OFTHEDAHLIA 17 
foregone conclusion. More failures are due to too rich 
soil, than too poor soil; too early and too shallow 
planting; too much rather than too little water. 
If your dahlia plants are tall, luxuriant, rankly 
growing, but bear few blooms, the soil is too rich, par- 
ticularly in nitrogen, or they do not have sunshine 
enough, or they have too much water. Any one of 
these conditions is likely to result in poor and scanty 
flowering. Often the home gardener has allowed all 
three conditions to afflict his cherished plants. Of 
course, if he starts wrong, there will be disappointments 
all the way along to the bitter end. The tubers may 
have been planted too near the surface, in which case 
the roots will dry out during the fierce heats of summer. 
Plant not less than six inches deep, and always place 
the tuber upon its side, flat, sprout uppermost. If in 
doubt as to the sprout's starting point, lay the tubers in 
a little earth, in a box, or in the garden, anywhere, in a 
warm, sunny location. Keep the soil moist and in a 
very few days the sprout, if the tuber ever is to produce 
one, will show itself. Then plant, six inches deep, in 
its proper place in the garden. 
It ought to go without saying that only one tuber, 
or one plant, is placed in a position. Yet multitudes 
of folks every season plant the entire clump that was 
dug the fall before, without dividing the tubers. Inas- 
much as the average yield is thirteen tubers per clump, 
and twenty tubers are not uncommon, it does not require 
