REQUISITES OF A PERFECT FLOWER. 
after the peace of 1815, that it became an object of professional 
care, when a supply was obtained in England, from France, where its 
cultivation had already been carried to some extent; since which 
period, an indefinite number of varieties has been procured by the per¬ 
severing ingenuity of the florist, and a monomania for this flower 
existed for many years unsurpassed in inveteracy, save, by the extra¬ 
ordinary 11 Tulipomania” of the seventeenth century. This has in 
some degree subsided, and the Dahlia is taking its proper rank as a 
deservedly esteemed flower, blooming at a season of the year when 
the number of flowering plants in the open garden is very limited. 
The name of Dahlia was given to it in honor of Dahl, a Swedish 
botanist and a pupil of Linnaeus; there was an attempt to change it 
to G-eorgina, and on the continent this has prevailed to a considerable 
extent; but in England and this country, it has been entirely rejected. 
REQUISITES OP A PERFECT FLOWER. 
The following characteristics are agreed upon by the London Flon- 
cultural Society as necessary to the perfection of the Dahlia :— 
1st. The general form should be that of about two thirds of a sphere, 
or globe. The rows of petals forming this globe should describe un¬ 
broken circles, lying over each other with evenness and regularity, 
and gradually diminishing until they approach the top. The petals 
comprising each succeeding row should be spirally arranged and alter¬ 
nate, like the scales of the fir cone, thereby concealing the joints and 
making the circle more complete. 
2d. The petals should be broad at the ends, perfectly free from notch 
or indention of anv kind, firm in substance, and smooth in texture. 
They should be bold and free, and gently -cup, but never curl or quill, 
nor show the under sides; they should be of uniform size, and evenly 
expanded in each row, being largest in the outer rows, aud gradually 
and proportionately diminishing until they approach the summit, when 
they should gently turn the reverse way, pointing towards and form¬ 
ing a nea - and close centre. 
