Talks about Flowers Part 11

About 1812 probably the first double Dahlia was grown, but for several years after this both double and single varieties were figured in colored plates, and exhibited at horticultural shows. That the single varieties were prized is not strange, for the double were not very good, and even as late as 1818, published figures showed very imperfect flowers.

The improvement of the Dahlia after this was rapid, and its popularity quite kept pace with its improvement. Dahlia exhibitions were held in England and on the continent, which were crowded by enthusiastic admirers of this wonderful Mexican flower. For many years the Dahlia maintained its popularity, but there is a fashion in flowers, as in almost everything, and for a time the Dahlia became, to a certain extent, unfashionable, and this was well; for it placed the flower upon merit alone, and growers were compelled to introduce new and superior varieties to command either attention or sale for their favorite flower.

A taste for old styles is now the "correct thing," and so we have imitations of ancient earthenware, furniture, etc., and import _original_ Chinese Aster seed, and also obtain roots of the single Dahlia from Mexico.

There are three pretty distinct cla.s.ses, the _Show_ Dahlias, the Dwarf or Bedding, and the _Pompon_ or Bouquet, and to this we may add the _Fancy_ Dahlia. The _Show Dahlia_ grows from three to four feet in height, and embraces all our finest sorts, fit for exhibition at horticultural shows, from which the name is derived; the flowers range in size from two and a half to five inches in diameter. The striped and mottled and spotted varieties belonging to the Show section are called _Fancy_, and though not as rich, nor usually as highly prized as the selfs, or those of one color, are very attractive. The _Dwarf_ or _Bedding Dahlia_ grows about eighteen inches in height, and makes a thick, compact bush, and covers a good deal of surface; flowers of the size of Show Dahlias. They are therefore very desirable for bedding and ma.s.sing. The _Pompon_ or _Bouquet Dahlia_ makes a pretty, compact plant, about three feet in height. The leaves are small, and the flowers from one to two inches in diameter. Many expect to find small flowers on their Dwarf Dahlias, and feel disappointed because they are of the ordinary size, not knowing that it is the plant, and not the flower, that is dwarfed, and that only the Pompon gives the small flowers. The word _Pompon_ is French for topknot or trinket, meaning about the same as the English word c.o.c.kade. The English term _Bouquet_ is very appropriate, as the flowers are so small they are very suitable for bouquets. Being of a spreading habit, they cover a good deal of ground.

Unlike most of our bedding out plants, they do best in a poor soil; if rich, they grow to branches and leaves so much, they bloom sparingly and late.

Generally those who plant Dahlias purchase the tuberous roots, because they give good strong plants, that flower freely without trouble or risk. They are smaller and better than the large, coa.r.s.e roots usually grown, because they are raised from cuttings, and generally form their roots in pots. When a tuber is planted, a number of buds that cl.u.s.ter around its top will push and form shoots, and if too numerous, a portion should be removed; indeed, one good, strong plant will suffice, and then the plant will become a tree instead of a bush. Even then, if the top become too thick, a little thinning of the branches will be of advantage. If the young shoots that start from the neck of the bulb, are cut off near a joint and placed in a hot-bed in sandy soil, they will root, form good plants, and flower quite as well as plants grown from the tuber; this, however, requires some care and experience, and amateurs generally will succeed best with bulbs.

New varieties of Dahlias, of course, are from seed. Some of them prove good, others fair, and a portion utterly worthless. As a general rule, we would not advise amateurs to trouble with seeds, although there is pleasure in watching the birth and development of a new and beautiful variety.

The seed of Dahlias may be sown in pots in early spring or end of winter, in a light, loamy soil; they will germinate quickly, and as soon as they begin to show their second leaves they should be p.r.i.c.ked out into other pots or boxes, so that they may have plenty of room and air--they are very liable to damp off if at all crowded. After p.r.i.c.king out they should be kept in a thrifty, growing condition, by proper attention to watering and temperature; the temperature should be maintained as near 70 as possible, and the watering be sufficient to preserve a moderate moisture.

If the green fly attack them, it will be best to treat them to a very weak dilution of tobacco water; the young succulent plants are very sensitive to smoke, and it is best not to fumigate them. In about two months the young plants should be large enough to pot off singly, or to be transplanted into a frame or bed, where protection can be given them from the cold of night-time, or from late frosts. As soon as all danger is past they can be transplanted into their summer quarters, and should stand at least three feet apart. The soil where they are to grow, should be rich and mellow. In August they will come into flower, and those having blooms worthy of cultivation can be retained, and the others destroyed. Only a small proportion of the plants grown from common seed produce flowers equal to those now in cultivation, but when seed is saved from a choice collection of named varieties, the chances are that a large proportion of the plants will produce very good flowers.--_Vick's Magazine._

"The Dahlia is called a _gross feeder_, but it is not. It loves moisture rather than rich elemental food. In clay it finds the best const.i.tuents of its development--moisture, silex, lime and alumnia. So we say to those who love this queenly flower, if you would see the queen in all her glory, plant in a comparatively heavy soil, no manure, and reduce the stalks to one for each tuber, set the stakes firmly, to keep the stalks from swaying, and if the season is dry, give the bulbs a _soaking_ with water every evening during the drought. My word for it you will then be proud of your success."

The Pompon, or Bouquet Dahlia is a favorite variety of this genus. The little round b.a.l.l.s of bloom are so pretty and trim. _Beatrice_, blush tinted with violet; _Dr. Stein_, deep maroon, striped and mottled; _Goldfinder_, golden yellow; _Little Philip_, creamy-buff edged with lilac; _Little Valentine_, crimson; _Mein Streifling_, salmon, striped with crimson; _Pearl_, white; _Prima Donna_, white, fimbriated; _Perfection_, deep maroon.

SINGLE DAHLIAS.

Anything for a change from the common order of things, seems to be the fashion now-a-days, in flowers as well as in house building and house furnishing. The antique, the antique, is the rage! So after years of labor and hybridization to bring the Dahlia up from its native state of single blessedness, to its enormous cauliflower blooms, there comes a reaction, and now single Dahlias are praised as "the most beautiful of all flowers," the "_par excellence_ the Londoner's flower!" Well, let the English florists thus praise its beauty if they want to, but we opine that on this side of the great ocean it will never be considered "the most beautiful of all flowers," however attractive some of them may be, and well adapted for bouquets. There is no danger of their superseding the doubles, but it is well to have both when one can afford it; their present high price puts them beyond the reach of those whose purses are not well filled, but in a year or two, when the novelty is worn off, they can be purchased at half or even less, perhaps, than their present price.

We find in the London _Garden_ the following: "Dahlia perfecta, originally introduced by Messrs. Henderson, is perhaps the finest flower which we possess, unless Paragon, brought into notice by H. Cannell, may be considered to bear away the palm. Lutea, a quilled yellow, is also a grand bouquet flower."

The single Dahlias, Paragon and Lutea, are now offered for the first time in this country, by Messrs. Hallock & Thorp of Queens, N. Y., and the former is finely ill.u.s.trated in their catalogue. Color very dark velvety maroon with shadings of bright scarlet around each petal; small yellow disk. Lutea is pure yellow, with dark orange center. The same firm offer Dahlia Juarezii, of which Mr. Cannell says: "The grandest novelty of the year, and not only a novelty, but a most valuable and useful decorative plant for all purposes through the late summer and autumn months. Its blossoms are of a rich crimson, and very much resemble in shape and color the well-known Cactus, Cereus _speciosissimus_. Height about three feet, very bushy flowers of very striking appearance and quite unlike those of an ordinary double Dahlia, the flowerets being flat and not cupped. Figured in _Gardener's Chronicle_ October 4th, 1879, and awarded a Botanical Certificate Royal Horticultural Society."

The following statement was made in the _Gardener's Chronicle_ respecting this new type:

"A remarkable box of Dahlias was shown by Messrs. Cannell with three or four of the single forms, which, if it were not heresy to say so, we should so much prefer to the formal lumps so dear to the florist proper; and then there was a new type of Dahlia altogether, a Sea Anemone among Dahlias, with long crimson scarlet pointed petals, like the tentacles of an Antinia--a striking novelty, christened temporarily the Cactus Dahlia, and which will be the parent of a new strain. It received a Botanical Certificate; some said this ought to have a higher award, but what higher or more appropriate form of a certificate could be given to such a flower. If we were a Dahlia, we should greatly prefer the honor of a 'Botanical,' to that of a 'First Cla.s.s Certificate.'"

This new type is ill.u.s.trated in Hallock & Thorp's Catalogue.

Two new Dahlias not yet introduced in this country are included among the novelties of 1881. _Cannell's Scarlet_, a Show Dahlia, several shades higher and brighter in color than any scarlet before introduced.

"Its shape is most model-like, and not excelled by any other, and is without doubt the best Dahlia of the year." _Miss Cannell_, (Eckford)--"Mr. Eckford's Dahlia, Memorial, was the king of best shapes for many years, but the one now offered is of greater excellence, and by far the best of its cla.s.s; color white, tipped with rose-pink, and the depth and build of flower is most model-like."

AMARYLLIS.

These are the finest of all summer flowering bulbs, throwing up strong flower stems in June and July, bearing from two to six magnificent lily-like blossoms. The varieties are numerous, but only a few sorts are found catalogued. Amaryllis Johnsonii is the finest of the commonly grown varieties. Its leaves are a dark rich green, two inches broad, and two feet long. The flowers which are five or six inches long, are crimson with a white stripe through the center of each petal, and are borne upon a stalk two feet high. They usually bloom twice a year, the flowers appearing just as the leaves begin to grow.

Amaryllis formosissima is of a very peculiar form. The flowers are scarlet-crimson, very velvety in appearance; there are six petals, three of them nearly erect, and three drooping very long. After being bedded out, it quickly throws up a flower stalk and blooms before the leaves appear. It is a superb flower, known sometimes by the name of Jacobean Lily. Amaryllis vittata is a splendid hybrid, red ground striped with white. Amaryllis Valotta purpurea is an evergreen variety, and should be kept growing the year round. In August it throws up a flower-stem from one foot to eighteen inches high, bearing a cl.u.s.ter of light scarlet flowers two or three inches in diameter. A light soil and small pot suits it best. Mr. John Lewis Child of Queens, N. Y., has a finer collection and more numerous varieties than are usually found named in the catalogues. Some of them we will specify. Johnsonii Grandiflora, an improvement on the well-known Johnsonii Harrisoni, large, pure white, with double crimson streaks running through each petal. It has a delicious, orange-blossom fragrance. Reticulata, a bright rose color, the foliage is very attractive--dark green with a white stripe running through the center of each leaf. Aulica Stenopelalon, a magnificent species, having large orange crimson flowers, beautifully veined with scarlet. "Equestre fl. pl. This grand novelty was discovered in 1877, in one of the West India Islands. The flowers are perfectly double, resembling those of a large Camellia. Its color is rich, fiery orange red. We believe we have the only stock of this beautiful flower in America." JOHN L. CHILD.

This and Harrisoni, are priced at $4.50, so they must be very rare and beautiful. Aspasie, white, tinted with yellow and red; large and perfect. Crinum Amaenum, new and very beautiful, white-striped crimson.

Lutea, a hardy variety, which blooms in the autumn; pure yellow.

Calafornica, pure white.

The bulbs are of easy culture. After blooming, and the foliage fully grown, they should be allowed to rest for several months, then start into growth by watering sparingly until the flower stalks appear, when a more liberal supply should be given. Usually two successions of bloom can thus be obtained. The bulb should be planted so as to leave the upper portion uncovered.

HOYA CARNOSA, OR WAX PLANT.

This plant is a native of tropical Asia, where it is partially parasitical, its roots penetrating the bark of the trees which support it. It was introduced into England in 1802. There are several species, but only one is generally cultivated. Hoya Carnosa has thick waxy leaves, and bears umbels of beautiful flesh-colored flowers which are very wax-like in appearance. It is an excellent plant for house culture as it stands the extremes of heat and cold better than most plants, and is not easily injured by neglect. It can be trained to climb on trellis-work to almost any height, and when in bloom, which continues for half the year, it is a very interesting plant.

There are several varieties of Hoya, but one only is generally cultivated. _Silver Variegated Foliage_ is said to be very handsome but is of slow growth and difficult to propagate. _Imperialis_ is a new variety with beautiful foliage and scarlet flowers. _Cunningham_ has light green leaves, deeper colored flowers than the Carnosa and is a rapid grower.

They succeed best in peat, with some fibrous soil and sand. They must have perfect drainage, and require a period of rest. Hoya Carnosa is easily propagated from cuttings. A very good method is to wrap a cutting in moss, keeping it moist until the roots are well started.

Among My Flowers.

August is the month when we rest from our labor in gardening, and abandon ourselves to the full enjoyment of the varied blossoms which so abundantly meet our eye. Now we can best determine what changes may be required in the arrangement of our plants next year, in order to give the most pleasing effect. A tall plant may have been inadvertently set out in the midst of those of low growth, and we see now how awkward it looks. Short-lived annuals may have occupied a conspicuous place, and on their departure left an unseemly vacancy. A bed may have been filled with a cla.s.s of plants that are not free bloomers, and so there has been little beside leaves, while another bed has been brilliant during all the summer months with flowers. Annuals of a new kind, high-priced novelties, have been tested; are they any better than our old favorites?

If we cannot indulge in many sorts, what do we find the most satisfactory? Twenty-five cents per packet seemed very expensive for Heddewigii Pinks, but Crimson Belle and Eastern Queen are of such superior size and rare beauty that the investment is not regretted, and then we know that they will bloom in greater perfection next year, and that the seed saved this autumn and sown in early spring, will increase the stock. Twenty-five cents for a paper of Candytuft seed looks extravagant, but no one who invests in Tom Thumb would regret it. It is so dwarf, so compact and bushy, such a long continued bloomer, so admirable for edging a bed, that it is really almost an essential. Then it will sow itself, and the seedlings will be up as soon as the frost is out of the ground, and plants from self-sown seed are so much more thrifty and early than those one sows in the spring, that this is a great gain.

Candytuft--white, pink, light purple, dark purple and crimson, I find it well worth while to culture for early and profuse flowers, and admirably adapted for bouquets. I always have large quant.i.ties of the white, to set off the brighter flowers, and by sowing seed in June and July, have a succession of blooming plants. Foxglove, both white and purple, with their thimble-shaped spotted blossoms profusely borne on tall spikes, with side branches loaded with bloom, has been one of the greatly admired flowers of my garden. Plumbago, with its cl.u.s.ters of tube flowers, of the palest of blue, is very beautiful. G.o.detia, "Lady Albemarle," I have found to be all that it is represented. For two months it has been in constant bloom, and it will continue to flower till frost. It is of a bushy, compact habit, about twelve inches high, the flowers are from three to four inches in diameter, and of a rosy-carmine color. Everybody who has seen it, has a word of praise for this most beautiful of all the G.o.detias. _Alba_ is a new variety, having pure white flowers; _Insignis_ is pure white with a crimson blotch on each petal; _Whitney's_ is of dwarf habit, and has large flowers, blush-colored, marked about the center with a handsome crimson stain.

The new French Marigolds "Cloth of Gold," and "Meteor" are just splendid with their large and beautifully striped imbricated leaves. One has gold bars evenly marked on the rich dark velvety petals, and the other has deep orange stripes on a pale straw-colored, almost white ground.

"Meteor" is a perfect gem among the Calendulas.

Convolvulus minor--new crimson-violet with yellow eye encircled with a band of pure white; dark blue and light blue with yellow eye margined with white; pure white with yellow eye, and blue and white striped, are very pretty free-blooming dwarfs of this species.

My Stocks are very fine, from mixed seed of the German, new large flowering. They are mostly very double. The creamy white are especially beautiful. The bright crimson and canary yellow are handsome. There are many varieties of this species, but what are generally termed Ten-weeks Stock are best known. They are cla.s.sed under five heads: Dwarf, Miniature, Large-flowered, Pyramidal and Wall-flower-leaved. Then there are the Intermediate Stocks, prized for their late autumn blooming, of which there are twelve or more varieties. The German Brompton Stocks are divided into two sections; Brompton and Hybrid, or Cocordean. The latter bloom with a single stem which forms a splendid pyramid of flowers, and is cultivated largely in pots. Seeds sown in early spring will bloom in autumn, and if carefully potted will flower during winter; if sown in July and August, and cultivated in pots will flower the following spring and summer. The Imperial or Emperor stocks, sometimes called Perpetual, are large flowering, and white, rose, crimson and blood-red in color.

"Hardy's All-the-Year-Round," is a perpetual bloomer. The plants grow about twelve inches high, and produce hundreds of bunches of double white flowers.

Let us linger a little while at this rose bed. Are not those Teas lovely? Look at Madame Lambard, one of the finest French roses imported recently from Paris. Is not the color exquisite--a beautiful shade of silver bronze, changing to salmon and fawn, delicately shaded with carmine rose. And so deliciously fragrant! That rose so large and full, with a rare shade of violet red, brightened with crimson maroon, is Aline Sisley. It is surprising how such a tiny plant could have produced such an immense flower! And this is Letty Coles, a new French rose, very handsome and sweet; color rosy-pink, deeply shaded with intense crimson.

Perle des Jardins is magnificent with its rich golden yellow, and Bon Silene has long been a special favorite. Its buds are large and beautiful. That charming white so deliciously scented is Mademoiselle Rachel, and this one with pure deep green flowers is Verdiflora, or Green Rose, scentless, and of no value except as a curiosity.

This grand rose is Abel Carriere, a hybrid perpetual more beautiful I think than the popular Jacqueminot in the perfectness of its form, and richness of its color. The outer petals are bright glowing crimson-scarlet, while the center is a deep fiery red. But it will never do to linger longer among the sweet roses, for there are many other flowers to show you.

I think that Hydrangea, with its immense trusses of bloom, is just one of the most desirable shrubs we can have in the garden. I have had mine six or seven years, and it bore three cl.u.s.ters of flowers the first year, though a wee plant. It blooms from August till hard frost, and needs no protection in the winter, though I do sometimes put a mulching of straw or a bit of brush around the roots. A lady writing to _Vick's Magazine_ says of this Hydrangea: "The first year I planted _Hydrangea Grandiflora_ it produced three heads of flowers, the second, fifty-six, and the third year ninety-two. Thorough cultivation and a pail of liquid manure once a week, helped the plant to bear this enormous load of flowers."

Hydrangea _Alaska_ is a more recent acquisition. Its flowers frequently measure twelve inches across, and are of a bright pink color, not hardy at the North. _Hydrangea Thomas Hogg_ would be a very unpoetical name did it not remind one of "The Ettrick Shepherd." This variety was sent to the United States from j.a.pan, by that eminent botanist for whom it is named, and has become deservedly popular. It belongs to the Hortensia section of the family, but is a far more abundant bloomer than any other. The flowers are of the purest white, of very firm texture, and retain their beauty for a long time.

A more recent novelty sent from j.a.pan by Mr. Hogg, is the "New Climbing Hydrangea," which he describes as clinging to trees to the height of fifty feet, producing corymbs of white flowers of the size of ordinary Hydrangeas. It clings exactly like the Ivy, and must produce a striking effect when in full bloom. It is entirely hardy. Mr. Peter Henderson was the first to offer this novelty here and in Europe. _Elegantissima_ is a novelty truly with its leaves flaked, bordered and striped with golden yellow. I do not know whether it blossoms or not, it is handsome enough without flowers.

HELIOTROPE.

The new Heliotrope _Le Negre_ is the darkest of this genus, and _Snow Wreath_ the nearest approach to white we have yet had; truss very large, growth compact, and fragrance exquisite. _Garibaldi_ is almost white; _Mrs. Burgess_ is dark violet, and _Duc de Lavendury_ is a rich blue, dark eye.

[Ill.u.s.tration]

Sweet Alyssum is another of the essential flowers for the border, admirable for edgings, for its dwarf habit and continuity of bloom. The great novelty of last year was the new double variegated Sweet Alyssum--"The Gem." The flowers are very full, and the foliage broad with a mid-rib of light green, bordered on each side with pure white. It is a fine, compact grower, and far superior to anything of this species yet offered.