414 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 



experience, inasmuch as their information on the threadbare subjects 

 of soils, manures, propagation, general cultivation, positions, and 

 so on, appear so exactly alike that surely the last word has been 

 said on the cultivation of the Dahlia. All the same, the would-be 

 grower to-day finds that he has plenty to learn from actual experience 

 before he becomes proficient in Dahlia-growing, as naturally is the 

 case with all other flowers of which one makes a speciality. 



I should like to find out the name of the individual who first put 

 it abroad that the Dahlia was eminently suitable for growing amongst 

 shrubs, or at the edge of a shrubbery, for his name should certainly 

 go down to posterity. It has never yet been my good fortune to see 

 really good Dahlias growing in such surroundings, though I have seen 

 thousands of Dahlias endeavouring to exist under such adverse con- 

 ditions. One has only to reflect for a moment to recall the fact that 

 a Dahlia plant has to make its main growth between the months of 

 June and September to realize the impossibility of such a feat under 

 these adverse conditions. 



The Dahlia requires air and sun to develop its greatest capabilities, 

 and it is only under these conditions that we see it in its best form. 

 The plants should be staked out so that the growth may be properly 

 matured, and no Dahlia bundled up like a faggot can produce 

 satisfactory results. On the other hand, I cannot appreciate the huge 

 stakes that appear to be quite a necessary equipment to most Dahlia- 

 growers. Our aim should be to secure the plant from strong winds, 

 and at the same time hide our machinery for accomplishing this 

 purpose. 



It is pleasing to note that all sections of the flower are now being 

 cared for, and it is significant that the Floral Committee of the R.H.S. 

 are now recommending awards to Dahlias that a few years ago would 

 have been laughed at because they lack the rigid form required by 

 the florist. 



In conclusion I should like to pay a tribute to the splendid 

 Dahlia trials carried out by Mr. R. Cory at Duffryn, Cardiff. It is 

 only under such conditions that a true idea of the value of the Dahlia 

 as a decorative garden plant can be appreciated. The old nursery 

 lines were entirely absent, the plants under trial being grouped under 

 the most natural conditions, with the result that the Dahlia as seen 

 at Duffryn should find a reflection in many other gardens. 



