CHAPTER XLII 



THE DAHLIA 



Of late years the old, very double Dahlia has 

 lost something of the popularity it used to enjoy; 

 not because it is not still considered a most desirable 

 flower for the garden, but because it has failed so often 

 to give satisfaction that amateurs have begun to con- 

 sider it a difficult matter to grow it well. This failure 

 is attributable more to our hot, dry seasons, several 

 of which we have had in succession, than to any other 

 eause, for this flower is fond of moisture at its roots, 

 and must have it in order to do well, and a hot sun 

 !;eems to depress it when the soil it is growing in is 

 dry. A warm summer suits it well if we have plenty 

 of wet weather along with the heat. Another cause 

 of failure is the shortness of our northern season. If 

 we would have many flowers from it we must give 

 the plants an early start. If this is not done they 

 will not come into bloom till late. They will be ready 

 for the best work of the season about the time frost 

 comes. 



I aim to get my Dahlias well under way in April. 

 I plant the tubers in good compost, in old boxes, and 

 in a few days sprouts will start. I am careful to give 

 them all the fresh air possible to prevent them from 

 sending up weak and spindling stalks. I put them 

 out in the sun, on warm days, and give only moderate 

 amounts of water, aiming to secure a steady, healthy 

 growth instead of a rapid one. It is not large plants 

 that you want at planting-out time so much as strong 

 and vigorous ones. A plant that has been forced to 

 a too rapid growth will suffer from the change when 



