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  Fluctuations 
  

  

  a 
  number 
  of 
  introduced 
  wild 
  species, 
  among 
  

   which 
  the 
  Canna 
  indica 
  is 
  the 
  oldest, 
  now 
  giv- 
  

   ing 
  its 
  name 
  to 
  the 
  whole 
  group. 
  It 
  has 
  tall 
  

   stems 
  and 
  spikes 
  with 
  rather 
  inconspicuous 
  

   flowers 
  with 
  narrow 
  petals. 
  It 
  has 
  been 
  crossed 
  

   with 
  C. 
  nepalensis 
  and 
  C. 
  warczewiczii, 
  and 
  

   the 
  available 
  historic 
  evidence 
  points 
  to 
  the 
  

   year 
  1846 
  as 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  cross. 
  This 
  was 
  

   made 
  by 
  Annee 
  between 
  the 
  indica 
  and 
  the 
  ne- 
  

   palensis; 
  it 
  took 
  ten 
  years 
  to 
  multiply 
  them 
  to 
  

   the 
  required 
  degree 
  for 
  introduction 
  into 
  com- 
  

   merce. 
  These 
  first 
  hybrids 
  had 
  bright 
  foliage 
  

   and 
  were 
  tall 
  plants, 
  but 
  their 
  flowers 
  were 
  by 
  

   no 
  means 
  remarkable. 
  

  

  Once 
  begun, 
  hybridization 
  was 
  widely 
  prac- 
  

   ticed. 
  About 
  the 
  year 
  1889 
  Crozy 
  exhibited 
  at 
  

   Paris 
  the 
  first 
  beautifully 
  flowering 
  form, 
  which 
  

   he 
  named 
  for 
  his 
  wife, 
  " 
  Madame 
  Crozy.' 
  

   Since 
  that 
  time 
  he 
  and 
  many 
  others 
  have 
  im- 
  

   proved 
  the 
  flowers 
  in 
  the 
  shape 
  and 
  size, 
  as 
  well 
  

   as 
  in 
  color 
  and 
  its 
  patterns. 
  In 
  the 
  main, 
  

   these 
  ameliorations 
  have 
  been 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  discov- 
  

   ery 
  and 
  introduction 
  of 
  new 
  wild 
  species 
  pos- 
  

   sessing 
  the 
  required 
  characters. 
  This 
  is 
  illus- 
  

   trated 
  by 
  the 
  following 
  incident. 
  In 
  the 
  year 
  

   1892 
  I 
  visited 
  Mr. 
  Crozy 
  at 
  Lyons. 
  He 
  showed 
  

   me 
  his 
  nursery 
  and 
  numerous 
  acquisitions, 
  those 
  

   of 
  former 
  years 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  those 
  that 
  were 
  quite 
  

   new, 
  and 
  which 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  rapid 
  

  

  