OF ORNAMENTAL PERENNIALS. 
5 
double, and semi-double ; and of every shade of purple, crimson, scarlet, salmon-coloured, buflF, orange, yellow, 
and white. It is said that the colour of the stems of seedlings gives some indication of that of the future flower ; 
the scarlet, crimson, and purple varieties having dark reddish stems, and the white and yellow pale ones. Some 
florists assert that it is only the Dahlias that have smooth shining florets, that are the true descendants of 
B. variaUlis ; and tliose of a velvety texture spring from B. rosea ; but this assertion does not appear to admit 
of proof, as all certain traces of the kind called by Cavanilles B. rosea have long vanished, and it probably was 
only a variety of B. variahilis. In many of the modern varieties, the flower-heads are nearly flat ; but in tbe 
Globe Dahlias the florets are so much recurved as to make the flowers appear quite round. The seeds of this 
species ripen freely ; and the varieties may be easily hybridized with each other. B. variahilis is a native of the 
sandy plains of Mexico, whence it was first introduced in 1789. 
2— DAHLIA COCCINEA, Cav. THE SCARLET DAHLIA. 
Synonymes. — D. frustranea, Ait.; D. bidentifolia, Sal.; D. i Engravings. — Bot. Mag. t. 762 ; and our _/7p. 2 in Plate 47. 
ponceau, Thouin ; G. coccinea, Willd. ; G. frustranea, Dec. 1 Specific Character. — Stem hoary. Florets of the ray barren. 
Description, &c. — This species is of a much more slender habit of growth than B. variahilis ; and it is more 
tender. The flowers are small, the seeds do not ripen freely, and the only colours that have been produced are 
scarlet, orange, and yellow •, the colour of the species being of a dull red. Some persons suppose the scarlet, 
yellow, and other light or yellowish varieties of B. variahilis, to be hybrids between that species and B. coccinea ; 
but others assert that the two species will not hybridize with each other ; a very remarkable circumstance, if the 
assertion shoifld prove correct. The first double flower of this species was raised in the Deptford Nursery in 
1818 ; but double flowers of it are by no means common. It was discovered by Baron Humboldt at the same 
time as B. variahilis, but it was not introduced into England till 1802, when a nurseryman named Fraser 
procured seeds of it from France. Fraser only appears to have raised one plant, which died soon after flowering 
in 1803 ; but the species was re-introduced by Lady Holland in 1804, and it has kept its place in our gardens. 
3.— DAHLIA CROCATA, Sesse. THE SAFFRON-COLOURED DAHLIA. 
Synonymes. — D. fulgens, Hort. ; Georgina crocata, D. Don. 
Engravings. — Swt. Brit. Flow. Gard. t. 282 ; and our fig. 1 in 
Plate 47. 
Specific Character. — Stem erect, fleshy, hollow, branched in the 
upper part. Lower leaves bipinnate or tripinnate; leaflets ovate, 
acuminate, obtusely serrated. Achenia linear. 
Description, &c. — This species is easily distinguished from B. coccinea, by its hollow stems (which are 
exceedingly tall and strong, and only branch at top), and its bipinnate leaves. It was raised from Mexican seeds, 
in the garden of Mrs. Hatch, at Claybury Hall, Essex, about 1812. The flowers are of a most brilliant scarlet, 
with a yellow disk ; and there are twelve or more florets in a single series in the ray. A sandy soil seems to 
suit it best, and it must be tied to a tall stake. 
4.— DAHLIA SCAPIGERA, Link et Otto. THE WHITE-FLOWERED DWARF DAHLIA. 
Engravings Flor. Cab. 1 . 118; Botanist, t. 161 ; and our^^. 5 
in Plate 47. 
Specific Character. — Stem very short, procumbent at tbe base, 
bearing numerous flower-stems, some of which bear only flowers, and 
others flowers and a single pair of leaves. Leaves pinnately divided ; 
leaflets oval, irregularly toothed, and unequally contracted at the base. 
Florets of the ray fertile. 
Description, &c. — This very elegant little plant is generally only about a foot high, and never exceeds two 
feet. The flowers are white, and the petals are more fleshy than those of the common kinds. It is called scape- 
