﻿350 
  Ever-sporting 
  Varieties 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  cultivated 
  a 
  new 
  generation 
  of 
  this 
  

   race 
  nearly 
  every 
  year 
  since 
  1894, 
  using 
  always 
  

   the 
  strictest 
  selection. 
  This 
  has 
  led 
  to 
  a 
  uni- 
  

   form 
  type, 
  but 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  adequate 
  to 
  produce 
  

   any 
  further 
  improvement. 
  Obviously 
  the 
  ex- 
  

   treme 
  limit, 
  under 
  the 
  conditions 
  of 
  climate 
  and 
  

   soil, 
  has 
  been 
  reached. 
  This 
  extreme 
  type 
  is 
  

   always 
  dependent 
  upon 
  repeated 
  selection. 
  No 
  

   constant 
  variety, 
  in 
  the 
  older 
  sense, 
  has 
  been 
  

   obtained, 
  nor 
  was 
  any 
  indication 
  afforded 
  that 
  

   such 
  a 
  type 
  might 
  ever 
  be 
  produced. 
  On 
  the 
  

   contrary, 
  it 
  is 
  manifest 
  that 
  the 
  new 
  form 
  be- 
  

   longs 
  to 
  the 
  group 
  of 
  ever-sporting 
  varieties. 
  

   It 
  is 
  never 
  quite 
  free 
  from 
  the 
  old 
  atavistic 
  

   type 
  of 
  the 
  trifoliolate 
  leaves, 
  and 
  invariably, 
  

   when 
  external 
  conditions 
  become 
  less 
  favorable, 
  

   this 
  atavistic 
  form 
  is 
  apt 
  to 
  gain 
  dominion 
  over 
  

   the 
  more 
  refined 
  varietal 
  character. 
  Rever- 
  

   sions 
  always 
  occur, 
  both 
  partial 
  and 
  individual. 
  

  

  Some 
  instances 
  of 
  these 
  reversions 
  may 
  now 
  

   be 
  given. 
  They 
  are 
  not 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  striking 
  char- 
  

   acter 
  as 
  those 
  of 
  the 
  snapdragon. 
  Intermediate 
  

   steps 
  are 
  always 
  occurring, 
  both 
  in 
  the 
  leaves 
  

   themselves, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  percentages 
  of 
  deviating 
  

   seedlings 
  of 
  the 
  several 
  parent 
  plants. 
  

  

  On 
  normal 
  plants 
  of 
  my 
  variety 
  the 
  quinque- 
  

   foliolate 
  leaves 
  usually 
  compose 
  the 
  majority, 
  

   when 
  there 
  are 
  no 
  weak 
  lateral 
  branches, 
  or 
  

   when 
  they 
  are 
  left 
  out 
  of 
  consideration. 
  Next 
  

  

  