CULTIVATION OF THE SHOW DAHLIA. 



81 



this time will have broken into perhaps ten or twelve branches, 

 and you may leave one bud to each. 



In many varieties, perhaps, the plant had better be thinned out 

 to six or eight branches to get the blooms fit for the exhibition 

 table. Such varieties as Bendigo and King of the Purples may 

 be cited in illustration; while varieties like T. J. Saltmarsh, John 

 Standish, or Mrs. Langtry may be allowed to carry twelve or more. 

 Many amateurs find a difficulty to know what buds to leave 

 in thinning, but I have found from the time the bud first shows 

 itself to the time it is ready for cutting a month is just sufficient. 

 I find sprinkling with a rose-can overhead very helpful after a 

 hot, drying day, as it assists the plants to recover the loss they 

 have sustained during the day. 



When the petals of the buds are beginning to show, then the 

 earwig begins his depredations in earnest. What is more trying 

 than to find promising young buds completely spoilt by being 

 gnawed all round the edges by these pests ? A piece of wadding 

 tied loosely round the stalk of the buds will be a great check, also 

 liquid india-rubber put on the stalks of the buds. This is made 

 by holding a piece of pure rubber on a wire, letting the liquid 

 fall into a small jar or tin vessel. The rubber is soon ignited 

 by lighting a match and applying it. This, however, is rather 

 dangerous if used too freely, for the sun sometimes heats 

 the rubber and burns through part of the stalk, making it 

 fall over spoilt. But then any remedy must be tried. Many 

 bag their buds with bags made of muslin, but I do not particularly 

 like them, as they often cause the petals to hug one another 

 when they are fully out. The best flowers are those which have 

 come out in the natural way with the softening influence of the 

 dews, and no check to interfere with nature's plan of perfecting 

 beauty. The grower must make up his mind to lose many buds 

 under any circumstances. 



About twelve or fourteen days before the show it will be 

 advisable to pot up a few buds — that is, place an inverted 

 32-size pot over them ; this is done by having a stake put in the 

 ground and a piece of wood a little larger than the pot, with a 

 slit in it for the stalk of the bud, the wood to be lifted up to the 

 height of the bud, and then made secure to the stake. The pot 

 will get warm by the sun's rays, and will be a little forcing 

 house for the bud. Take care to stop up all the crevices, as the 



