﻿258 
  Retrograde 
  Varieties 
  

  

  some 
  years 
  did 
  not 
  give 
  any 
  seed 
  at 
  all, 
  so 
  that 
  

   the 
  operation 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  repeated 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  

   continue 
  the 
  experiment. 
  Last 
  summer 
  (1903) 
  

   I 
  had 
  a 
  nice 
  lot 
  of 
  some 
  25 
  biennial 
  specimens 
  

   blooming 
  abundantly. 
  All 
  in 
  all 
  I 
  have 
  grown 
  

   some 
  500 
  hybrids, 
  and 
  of 
  these 
  about 
  150 
  speci- 
  

   mens 
  flowered. 
  

  

  These 
  plants 
  were 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  type, 
  re- 
  

   sembling 
  in 
  most 
  points 
  the 
  pollen-parent, 
  and 
  

   in 
  some 
  others 
  the 
  pistil-parent 
  of 
  the 
  original 
  

   cross. 
  The 
  most 
  obvious 
  characteristic 
  marks 
  

   are 
  afforded 
  by 
  the 
  flowers, 
  which 
  in 
  0. 
  muri- 
  

   cata 
  are 
  not 
  half 
  so 
  large 
  as 
  in 
  biennis, 
  

   though 
  borne 
  by 
  a 
  calyx-tube 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  

   length. 
  In 
  this 
  respect 
  the 
  hybrid 
  is 
  like 
  the 
  

   biennis 
  bearing 
  the 
  larger 
  flowers. 
  These 
  may 
  

   at 
  times 
  seem 
  to 
  deviate 
  a 
  little 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  

   of 
  the 
  other 
  parent, 
  being 
  somewhat 
  smaller 
  

   and 
  of 
  a 
  slightly 
  paler 
  color. 
  But 
  it 
  is 
  very 
  

   difficult 
  to 
  distinguish 
  between 
  them, 
  and 
  if 
  

   biennis 
  and 
  hybrid 
  flowers 
  were 
  separated 
  from 
  

   the 
  plants 
  and 
  thrown 
  together, 
  it 
  is 
  very 
  doubt- 
  

   ful 
  whether 
  one 
  would 
  succeed 
  in 
  separating 
  

   them. 
  

  

  The 
  next 
  point 
  is 
  offered 
  by 
  the 
  foliage. 
  The 
  

   leaves 
  of 
  0. 
  biennis 
  are 
  broad, 
  those 
  of 
  0. 
  muri- 
  

   cata 
  narrow. 
  The 
  hybrid 
  has 
  the 
  broad 
  leaves 
  

   of 
  0. 
  biennis 
  during 
  most 
  of 
  its 
  life 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  

   time 
  of 
  flowering. 
  Yet 
  small 
  deviations 
  in 
  the 
  

  

  