 

 has a very pleasing effect. Like Diadem, it is a 

 strong-growing and free-flowering variety, 

 the plants being about 3£ feet high. It 

 has received a First-class Certificate from 

 the National Dahlia Society. Countess Dougon 



R. Bernardeav. 



crimson 



-White ground 

 cream-coloured collar. 



A crimson-scarlet flower with yel- 

 yellow collar. Very showy and 



Souvenir de 

 mottled with 

 Height 3 feet. 



Antverpia. 

 low disc and 

 beautiful when cut. Height 3^ feet. 



Le Congo Beige. — A variety much in the way 

 of Leitstern, but distinct. The flowers are of a 

 fine maroon colour with a white collar. Very 

 pretty in a vase. Height 3 feet. 



is a white-ground flower splashed with rosy- Henri F ar man .—Bright vermilion, edged 



with primrose, and having a straw -coloured collar. 

 A conspicuous and effective flower. Height 



s 







I 





w 



m 









J 



Fig. 145. 



COLLARETTE DAHLIA DIADEM: A ROSE-COLOURED VARIETY 



WITH A WHITE " COLLAR." 



been raised in its nurseries. The Royal Hor- 

 ticultural, National Dahlia, Royal Caledonian 

 Horticultural, and North of England Horticul- 

 tural Societies, together with the Scottish Horti- 

 cultural Association, all granted awards during 

 last autumn to some of the varieties of this 

 type. The great feature of the Collarette Dahlia 

 is its value for decoration, either in the garden or 

 cut for the decoration of the house. The Col- 

 larette flowers are borne on stout, stiff, erect 

 stems, standing well in a cut state in water, while 

 their pleasing combinations of colours are much 

 appreciated for this work, and the blossoms 

 remain fresh for ten days in vases. One 

 of the most beautiful varieties I noticed last 

 autumn was Diadem, a rose-coloured, star-shaped 

 flower with a pure white collar, altogether a most 

 effective and charming Dahlia, and one that 



It 



purple, the collar being white. It is a 

 little dwarfer in growth than the tw T o varie- 

 ties already mentioned, the plants growing 

 about 3 feet high. Prince de Venosa has crim- 

 son flowers shading to magenta, with a pure- 

 white collar. It grows about 4 feet high. This 

 variety has received Awards of Merit from the 

 Royal Horticultural Society and the Scottish Hor- 

 ticultural Association. Maurice Rivoire, one of 

 the sorts mentioned by Mr. Gumbleton, has re- 

 ceived awards from the Royal Horticultural and 

 National Dahlia societies, and from the Scottish 

 Horticultural Association. It is a very showy 

 variety with flowers of a crimson ground, the 

 darker shades of which are well set off by the 

 pure white collar. The plant has a good habit 

 and is very showy, and attains a height of 4 feet. 

 Mme. Gygax has pretty yellow flowers marked 



3i 



conspicuous 

 feet. 



Comtesse Icy Hardegg. — Purple-maroon shad- 

 ing to rose, with white tips to the petals. Collar 

 white. Height 3i feet. 



Mme. E. Wauters.— Flowers deep red, with 

 straw-coloured collar. Height 3 feet. 



The above-mentioned varieties are all free- 

 flowering, the habit of the plant in every case 

 being good. They are distinct and effective 

 and give a splendid display in the garden from 

 the middle of August until the plants are cut 



down by frost. 



A variety named Holyrood, to be distributed 

 this season, has flowers of a rich ruby colour, the 

 tips of the petals being golden yellow. The flower 

 has a yellow disc and a clear yellow collar, the 

 latter being unusually well developed. I wai 

 specially taken with the exquisite vases of flowers 

 of this flower submitted by the raisers in the 

 autumn to the Floral Committees of the Royal 

 Caledonian Horticultural Society and the Scottish 

 Horticultural Association, both of which 

 societies honoured it with a First-class Certifi- 

 cate. George M. Taylor, Midlothian. 



NOTES ON THE ECONOMIC FLORA OF 



6AZALAND. 



(Continued from p. 284.) 



Khata nyasica is another lofty and closely- 

 allied tree, the wood of which is of a red colour, 

 handsomely grained, hard but fairly easy w 

 work. The seeds are gathered, crushed aw 

 boiled by the natives for the purpose oi obtain- 

 ing the oil, which is said to have a bitter tas e 

 and is rubbed by them into their hair to ku 

 vermin. Catha edulis, a tree belonging to 

 the Celastrine*, well known as fur Br ,n J 

 the leaves of the " Khat " or Arabian lea, 

 here described as one of the largest fores ^ 

 yielding Chirinda Redwood. In the order nna™ 

 nacea?, the only plant referred to as i oi / 

 economic use is Zizyphus mucronata, in s 

 of which, together with those of Sec ur , aca kH* 

 pedunculata, are considered by tne n* ^ 

 tors as the two best remedies for pieu"*. 

 pains in the chest ; the leaves are also 

 for similar purposes, being first chewed : Y^ 

 mote the flow of saliva, which is «"" ^ 

 with the hand into tattoo cuts in tiie s ^ 

 stomach. Rhoicissus cuneifoha, a anr ^ 

 trailing twigs, belonging to the Ampej"'- cf 

 small edible fruits. The roots take *Je form ^ 



long, hard tubers, which »™ » ^a f culti- 

 the plough, and greatly increase «£ w and 



vation. They are pounded by tne >» for 



mixed with meal to form a thm pom «, 



pains in the chest. „ n minos£e, a* 



In the large Natural Order ^^^ 

 misht be expected, a goodlynumbei^f _ 



are recorded, with various use* «- — tree 80 

 wood of Erythrina Humeana, a tn J^ f 

 feet high, is much used for fences on a 



the ease with which posts m ^ &t „* * 

 strike root in the ground. A s 



